What would you do with your time knowing the project won’t go the way you think it might? 

Because at some point things won’t go to plan (hello pandemic my old friend). Knowing this, it pays to make sure you’ll enjoy the process.

Practicing humility can allow us to:

• Be open to feedback
• Uncover blindspots
• Hear solutions we might not have thought of
• Empower others to speak up and lead
• Learn things we wouldn’t otherwise know
• Expand our worldview
• Foster self-awareness
• Create meaningful connections with others

Put another away: When we realise we don’t know everything (nor do we have to) and neither does our boss, then we open the door to possibility and connection.

Nobody knows everything but together we know a lot.

What would it look like to go faster?

Because sometimes we unintentionally slow ourselves down.

For more on this nood, check out Episode 148 (wut?!) of The Long and The Short Of It.

A small selection of books and podcasts that made me lean back in my chair, puff my imaginary pipe and scratch my noodle in July:

For those wanting to develop a writing practice:

Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott.

For those wondering just how irrational we humans are:

Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely.

For those wanting to understand how to cultivate, build and maintain trust in their work:

The Future Is Trust by Rick Kitagawa and Lisa Lambert.

For those wondering how to think about relationships during, and in the wake of, a pandemic

Esther Perel on Armchair Expert.

PS. Are you the kind of person who loves sharing noodle-worthy resources with others, so that they too can puff their imaginary pipes and gaze out the window in deep thought? Then simply forward this blog to some friends, have them subscribe, and get back to watching the Olympics. You’re welcome.

How might I be projecting my own stress onto said humans?

Because there’s a difference between communicating “I’m in this with you, and I share your stress” and “I need you to deliver on this because I’m under a lot of stress.”

(Full credit to this book by Robert Iger for this one).

One of my favourite functions when writing or editing documents is the ol’ ‘find and replace’ (clearly I live a pretty exciting life).

As the name suggests, it allows you to search an entire document for a word or phrase and then replace it with another. Genius.

It’s also a useful strategy for those of us looking to develop skills and habits.

For example, I am working on:

Finding moments where I mindlessly scroll social media and replacing them with moments where I write ideas for blogs.

Finding moments where I attempt to multitask and replacing them with moments where I am deliberately focussed on one thing at a time.

Finding moments where I complain and replacing them with moments where I am grateful.

It’s not as easy as it is in a word document, but intentionally changing our behaviour rarely is.

What about you? What might you find and replace?

If this were the title of a memoir, would I read it?

Because we get to decide what to do with feedback we recieve.

PS. Jen and I spent 15min unpacking this question in this week’s episode of The Long and The Short Of It. Share it with a friend and say “I’d read your memoir”. You might just make their day.

There’s no right way to…

• Be a leader
• Make change
• Start a business
• Run a workshop
• Record a podcast
• Write a book
• Read a blog
• Be a friend
• Exercise
• Manage stress
• Get promoted
• Write a blog about how there’s no right way (meta)

If someone tells you otherwise, proceed with caution.

Personal preferences, anecdotes, and opinions are not the same as indisputable truths.

Experiment, learn, tweak and repeat.

How could I have been so stupid? How is this an opportunity?

Because no matter how annoying a situation, we can always find opportunity, insight, and joy. Just ask Victor Frankl.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to walk laps of the neighbourhood for 3 hours and catch up on my podcasts.

In cricket, the ‘cut shot’ is played by a batsman off the back foot and across the body.

It requires timing, patience and skill.

As a kid I loved this shot.

So much so that each night I’d pester my dad to step onto the pitch (the vacant block next door) and bowl to me so I could practice. I mean, what else could he possibly want to do after spending 10 hours at school teaching adolescent kids maths and science?

“Back and across” he’d say.

“Back and across” I’d repeat out loud, and then to myself over and over “back and across, back and across, back and across”.

Ball after ball, minute after minute, hour after hour, until it was too dark for us to even see one another, let alone the red cricket ball hurtling towards me.

25 years later I find myself wondering: what skills are we repeatedly practicing each night with the same enthusiasm?

The skill of checking Insta every 17 seconds? Or the skill of actively listening to a story from a loved one?

The skill of binging 6 episodes of Schitt’s Creek on Netflix? Or the skill of reading a book?

The skill of doom scrolling Twitter? Or the skill of mindful meditation and yoga?

Each day we get to decide the skills we practice. What if we were more intentional about it?

Back and across.

PS. Rhymes with this post from March 2020 which feels like a global pandemic ago.

How are we modelling curiosity?

Because sometimes, in a bid to be effective and/or efficient, we forget to model making space for genuine intrigue in the person or project being discussed.

PS. In this week’s episode of The Long and The Short Of It, Jen and I unpacked some more.

A small selection of books and podcasts that made me pause, look out the window and scratch my noodle in June:

For a comprehensive, insightful and actionable understanding of book publishing:

How to Write a Book Proposal by Jody Rein

For a masterclass in storytelling and living life:

Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey

For some real talk between two celebrated thought leaders:

This chat between Brenè Brown and Angela Duckworth

For a hilarious, reflective, brilliant and somewhat tragic commentary on the last 15 months:

Not quite a read or a listen, but a must watch. Inside from Bo Burnham

PS. Do you enjoy sharing noodle-worthy resources with others? Then simply forward this blog to some friends and get back to enjoying your Sunday. You deserve it.

How have you grown as a leader in the last 4 weeks?

Because implied in the question is that you are a leader (which, if you’re reading this, you are).

So what to do about that?

The always brilliant Jen Waldman and I spent some time noodling on just that in this week’s episode of The Long and The Short Of It. You can tune into here or wherever you get your podcasts.

Have you ever met a human who wakes up in the morning, looks in the mirror, and says to themselves “Today, I’m going to behave totally irrationally”?

Me neither.

Put another way: most people behave in a way they believe to be rational, based on their experience of the world.

And yet, what happens when you think about someone who disagrees with you on any given topic?

It could be the sports team they follow, what time they go to bed or the way they fold/scrunch their toilet paper.

Do you attribute their perspective to something that’s a reasonable result of their experience? Or do you think of them as irrational? Wrong? Ridiculous?

Do you approach them with curiosity and intrigue? Or judgement and shame?

What would it look like to lean more towards the former, and less towards the latter?

Who is this actually serving?

Because if you put yourself in the audience for a moment: when is the last time you thought to yourself “This incredible 67 page slide deck is exactly what I needed”?

Awesome.

What are you doing with the learnings from said books?

How are you putting them into action?

Have you summarised the ideas that stood out? Taken note of the things that confused you? Told the author what you liked about it?

Me neither.

If you’re anything like me and feeling called out by this post, it might be time to slow down and read for quality not quantity.

If I could only get one thing done today, what would it be?

Because as satisfying as it is to have a to-do list that looks like this, it’s nothing more than a distraction from the most important task:

1. Wake up
2. Have shower
3. Brush teeth
4. Turn on computer
5. Make coffee
6. Drink coffee
7. Check email
8. Delete spam emails
9. Review contract for new client

Customers, clients, colleagues, and collaborators are much more than their title suggests.

They are people with hopes, dreams, fears, doubts, insecurities, loves, desires, goals, experiences, and beliefs.

They have a noise in their head, just like you and me.

What would it look like to treat them as such?

A famous advertising tycoon once said:

“The customer is not a moron, she’s your wife.”

David Ogilvy

How will I make everyone feel seen, heard and like they belong?

Because no matter if working in person, remote, or a combination of the two, this is what we ultimately desire.

Improv? Writing code? Public speaking?

What about: Navigating conflict? Trading stocks? Guitar?

Or: Empathy? Meditation? Decision making?

Or maybe even: Slicing sourdough? Spreading the peanut butter? Making coffee?

Whatever the skill, the answer is always the same:

Deliberate practice.

No-one becomes world class by accident.