Can I Take a Moment of Your Time?

“Until we can manage time, we can manage nothing else.” ~ Peter Drucker

It’s been one of those days … and you know with supernatural precision how many straws are resting on your camel’s back. With equal confidence, you estimate that one more straw will be THE spine-crushing limit. Coffee is possibly the only substance that will fortify your spirits, and you make a mad dash to the breakroom when you hear someone ask, “Can I take a moment of your time?” You break a lifetime of courtesy training and workplace team building by replying, “No, you may not.”

If you thought the reply was rude, consider if that person asked you to fork over your wallet. We often say that time is our most valuable asset, so it should be easier to give up your debit card than five minutes of your time. However, we would fight tooth and nail for a few dollars but are routinely complicit to time banditry. The difference between our wallet and our watch is where we place value and our perception of self-worth.

Can I take a moment of your time? No, but I can give you a moment of my time. The difference between the request and your response is one of self-controlled choice. Anyone who takes your time is baring you from achieving your goals and aspirations. Whether through complete altruism or by gaining something in return, when we consciously give of our time, we retain control of that precious commodity. While that may sound like a game of semantics, it is a game with a purpose. At the end of the day, time is all we have. How we manage that time often means the difference between success and failure. Top performers maniacally manage their time.

Consider this …

1. Identify your two biggest time wasters.

2. Now list out the impact these two time wasters have on your productivity.

3. What actions are you willing to take in order to better control these time wasters so you can be more productive?.

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Top Performer’s Field Guide.)

“Time is, time was, but time shall be no more.”~ James Joyce

In many Japanese homes, you can find a simple notebook. Likely dog-eared from use, the notebook is always easily accessible, not far from anyone’s reach. Pulling back the note-book’s cover would reveal a neatly kept household accounting journal. At the head of each month, there is a record of one’s income subtracted by fixed expenses. That subtotal has a deduction for one’s savings goal. The final set of entries are a handwritten ledger of every yen that has been spent during the month. At the end of the month, one’s spending is compared to the savings goal, and an evaluation of the resulting financial performance is conducted. The budgeting system is known as kakeibo. It was introduced in Japan over a hundred years ago, and even the digital age has not yet transformed the process into a smartphone app.

The theory is that when one takes the time to write down spending and evaluate those patterns, financial performance becomes part of a habitual, daily mind-set. As brilliantly simplistic as the system is for finances, the same principles can be applied to any management of resources. What would you discover about your time management skills if you applied the kakeibo system for one week? Your income would be replaced with the 10,080 minutes in a week. Our time overhead would be measured as sleeping at least a healthy seven hours a night. Work and leisure activities would be logged as spending money, just like in the kakeibo system. At the end of the week, an honest review of how you spent your time would shed a bright light on your inefficiencies. This process is something that I often coach executives and sales persons to complete. It truly is enlightening.

If your first thought was, “I don’t have time for that,” you’re likely already mismanaging your time. If we don’t have the time to evaluate how we spend our time, what do we have time for?

Consider this …

1. For the next week (preferably two), keep a record of how you spend your time … in fifteen-minute increments. (Stop complaining, just imagine you’re an attorney and you’re billing for those fifteen-minute increments.)

2. At the end of the process, categorize your time into the major, similar categories and tally the hours and percent of the total for each category.

3. Assess whether the way you’re spending your time matches your performance priorities.

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Top Performer’s Field Guide.)

“To be happy at home is the ultimate result of all ambition.” ~ Samuel Johnson

It’s Monday morning, and you’re chomping at the bit to get your week going. You’re looking at your weekly calendar and downing a cup of joe before heading into the office when you hear it. The whooshing, splashity hiss emanating from your laundry room sounds like the Titanic’s hull has just been breached. You take a quick look, and the blessed water heater has sprung a leak. There’s enough water on the floor to fill a kiddie pool. Thanks, Monday, you’ve just hijacked a carefully planned week.

Every office has someone that’s constantly on the phone dealing with household issues. Is that drama monarch a top performer? I’d wager not. Nothing throws a rock in the punch bowl like problems at home. A chaotic household always spills into your professional world limiting the energy you can expend at work. Then you’ll spend your time at home catching up on work, which means household issues go unchecked. This vicious cycle will continue until you reroute the loop. You CAN reroute the loop!

Start by utilizing your professional abilities at home. Catalog your home assets like a project manager would by evaluating each piece of equipment’s usable life, scheduling a time for replacements or periodic maintenance, and sticking to the timetable. Set boundaries with those acquaintances who always seem to call you at the wrong times for advice. Create a family calendar so you can plan around school or interpersonal events. Whatever your positive action steps are, the goal should be to clear away personal detractors while at work. You owe it to your employer (or your business), and you owe it to your career to leave your personal distractions at the door. When you’ve taken care of that, it’s time to storm the castle!

Consider this …

1. What personal distractions tend to get in the way of your work?

2. What steps can you take to anticipate and manage those distractions outside of work hours?

3. What are some of your biggest time wasters at work, and how can you better manage those?

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Top Performer’s Field Guide.)

“Do I dare disturb the universe?” were words penned by world-class poet T. S. Eliot in “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.” The poem centers around the titular character observing life events happening around him and then stolidly talking him-self out of participating. Prufrock makes the excuses that he’s too old, too bald, or plainly too scared to pursue the things in life that interest him, comforting himself with promises that there will be time for all those things—later. Sound familiar?

Just as a J. Alfred Prufrock exists within all of us, so does our ability to disturb or disrupt the universe. As innovators, entrepreneurs, and change agents, we tend to think in terms of “disrupting” instead of “disturbing.” Regardless, we often think that upsetting cosmic balances takes a cataclysmic event, but the universe can be disrupted with a phone call, email, or simply speaking up in a meeting. When our sights are only set on monumental tasks, are we using this as a cover or an excuse? Have you ever said, “When I finish Project X, everything will fall into place,” as a fear-filled mask for effecting small changes?

Do one thing a day that disrupts your universe. If you do one thing a day that combats the muttering internal negative voices that hold you back, soon you’ll have a catalog of universe disruptions to staunch the harshest of inner critics. Do you dare disrupt the universe? You bet you do, because the universe isn’t about to change on its own. That change starts with a choice. You can choose the status quo, or you can choose to shake things up. That all begins with asking yourself every day, “How will I disrupt the universe today?

Consider this …

1. What needs disrupting in the universe around you?

2. What actions can you take right now that will be disruptive to the universe?

3. How can you create the habit of disrupting the universe each day?

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Innovator’s Field Guide.)

To be an innovator, one does not always have to create a brand spanking new process or widget. Some innovations are a change in the way we approach the commonplace. A few years back Arizona State University (ASU) started the arduous plan for renovating Sun Devil Stadium. One can imagine the laundry list of upgrades one would want to incorporate in a reimagined sports stadium. However, better flow to the food vendors and bathroom access would not be what one would consider an innovation. Wishing the stadium to be something unique, ASU solicited the advice of some of their top alumni.

Enter Jack Furst, the founder of the private equity firm Oak Stream Investors. Aft er graduating from ASU in 1981, Jack worked on Wall Street before striking out on his own. What separates Furst from his peers is a vision that includes a strong bond to the community. When ASU asked for his opinions on the stadium’s renovations, they got more than they bargained for.

In Jack’s mind, a facility that was utilized for only football games and the odd concert did not fulfill the stadium’s potential. Furst’s vision was to make Sun Devil Stadium into a place that would function as a community hub, open daily to the public—food vendors, outdoor movies, festivals, or any other activity that would make Sun Devil Stadium an integral part of the Tempe/Phoenix community in the coming years. From a financial perspective, turning a capital investment from a two percent to potentially a hundred percent utilization rate is staggering. This is referred to as exponential or “10x” thinking.

When we marry our core values with the opportunities life presents us, unexpected innovations can crop up in the most unlikely of places and transform life as we know it.

Consider this …

1. Quickly list ten ways that you could exponentially transform your business, company, team, or project. (Think ten times growth or transformation.)

2. Select two or three of those ten ways that seem to be most feasible.

3. Engage in a conversation with members of your team about how to bring these transformations to reality.

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Innovator’s Field Guide..)

“There is no place where espionage is not possible.” ~ Sun Tzu

The rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War was a frightening a time to live. The cloud of nuclear threat hung on the brinksmanship of political leaders and the eff orts of intelligence services trying to decipher their opponent’s intentions. Cold War American and British spies developed a set of unofficial rules when operating in enemy territory. Known as “Moscow Rules,” these guidelines were wisdom bombs for deep cover agents:

 Assume nothing. Never go against your gut. Do not look back; you are never completely alone. Vary your pattern and stay within your cover. Do not harass the opposition. Pick the time and place for action. Keep your options open.

The various business applications of Moscow Rules are plentiful enough to fill a stand-alone book, but “do not look back; you are never completely alone” deserves closer examination. If you’re a pessimist, this rule is interpreted as watch what you say and do because you never know who’s observing. That’s certainly true, but since you are a person of integrity that should never be an issue for you. Spin it just a little, and the positive meaning of this rule is that someone on your team always has your back, so there’s no reason to constantly seek that validation.

Another rule that sticks out is, “vary your pattern and stay within your cover.” Cover for a spy is the persona they adopt while in the field. Our cover is our mission and business acumen. Varying our pattern means we should always strive for positive change by maintaining a future-oriented outlook. When we seek opportunities to grow our business “within our cover,” we can operate in any unknown territory because we operate by a clear set of guiding principles.

Who knew taking lessons from real-world James Bonds could help you succeed?

Consider this …

1. Which of the Moscow Rules seem most applicable to your business, project, or workplace?

2. How do those rules regularly play out in your business, project, or workplace today?

3. How can you apply the positive aspect of those Moscow Rules going forward?

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Top Performer’s Field Guide.)

“A mission statement is not something you write overnight. But fundamentally, your mission statement becomes your constitution, the solid expression of your vision and values. It becomes the criterion by which you measure everything else in your life.” Stephen Covey

Proverbs 29:18 (KJV): “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” That verse has always been a favorite of mine and touches on every point discussed within this text. One other translation reads, “Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint.” Can you see the visual of an entire group of people “casting off restraint”? That literally means they run around aimlessly (like chickens with their heads cut off).

As an entrepreneur, innovator, or change agent, the two constants that connect every aspect of business are vision and values (the law). Both intangibles are the North Star we use to guide our respective ships. Like a rudder and astrolabe, vision and values must be perfectly aligned for us to reach our destination. There are no shortcuts where either vision or values are concerned, unless we risk taking our ship too close to rocky shoals.

Maintaining both vision and values is never an easy task. We often act as though the words “easy” and “happy” are synonymous—they are not. There always are, and will always be, easy temptations that may be difficult to shy away from. Fudging mileage or depreciation might reduce your taxable income, but what happens when you get audited? Giving into those temptations will only bring you worry and guilt. Of course, the Book of Proverbs reference to happiness has to do with keeping God’s law, which is the ultimate basis for a strong sense of values—ethical behavior. Both in business and your personal life, living according to a set of values results in a security that brings lasting happiness every single time. Doing the right thing is often difficult. As an entrepreneur, innovator, and change agent, you often have the freedom to do what you want; however, as the saying goes, the true freedom comes in doing what we ought.

Have faith, persevere, and grow from your mistakes. If you take nothing else from this text, those three points will see you through any storm. Good fortunes, and God bless.

Consider this …

1. Where do you see yourself, your business, or your organization in the next five years? What things will you have achieved or accomplished? What will you look like? How will you feel?

2. What are the core values or beliefs you have about your life, business or organization?

3. Now build a twelve-month plan to get you at least twenty percent of the way to your five-year vision, but one that operates within the boundaries of your core values

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Innovator’s Field Guide.)

Within the bounds of ethical behavior, you’re committed to becoming a financial success. There’s no late night, grim project, or problematic client you won’t take on to reach your goal. If those statements describe you, I’ve got a unique opportunity that will advance research in cancer treatments with a $39 million payoff . All you have to do is harvest a gallon of scorpion venom, and you’ll be an instant multimillionaire. Due to scientists’ use of unique compounds found within the venom and low harvest yield, scorpion venom is the most valuable liquid on the planet.

A portion of anyone’s success is the ability to evaluate and manage the risk versus reward equation. Every decision we make in a business setting is a risk. In the spectrum of staying the course to proposing an innovation, there are risk factors along every point. Like a future orientation or culture of change, leaders must be comfortable swimming in the pool of risks.

Let’s go back to the scorpion venom proposition and evaluate the risk factors. Of the two thousandish species of scorpions, the venom of forty-odd species can kill a human. A gallon of venom will require over 7,500 extractions. The harvest process involves applying an electric shock to the scorpion’s stinger, and the venom is mined with a pipette. Using a nonscientific statistical evaluation, there’s better than a good chance of being stung by a non-lethal scorpion during the process. Being an awesome leader, I’m sure you’ve considered using protective gear to limit the risk of getting stung. How does your risk versus reward ratio stand now?

You’ll get a gold star if you added innovation to your approach. If you proposed developing a robot that extracts the scorpion venom, you’re on the right track. Such a robot currently exists and removes any risk of human contact with the creepy-crawlies. No portion of our skill set exists in a vacuum. Stringing individual skills and prior experiences together creates a synergy that sends our results off the charts!

Consider this …

1. List two major issues, problems, or challenges you’re facing in your business, project, or workplace right now.

2. Outline the primary stakeholders of these issues, problems, or challenges.

3. Develop a plan to speak with as many of those stakeholders as possible to get their take on the situation.

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Top Performer’s Field Guide.)

“I take inspiration from everyone and everything. I’m inspired by current champions, former champions, true competitors, people dedicated to their dream, hard workers, dreamers, believers, achievers.”~ Connor McGregor

You may have noticed a number of these accelerators take examples or quotes from authors, poets, or other artists. Their inclusion has been intentional. Artists, in any medium, are the personification of creativity within our society. While you may not view a creative business solution in the same category as Starry Night, you are drawing from the same well of creativity Vincent van Gogh pitched in his bucket. Do not discount the artistry of business. What Van Gogh did with paint and canvas, you do with vision, business acumen, and a sense of mission.

 An artist seeks to express and inspire. A business leader seeks to do the same. Your expression is either the product, service, or innovation that holds your passion or it’s the customers for whom you have passion. To translate that unique expression, you must inspire a team to work in concert for a common goal. An artist has an eye for proportion and scope for their works. A business leader must define their venture by the same parameters. Daily, you are a symphony conductor, painter, sculptor, and writer as you create your business narrative. 

I have a number of statuettes, symbols, and tchotchkes strategically placed around my office. If you were to visit, you’d likely see them as just décor. Each of them has a specific meaning, for they serve as reminders of the key points that are critical to my success. In most instances, they are reminders of important lessons learned in my life that point the way to a better future.

Consider this …

1. Find one or two pieces of art, statuettes, or symbols that inspire you and keep it close to your work area. It may be a song, a painting used as your desktop’s background, a quotation written on a sticky note—the medium doesn’t matter as long as the meaning, artistry, and inspiration are at hand.

2. Take some time to “craft the story” around that important symbol that gives it significant meaning.

3. When you doubt yourself or feel the tedium of paperwork dragging you down, look to your creative touchstone and remind yourself of its meaning. Remember—you are just as much the artist as the person who craft ed this important piece..

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Innovator’s Field Guide)

“If it’s creativity you’re after, ask your employees to solve problems alone before sharing their ideas. If you want the wisdom of the crowd, gather it electronically, or in writing, and make sure people can’t see each other’s ideas until everyone has had a chance to contribute.” ~ Susan Cain

Consider this …

1. Name three people around you whom you have empowered to challenge your assumptions and to give you critical feedback when it’s warranted.

2. If you couldn’t name three that you have already empowered, identify three that you will empower to challenge you.

3. Be overt about your intentions with these three people. Go to them, buy them coffee, tell them you’re building an informal “board of advisors” and enlist them for that purpose.

For more, check out The Top Performer’s Field Guide, The Innovator’s Field Guide, or visit www.JeffStandridge.com.

(Originally published in The Top Performer’s Field Guide.)