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Tag: work

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.

The best opportunities

Most really talented people are never discovered. Most will never make it onto the Best Sellers list, won’t speak at TED, won’t be contacted by NPR.

Chances are you may never find yourself on the big screen. That manuscript? It might end up in more trash cans than hands. And your promising business venture? You’ll be lucky if you get funded within the first ten pitches.

So you have a choice: you can sit back and wait to be called upon…

Or you can claim ownership of your own success.

Don’t wait for the best opportunities to find you. Create them.

Steps can you take to build your tribe, ship your art, design a viable solution — today:

  • Start a blog and schedule a regular publishing calendar.
  • Organize monthly roundtables with speakers of varied and interesting content.
  • Record a series of podcasts on subjects you’d like to learn more about.
  • Make sure your plan doesn’t include a stroke of luck or a winning lotto ticket.
  • Pitch your mentor, pitch your friend, practice your pitch on the stranger in the elevator.
  • Plan a film festival in a friend’s backyard (or rooftop).
  • Set a recurring alarm and write for twenty minutes each day.
  • Gather three friends and meet every other week to discuss challenges and progress.

Note: This blog post may sound harsh, but I want you to realize this is your life, your career, your dreams, your goals. No one else will take responsibility for them.

Are you afraid to fail (and talk about it)?

At a recent curated dinner, I asked leaders from a variety of industries to discuss a topic that doesn’t often enter first conversations: failure.

The most successful among us have failed, yet it is a subject riddled with anxiety and fear. We are afraid to be called out as a fraud, so we avoid talking about moments of doubt and insecurity. It is, in fact, the ability to screw up and fail that drives innovation, creativity, clarity, success, and more…

Brené Brown says moments of struggle and failure help us realize who we are.

Seth Godin received hundreds of rejection letters before finding that crack in the system.

Jason Russell and the Invisible Children team hosted countless school assemblies, rallying crowds and spreading their message long before the Kony 2012 video went viral.

Imagine if companies gave “Employee of the Month” awards to those who tried new initiatives and failed. The rule-followers and safe-players? They get pink slips.

Questions to consider:

1. How have failures contributed to the person you are today?
2. How are you encouraging those around you to fail more often?

The anti-resume

I hope one day you realize you don’t need a resume.

The kind of people you want to work with don’t want to see your list of interests and accolades. They don’t care about your work history, what schools you’ve attended, what awards you’ve won.

They want to know what work you’ve put into the world, what you’ve left behind, where you’re going.

The best work stands for itself.

Your resume is the communities that miss you after you’ve left, the imprint you leave behind. The relationships you’ve forged, the lives you’ve touched, and the work that sparkles with your finesse — this is your resume.

When you realize this, you’ll be filled with freedom and independence: titles no longer matter, job descriptions are irrelevant, length of employment fails to indicate your loyalty and value.

Your success doesn’t rest in the hands of another.

Why spend another moment waiting for the phone to ring? You’re worth more than that.

What if you created your own tribe, shipped your own art, designed a viable solution? Don’t wait for opportunities that may never find you. Create them. For yourself.

And change lives along the way.

Do you have enough time — or are you afraid?

I don’t have enough time is a complaint heard in corporate settings, co-working spaces, home offices, and everything in-between. Since you won’t be getting more hours in your day, make sure you’re making the most out of what you have.

1. Cut out nonessentials.

Track your activities throughout the day. Are you spending hours dawdling at the local coffee shop? Could you check Facebook less? Do you say “yes” when you could be saying “no”? Are you accepting tasks that could easily be delegated?

2. Streamline.

Become more efficient in your day-to-day activities. Block out chunks to devote to specific activities and limit distractions during these scheduled appointment times. Combine relevant meetings (and add value by expanding the network of others).

3. Revisit your priorities.

If you really want it done, you’ll make it work. Are your daily decisions reflecting your utmost priorities?

4. Face your fears.

Be honest: Are you afraid? Not having enough time is often a cop out. Is this your excuse to delay an action or plan? Imagine if you accomplished your goal. What would happen if you succeeded?

Pretend you’re gifted with an extra hour today; how would you spend it? Dare yourself to make it happen.

5 steps to great team dynamics

Set up a ping pong table and buy as many board games as you like — positive rapport doesn’t happen overnight. Employees naturally travel through phases of exploration, challenge, acceptance, and performance. Recognize that all teams move through stages of development, and some individuals require more time to assert their skills and integrate into preexisting units.

1. Encourage interdepartmental collaboration.

The opportunity to work together can significantly contribute to an employee’s ability to relate to others and feel a sense of loyalty to their team. Introduce colleagues thoughtfully. Generate new ideas and unexpected outcomes by pooling together individuals who don’t typically share projects. The best solutions arise from a variety of sources and inspiration.

2. Provide leadership opportunities for all.

All employees should be given a chance to shine, regardless of role and level within the company. Create environments in which everyone’s feedback is respected and make training available to all members of the group. By shaking up responsibilities and expected performance, you’ll give employees the opportunity to appreciate their colleagues’ talents.

3. Creatively encourage relationship building.

The best connections rarely form inside of the office. Bring employees together in unique environments; schedule company outings, host dinners in your home, arrange group trips, encourage brown bag lunches at the nearby park. Promote a culture that provides opportunities for individuals to create and bond outside of daily tasks, enabling deeper feelings of satisfaction and connectedness.

4. Shared experiences unite teams.

Challenges can serve as teaching moments and unite individuals within a given project. Ushering teams through trying times will reinforce competence and trust among each team member. Alternatively, working towards a shared goal and focusing on mutual success can help keep your team’s energy positive. Celebrate triumphs together.

5. Model constructive communication.

The best way to encourage positive communication is to demonstrate and conduct the types of interactions you’d like to see. Effective communication and empathic listening doesn’t come easily for everyone. Your verbal and non-verbal cues will be imitated by staff. Be aware that your clarity and expectations regarding communication, trust, respect, and honor are an integral component of determining the communication patterns of your team.
It’s up to you to create the time and space for employees to connect meaningfully. Equip your team with what it needs to succeed: support, clear objectives, effective means of communication, strong leadership. When the right roles and responsibilities mix with a carefully selected group of individuals, great team dynamics will follow.