I’ve been deliberating about several career moves lately. It can be hard to discern at times which thoughts are just good ol fashion fear of failure and which thoughts merit examination. We all are capable of making plans, it is the unknown outcomes that muddy the waters that can wash over your path along the way. Like Mike Tyson said, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.” So when I came across the TED Talk below which focuses on what makes a startp successful, I listened hard. So what does makes a startup (or anything else you could argue) successful? Timing. I agree with what Bill Gross shares in his TED Talk. Perhaps you will too. So now the challenge becomes, jumping when the time is right, even if you don’t feel 100% prepared. Sometimes you just have to go and do before the right timing slips away. To hear what Bill Gross, founder and CEO of Idealab has to share, listen here.
What Is It Really Worth? Or, If You Aren’t Contributing Give Up Your Seat At The Table
With stats showing over 75% of the U.S. workforce is unhappy with their job(s) you have to begin to wonder why they stay. Where is the value for them in maintaining the misery, not only for themselves, but most likely, the ripple impacts their family and friends? Money and/or family, is the response I most often hear in regards to folks who consciously show up to a job they don’t like, and often full on hate. One, your family and friends want you to be happy. Two, there is most likely a job out there for you that you’d enjoy and would pay what you need to live a happy life. Three, if you are not looking for a better job, you can not find a better job. And four, perhaps there is someone out there that would really dig the job you are in. Summary: If you are at the table and not contributing, give up your seat to someone who will. You can’t find the right fit and fall into the right slot without shaking things up a bit.
Dear Control Freak
Dear Control Freak…This is not a judgement, but a confession. I use to be a control freak. The whole giant amalgamation of every stereotype that comes with the term. I wanted to control time, outcomes, visions, dynamics, etc. I like to look back and think to myself, ‘how adorable you thought that controlling everything was possible or productive.’ Is wanting to have control understandable? Absolutely. Is it productive? No. Does it lead to the best outcomes? No. Why? Several reasons, and here they come… You are not a mighty fortress, no matter what you think. Process is an organic activity and if you try to control it all by yourself you will fail. You will fail on so many levels it would make a clown cry. One, you fail yourself as control eliminates your perspective to actively balance your own life. It also limits the incoming flow of knowledge you have access to, as well as the potential for growth, as you will most likely feel you already have things under control. You will fail your business/employer by placing limits on outcomes forcing them into the realm of your desired picture. You will fail those who have to collaborate with you as they will no longer provide their “A” game, knowing it will not matter as you will shape outcomes the way you want to. You will fail your friends and family on multiple levels as they will see less of you while you are busy being master of the universe, as well as, you are probably limiting their potential on some level when you are around. What will you get from being a control freak? All the blame, as no one else has a claim to the input on a project that fails. And perhaps even something like high blood pressure. And of course that golden moment when it all comes tumbling down and you have to admit to yourself that you, along with the rest of us, really have no control after all. The good news, what you do have is the capacity to deliver your best day to day efforts and know that is enough, without having to have control.
The Positive Impact Of Complaining
As for the positive impact of complaining…there is none. There are positive outcomes to constructive feedback, offering alternatives, and/or taking ownership of a potential new course of action. I’m not saying that your life is happy, joyful, fun-filled all the time as we know this is not the case. I am saying framing action addressing the less desirable components of your life and/or job, is an amazing step and opportunity to add more fun, joy and happy into it.
Survival of the Fittest? Competition vs. Cooperation
Survival of the Fittest? Competition vs. Cooperation? Our culture has the propensity to value competition over all else. Often rooted in the Darwin alleged theory of survival of the fittest. I’m not sure how Darwin’s theory morphed into the manner of how we often flippantly interpret it. I am however sure that interpretation is off base when it comes to the workplace. Cooperation and adaptability is what Darwin was focused on. Darwin himself only mentioned survival of the fittest twice. In contrast he mentioned the concept of love/cooperation/adaptability (call it what you want) ninety-five times. He was correct. Cooperation will win every time when you look at the big picture. And in the workplace it will create a more productivity, higher return on ongoing efforts and perhaps even re-engage the over 70% of employees out there that are actively disengaged in their jobs. That is a lot of unproductive dollars going to wages for unproductive work. Creating a culture of cooperation increases your culture of adaptability and will result in increased ROI, increased employee retention, higher productivity, etc. It will maximize both time and results.
Less Than Perfect, More Than Magnificent
On Being Brave I am not change adverse. I change all the time, jobs, homes, cities, states. Sometimes people view that as being brave. Sometimes people view it as being weak. It is all perspective. We are who we are and those who try to define us really have no say in the matter. I am who I was in sixth grade, just taller and I’d like to believe smarter. I’m still the same person who would get sick on the first day of school, just with the ability to hide my nervousness better. I’m still the same person who craves stability, just with the knowledge now that we have very little control in this life no matter how much we’d like to pretend we do. I am almost always nervous or scared on some shadow level. I am brave though because I am the only one who knows it.
The Joy In Taking On “Drastic” Changes
A beautiful, talented, under utilized, under appreciated friend said yesterday she is making “drastic changes.” My response to that is “YAY!” Sometimes we need to jump to rise up out of our funk. I think a post from Dr. Bryan Schuetz says it best. The good doctor’s post include the following (some I’ve paraphrased.) As Jack London said: “I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.” Need help getting ready to jump? 1) Know your dream. 2) Protect your dream. 3) “Live your dream as if your life depends on it, because it really does.” ~Dr. Bryan Schuetz If you’d like to get Dr. Schuetz’s daily quotes, check out http://www.daily-motivational-quote.com . Two things about it…it is free…and the quotes and posts are good.
Change Is Good (Not Always Easy, But Good)
I came across the picture and quote below today. Is it time to pull the trigger on some change action you’ve been thinking about and/or discussing? The truth is that there is no amount of discussion, thought or planning that will guarantee what you want. The only way to find out how it ends, is to start down the path.
In Your Face
Want to lose weight? Do the yoga plow pose and have a roll of fat from your gut right up in your face. Now the example of the woman above shows you the pose part not the fat part. I could show you the fat part, but trust me…you do not want to see it. I don’t want to see it and it is my fat. This is all an excellent reminder that to address any change, we must first acknowledge the need/issue is there, right in front of our face waiting to be changed. The only thing it is waiting on is our action.