Category: Blog Post

Who is it for? – doesn’t mean anything if you don’t know who you are marketing to. Sounds obvious, until you ask followup questions to the team that is spending the marketing dollars. Everything matters – hopes, dreams, fears, and frustrations. If you cannot speak to that, it means you aren’t prepared to differentiate yourself in the marketplace and you are more than likely throwing marketing dollars away.

Quicksand – If you are not prepared to fix the structure, then whatever bandaid you are preparing to use to fix the situation may not only be ineffective but function as quicksand. What do I mean by quicksand? Well, you think you’ve given someone a way out, but you’ve only helped them sink further, and the more they try to use whatever fix you gave them, the further they sink.

This is why quick fixes can often become anything but.

Innovation Part 4 – Teams that don’t talk don’t innovate. Once a month, give yourself the space to just talk – talk about how things are going, how things can get better, what is stopping you, etc. You might think an hour is enough, but when you are on the edge, you’ll need more than that.

Level Setting – Often missed. Get everyone on the same page. I don’t much care HOW – use whatever framework you’d like, but get them there.

Running on fumes – The edge of burnout feels exactly like it should. You are tired. You are irritable. Your hunger fluctuates. In short, you know you aren’t one hundred percent. The danger comes when you are in that state long enough for it to become normal. Then you are on the path to full burnout.

Maybe it isn’t even running on fumes as much as it is running on a spare tire. It isn’t a matter of if that tire (YOU!) will pop, but when.

“Hustle” – Is a lie. Stop spamming people. You don’t win someone over with a sales pitch the minute they open up LinkedIn.I know you’ve seen some Youtube videos, but stop.

Providing value – isn’t about burning you or your community out. You don’t win points for putting yourself though hell, even if that road is paved with good intentions. Value comes from your experience and perspective. How you communicate that is all that matters.

Happy 4th – Enough said. If you have a break today, enjoy. If you don’t you should. Defaults matter.

Quality Work -Starts with you thinking about what you want to accomplish, what you don’t want to accomplish, and how you get there. Don’t skip steps, and don’t forget to write it down. “Off the cuff” sounds great at the moment, but that’s only for the movie stars. Professionals focus.

Indictments – Not everything is an indictment. If you are in the headspace where it is, take a break, have a breath, and detach for a bit. You are too close to the work.

750 Words – How are you going to write that much every day? Well, one work at a time. Working on adding 750 words to my routine, as a way to jumpstart my writing and get a little deeper. Wish me luck.

Tell Someone You Like Their Work – I promise you they will appreciate it. We all need a bump sometimes. And if you are leading a team, “Thank You” and “I like that” should be things you say daily – at a minimum. If you say “I thank them with a paycheck” – grow up.

Happy July – Feels like a month of rest and relaxation – it’s hot. Stay cool. Stay rested. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do :-).

Follow Up – We lose a lot of productivity through no follow-up. When chatting with someone, especially professionally, add the followup to your process. One email can change your world.

Finding – you’ll find it, but are you willing to do it? Finding is hard. What’s even harder is publicly saying you are “finding.” We are all looming for someone to be right. Even if we are aware – right is often a lie. Certainty is calming.

Determination – this is hard to find – but if you are finding , you need. If you aren’t ready to hear the nonsense when finding then work on building the way you can. Determination is hard, but the good news is it is a skill.

Find Something – When it gets wild, find something to hold on to. Sounds simple, but during rough times, finding those bedrocks and being aware of them is important to your mental health. Find that thing and hold on tight so it’s there when you absolutely need it.

Breathe – In a heated argument, it is free to take a step back and breathe. Once you do that, take a second to run down what the argument is to get alignment, and drive the discussion to solutions. You’ll feel better, they will feel better, and you’ll get something done.