From the desk of Adam Thomas

The other day I mentioned being open to “new.” A “new state” is different than “regular” in my eyes. Being open to change and taking advantage of new opportunities is a skill, and worth working on. and how that tends to be a different state than usual.

I want to add something to that. 

What I consider to be the second step of being open to new opportunities is learning how to figure out when to stay or go.

Seth Godin talks about this beautifully in “The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick) “

The principle, inevitable question “is this worth holding on to. ” Unavoidable because if you stick to anything, you’ll hit a wall.

Are you stopping or going over it?

New projects are naturally nebulous.

It’s hard to know the difference, but worth training, just like anything else and every new project gives you an opportunity to train.

How do you get to “new?”

What do I mean? Well – how do you find yourself receptive to new ideas? 

You may tell yourself that you are always open, but that isn’t true, and it wouldn’t be healthy. You aren’t always open. This is the natural order of things, and everything is contextualized.

So, I ask again, how do you get to new? 

Tabula Rasa. 

Recognizing an opportunity comes with practice. 

So, whenever something happens (good or bad), ask yourself this question – How can I accelerate the magic? 

I can’t tell you if it’s there or not, but there is an opportunity, every time, to train your mind to find it.

Some day you will.

Today?

What is one step you plan on taking in order to change.

If you don’t DO anything then things won’t change. 

Let’s execute today.

If you spent thirty days planting a new seed, chances are that those seeds will bloom.

Maybe not in a week, month, or even a year, but they bloom.

So ask yourself how you can plant a new seed today?

Note: This analogy doesn’t mean talk to any and everyone. When you plant a seed, you are thoughtful enough to find a place worth planting and tilling the soil. This applies here.

Robert Kelly is a predator –  The lifetime documentary is a damning takedown of the musician. I think it’s pretty clear that he was a predator that used his fame to use and abuse teenage women. Some of the offshoots of that doc –

• Why is Charlemagne in the documentary – since he copped to giving minors alcohol?
• Chance admitting that he didn’t listen to black women before because they were black is great – I’ll believe it when I see action.
• Some people are disgusting and fandom will have you looking crazy. There are folks that think there is some sort of assault on R Kelly character like he was some sort of civil rights icon.  Just crazy.
• Get rid of the music – it’s all tainted.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is amazing – I had my reservations about her on election day but it seems like she is doing her damnest to use the office of a congressperson to its full ability. Calling Trump a racist (and not mincing words, either), taking part in protests, and coming to Washington with an agenda are all traits of someone ready to work. She came to lead and she is doing just that.

I’m ready for the hypocrisy of the new year – This phrase hit me when I was writing this and I am trying to think about what it means. For me, it seems like when people go into “new year new me mode” they leave folks behind. We are all in this together. I can only deal with myself and say I have been guilty of it in the past.  I am going to try my best to stem the feeling of new year new you and lead with compassion. 

Reading is fundamental – How can you fit in a few more books a month? This is a question for you and me. Last year I read half my average. Time to fix that.

Here are three things I think we can tackle in the next 15 years: Based on a recent Seth Godin post on Hilbert’s List, here are a few:

• Moon Colony – Moon rocks for everyone.
• Extending life expectancy to about 95 – We are cloning organs, I think we are close.
• Product managers not being considered project managers, and vice verse – For god sakes.

New is easy, sustaining is hard.

Getting my first plants today – wish me luck – and if you have any tips, please reach out :-).

Why can’t I shake off this focus and move forward?

Silence is our friend. Sometimes you don’t need to let the music play.

Silence or White Noise is better than your favorite podcast when you want to focus

What is flow?
The difference between white noise/silence/ and podcasts?
What are distractions?

New experiences are contextualized by what happens around them. 

If you get food poisoning the first time you tried Pho, you’ll run away from any Vietnamese restaurant you see until someone, or something forces you in another one.

We are natural storytellers, and in that example, the tape in your head is telling you to avoid Pho, and you’ll prevent food poisoning. Rationally, that isn’t fair, but we are not rational beings. 

The story is important. Context is important. Whenever you try something new, and it fails – fair or not, it lingers with you trying new things. The good (or bad) news is that we can change the context.

My question for you is – what is the context now in the space you want to change, and what is one thing you can do to change it to bring something new into the story. 

We tell ourselves that we always read the story, but the truth is we might read the story.

We will read the headline.

We’re slammed with impulses so odds are, we are going to scan where we can. I don’t just mean blog posts, either. We do it with people, books, movies, and anything else you can think of.

Now, with that in mind, think about how much time you spent on your last headline.

Let’s double it.

When we begin a new project, we have to recognize different is difficult.

I don’t just mean for you, I mean for the people you want to change.

Newness is scary, and followthrough isn’t guaranteed.

This is hard work.

When you start a new project, I think it is worth your time to think about the following:

• Liveable Failure – How can you fail and stay in the game?
• Over-Communicating – How can you talk about what you’re doing, and clearly?
• Money – How can you manage the cost?
• Consistency – How can you show up every day?
• Hypocrisy – How can you kill it?
• Energy – How can you show up with energy?

Generally, no one asked you to change, and it takes time.
Brace yourself, this is for the long haul.
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