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Tag: value

Do you know your value?

Your value is much more than a dollar amount. It’s your time, your emotional investment, your energy, your connections. It’s your life.

Your worth is not just about confidence. It’s your dreams, where you’re going, what you want. It’s knowing what you need to get there and asking for it, unapologetically and with conviction.

By recognizing your worth, you’re helping colleagues and partners understand your art and the work that you do. You’re giving permission for others to acknowledge your greatness, and you’re making it easier for them to do so. In fact, knowing your worth will make many things easier — decisions, saying no, welcoming that which brings you joy, defining roles within both personal relationships and work agreements.

The confidence you have in yourself is contagious. Understand you’re bettering others by bettering yourself.

Listen wisely.

There are times you’ll feel like giving up.
Something else will come along, tempt you, appeal to your vulnerability, try to lure you back to the world you wanted to leave in the first place.
And then…

  • long hours
  • sleepless nights
  • infrequent, unreliable pay
  • instability, uncertainty
  • temporary narrowed vision, neglect of self and others
  • an obsessive desire to work (all of the time!)
  • scrapping, hustling, clinging, clawing
  • frustration
  • failing
  • loneliness
  • despair

What is louder: momentary discomfort or the dreams you have for yourself?
You’ll hear lots of voices — of fear, of doubters, of jealous naysayers…
Of the true calling of your heart.
Listen wisely.

19 things you can do instead of grad school

I’ve witnessed firsthand the business our education system has become.

I strongly advise anyone considering graduate school to carefully consider whether this investment is necessary in order to obtain the position and professional satisfaction they are looking for.

Many of the skills needed to thrive in our economy are not obtained in classrooms. You may want to consider these learning experiences before you sign your letter of intent:

  1. Volunteer. Help your local farmers’ market, assist the neighborhood school, sign up for an overseers program. A simple google search should yield a few options.
  2. Find an apprenticeship. The Department of Labor lists registered offerings and you can search by your state.
  3. Be an intern. They’re not just for undergrads. Offer your services to a company whose mission and values you admire.
  4. Get a mentor. Ask for introductions to industries you’re interested in. Identify individuals who have the kind of career trajectory you want.
  5. Be mentor. This is one of the best ways to solidify what you do know. You may surprise yourself.
  6. Take a Skillshare class.
  7. Join the General Assembly community.
  8. Check out classes at a community college. Find one near you here.
  9. Take advantage of free online education: Coursera‎, Khan Academy, Academic Earth, GCF Learn Free, Open Courseware Consortium, iTunes U, Textbook Revolution.
  10. Travel. (I wish this was mandatory for all graduating students.)
  11. Start a blog. Get into the habit of putting your thoughts into words.
  12. Get yourself a library card. Read and read and read some more.
  13. Place yourself in new environments and experience new things. Go on an adventure, learn a trade, take a woodworking course.
  14. Show initiative and take on new projects at work.
  15. Organize groups through Meetup or other social platforms (TabUp, Kitchen Surfing).
  16. Spend time in your local art studio.
  17. Submit op-ed articles to your newspaper.
  18. Ask for informational interviews from a variety of professions and roles.
  19. Take time off. Don’t rush into any decision. That graduate program will [most likely] be there next year.

Did you attend or skip grad school? Was it “worth it” and are you using your degree now? Send me a note with your thoughts.

Success + generosity = no accident

Observation #1: The most successful people I know are also the most generous.

  • Leaders who give their time and of themselves endear those around them, building trust and respect among teams.
  • “Scarcity mentality” repels and detracts from passion, energy, and fulfillment.
  • Altruism and great financial success are not mutually exclusive.

Observation #2: Some of the best connections arise from places of abundance and giving.

  • When you are focused on “the other,” conversations are more meaningful, authentic energy is exchanged, better solutions can be brainstormed.
  • Folks can sense greed and selfishness; it is not attractive.

Observation #3: By giving to others, you can more clearly identify what brings you joy.

Thanks to Pictomins for The Generosity Spiral!

  • True growth comes from helping others, encouraging someone’s dreams, furthering their project.
  • Helping may be learned as a practiced skill but can emerge as a core element of your being.
  • Most artists, creators, and makers are givers — they share physically, mentally, and emotionally of themselves. Dedicated to their craft, they put their art into the world expecting little (if anything) in return. The emphasis is on the work, the sharing, and not necessarily the outcome.
  • Meaningful dreams evolve from a special sauce of individual enthusiasm, passion, sweat — and the generosity of others.

Tweet at me. I’d love to hear your thoughts on generosity and success.

This post was inspired by this week’s #cxchat Q3: How has generosity helped build your network? You can read a summary of responses here or join our next #cxchat Monday (6/17) at 2pm ET.

It might not work.

The moment before you ship.

There’s a second of hesitation. You question whether you’re going to look like a fool, if your idea is stupid, if you’re wasting your time.

I had one of those this week.

Actually, I was petrified. I was trying something new, and I was scared it wasn’t going to work.

When you face moments of “This might not work,” do you turn around or keep going?

I wasn’t sure what was going to happen with #cxchat. I’ve seen twitter chats before, and I’ve questioned their value. I wasn’t convinced participants share authentically and reveal honest opinions. I was worried that no one would show up and thought I would be answering my own questions.

If you overcome fear and risk looking like a fool, good things can happen.

Not only did people participate, they shared. They shared their successes, their tools for creation, their secrets for building communities.

Digital strategists, managers, entrepreneurs, comedians (here’s looking at you, Matt Haze), designers, coders, coaches, artists, producers, writers, strategists, and marketers from all over the nation joined in. Responses were generous, thoughtful, honest, real. One of the participants even designed an incredible booklet for all to share; it’s now featured on Slideshare.

You can see what else was discussed during the chat here.

New connections, new resources, new perspectives.

I’d say #cxchat was a success. I’m glad I didn’t let fear get in the way.

(For those of you who missed it, we’ll be hosting another #cxchat Tuesday at 4pm ET.)

The next time you think, “This probably won’t work,” dive in, headfirst, and relax knowing most mistakes can be corrected. Who knows, you may stumble upon something great…

The most valuable unit

When finalizing a product, shipping art, or editing work, it’s easy to get lost in details. Scraping through drafts and searching for the finish, time passes without recognition. We forgo ourselves and others in order to see completion.

Athletes call it The Zone. A moment when you and performance mix with sacrifice and joy and little else matters. Vision becomes narrow, your focus steadfast and locked onto the end result. All the rest, from relationships to household duties, fades into periphery.

Consider your must trusted communities. Most likely, you’ve endured together, you’ve grown together, or you’ve experienced hard work together. Challenging times weave lasting bonds, and nuances become sacred. We separates us from them.

Why, then, do we race towards finish lines alone? Some of the greatest benefits of creation’s final stages — the connections, the struggle, the lasting memories — fall victim to schedules, timelines, preoccupation, and restricted sight.

We’ve entered a new economy. One in which people have become the most valuable unit. Do you create time in your day to connect with those around you? What will support you when you need it most: your work or the relationships you’ve made along the way?

The Project Exponential community continues to grow. We’re building stronger connections and finding even more ways to help you do your best work. If you missed this morning’s newsletter, see what we’re up to here.