Author: jrlsage

Routine Restarts – I lost my bank card a few weeks ago. Losing that card sucks because I have to spend time resigning up for all my memberships. Here is the blessing though, because of the forced interrupt of a different card number, I have to opportunity to look at my memberships again and see if I want to go through the trouble. 

I said no to a few – worth the five dollar service charge (for replacing the card) for that alone. 

Pivots – My current break away from work got me the space to think of different pivots with myself, my staff, and other teams. Pivots are hard work, especially emotionally. You were wrong. Others came along with you. 

My best advice for these moments (and even in typing this, I am telling myself) is to be as honest as possible. Start with the tough part first, and then walk the others through.

They will appreciate it.

Critique – Is only a gift when it is straightforward. Everything else is a soft lie, and a waste of time. Avoid the showbiz advice of telling them what you are going to tell them. 

Just tell them.

It’s tempting to push a ton of goals at once. It looks good at the beginning, and great to sell.

What ends up happening is missed expectations, promises broken, and burnout.

Try to keep things simple. One goal. Consider it, work on it, shape it, treat it as a living being.

You’ll feel much better and accomplish more in the long run.

Questions

• How do I decide on one goal over several others?
• What makes one goal better than others?
• What is that feeling I get when I only pick one? (FOMO)

Blog Posts (Put this in the search bar on this page 🙂 )

• How do I decide on one goal over several others?
• What makes one goal better than others?
• What is that feeling I get when I only pick one? (FOMO)

Books

• The War Of Art: Winning the Inner Creative Battle

Set boundaries early and often. Recognize the constraints and adjust as soon as possible. Don’t fight the tide. Force break creates space to make great.

Questions

• How will setting boundaries help me? (Real-world example)
• What does it look like when I don’t set boundaries?
• Why is it that no boundaries leave people confused?

HOT! – It is blazing on the east coast. Stay cool where you can. Drink water. Work can wait.

Kick start – Some projects need to sit for a while, and some projects need a kickstart after sitting. When is the last time you reviewed your work? You may be surprised by what you find, even months later.

People don’t leave their jobs, they leave their bosses.

Sometimes it doesn’t matter what the perks are or how much you pay people, if they don’t feel like they are being heard, they are already one foot out the door.

So how do you change that? Well, a cup of coffee can’t hurt.

Go take a team member out to a cup of joe, or lunch, or even a drink and get ready to just listen. What you’ll find out of the office will give you much more context in the office so people will feel like they are heard. Then they begin to trust.

Watch the work get much better as a result of that trust.

A cup of coffee can mean much more than a raise if you talk to your people.

Questions

• What does this mean?
• Why does being heard affect people?
• How can you put this into practice?

Books

• Positive Intelligence: Why Only 20% of Teams and Individuals Achieve Their True Potential and How You Can Achieve Yours
• Engage the Fox: A Business Fable About Thinking Critically and Motivating Your Team
• Team of Teams: New Rules of Engagement for a Complex World

Two Minutes isn’t a lot of time.

It can, however, be enough to get into that thing that has been sitting on your to-do list.

Our brains love momentum and easy targets. It hates big projects. One way to get the big projects done is to move them to smaller, easier goals.

Using the two-minute rule is a way to do that.

Motivation driven by an external force (even this video) is a “rookie move.” Showing up, day in and day out is hard, but if you plan on building your skill, any skill, getting the discipline to go forward is the way to go.

In this video I talk about:

• Doesn’t motivation ignite us to get started?
• What’s so bad about motivation?
• What works in the real world?

With the hope to convert someone from the “I need the stars to align to do something” type of mindset to the I am planning to show up, everyday mentality.

Trust me – it’s going to make your work that much better.

Some Books to Read on the Subject:

• What to Do When its Your Turn
• Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead
• Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration

Cross Country – Love traveling cross-country because it is the only time I get to wake up early. In San Francisco, for the Mind the Product conference and I’ve been productive since 6ish PST. Looking forward with connecting with other product leaders and having great conversations.

Taking Chances – Are you taking chances with the short game (the immediate future) or the long game(a year from now)? What chances are you taking? Is it worth it?

I did some war gaming this weekend. It was awesome 😊.

Gone – Sometimes when you get gone, you should stay gone. The distance can make the heart grow fonder. Get away. It’s summer.

Never Mind – This is a trap as a leader if you don’t give the context behind it. “Never mind” is dangerous because any story is in their head will just grow. Be careful when you use it.