Freedom from Constraints

Freedom from Constraints

“Nighttime is when I brainstorm; last thing, when the family’s asleep and I’m alone, I think about the next day’s writing and plan a strategy for my assault on the blank page.” ~ Athol Fugard

Freedom from Constraints

An adage used in college economics classes is, “economics is driving a car looking in the rearview mirror,” meaning that business analysis is heavily weighted by historical data. There is undoubtedly merit in examining past performance; however, being shackled by bar charts on PowerPoints seldom produces an original thought. Inspiration comes when we consider what is possible in the future, not how we did in the past.

 

Turn off your monitor and put the reports away. Take a blank sheet of paper from your desk and do some old-school brainstorming. Create an all-out assault on the blank page. Write down single words that apply to your current problem, innovation, or project. Don’t think about what you can do—write down what you would do without having to justify expenses or man-hours. Spend no more than five or ten minutes on this portion of the exercise. After you’ve exhausted those single words, go back and review the list detailing why those words were present. For example, if you wrote down “long term,” define what time parameters the project entails. 

 

You’ve just created a dream on paper free of historical data or preconceived notions about what is “possible.” Those possibilities may never happen in the manner you’ve envisioned, but you’ve started a process that asks, “Why not?” or “How can I?” One might think of this as the stone a sculptor starts with before chipping away to release a statue’s true form. If you begin any thought process with the cannots and should nots, you limit your imagination and creativity. Only when those two elements are unleashed can true innovations happen.

 

Consider this …

1. About your business, your current project, innovation, or business problem, complete this question: “Wouldn’t it be great if … ?”

2. What three things might you do this week to enable this vision to become a reality?

3. What three things might you do consistently and repeatedly to bring this vision to reality over the coming days, weeks, or months?

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.)

Batter Up!

“You’re never too small to dream big.”~ Seen on a school bus

batter up

It was a rare March afternoon that Karen was done with her chores and homework before twilight. She grabbed her soft -ball, bat, and glove before heading to the field behind her house. The season wouldn’t start for a few more weeks, but Karen was itching to get the feel of the game back. Choking up on the bat with one hand, Karen called out, “She’s at bat!”

 With her other hand, she pitched the ball into the air and said, “I am the greatest batter in the world!” The bat and ball failed to connect as Karen took her inaugural swing. As the ball thudded in the soft ground, Karen called out, “Stttrike one!”

 Again, she pitched the ball in the air and repeated louder than before, “I AM the greatest batter in the world!” Had you been standing in the field, you would have bet your wallet and watch that Karen connected. The bat passed slightly over the ball, and again the stitched leather hit the ground. In her best umpire impersonation, Karen chirped, “Strike taaa-whooo.”

Karen scooped up the ball as quick as a double play and tossed it in the air again. This time her voice reached the Patel’s house two doors down as she repeated her mantra, “I AM THE GREATEST batter in the world!”

 She meant business with this swing. The bat arched into action again with the full force of Karen’s conviction. The bat’s wood grain blurred against the background of the budding grass and Karen—missed. It took a few seconds for the ball to come to rest and when it did, Karen the umpire yelled, “Strike three … you’re outta there!”

Karen’s mother yelled out of the kitchen window dinner was ready a few moments after the third strike was called. Karen gathered her things and headed back across the field. Halfway back to the house, Karen said to herself in an excited voice, “Well whaddya know, I’m the greatest PITCHER in the world.”

It’s all about your frame of mind …

Consider this …

1. In what areas of your project, business, or workplace do you identify with Karen the batter?

2. In what areas should you more appropriately identify with Karen the pitcher?

3.  How can you apply these new insights in your work 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.)

When Your Passion Gets You in Trouble

“There is no passion to be found in playing small—in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”~ Nelson Mandela

When Your Passion Gets You in Trouble

I’ve taught my daughters for years to “find something you love to do and then figure out how to get paid for it, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.” Gavin believed in that adage as well.

He was the rare combination of right and left brain and double-majored in art and finance. While Gavin was content sussing out future values and P/E ratios, his passion lay within art. Doodling, sculpting, painting, it mattered not what medium he worked with. If his creative side was channeled, Gavin was happy.

Fresh from receiving his degrees, Gavin opened an art-supply store in his metropolitan hometown. He had the background, financing, and location to make the store successful. The prospects of competing against the chain stores and online merchants didn’t faze Gavin much. He was charismatic and shared his love of art with his customers. The store held classes and art exhibits for customers of any skill level. The art-supply store became a community unto itself. Yet, within five years, the store was padlocked, and Gavin was broke.

What happened? The same presence of traditional and online competition existed as it had the day the store’s doors opened. The niche market for the store’s business model had not gone away; in fact, the city Gavin called home was experiencing a booming economy and influx of new residents. Market forces weren’t at work in the store’s demise. In fact, local market realities suggested the story should have been in growth mode.

The answer lies within his passion for his work. Gavin became his own customer. He forgot that he was running a business, and became one of his best clients. He spent so much time, and company money, enjoying himself in his own store that he forgot the details—generating new clients, paying taxes, controlling expenses, managing inventory, and all the other dotted I’s and crossed T’s that make or break a business, big or small.

So, yes; find something that you love to do, and do it. But remember that you are the business first and the client second.

Consider this …

1. What details in your business are you prone to overlook or forget about?

2. How would you spend your time if all of the detailed tasks were handled by someone better at doing them than you?

3. How can you get these details covered by someone else, so that you can focus on the things you’re best at doing?

 

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.)

Feared Things First

“Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.””~ Thomas A. Edison

Feared Things First

Nothing is worse than when a black hole develops in your mind. A creative exhaustion that sucks even bad ideas into a disparaging singularity that makes you wonder if you’ll ever hatch another original thought. You’ve been at this point often enough to know that despair, despondence, and creative meltdown isn’t far over the horizon. How do you put the cork in the black hole?

As counterintuitive as this sounds, immediately stop your present project and do something you hate. Balance your checkbook, pay bills, clean out the gutters, get cracking on that pivot table, or whatever activity you loathe doing more than anything else in the world. That sounds like a terrible idea. Why would anyone do something they hate as a cure for stymied inspiration?

Your mind is designed to shield you from unpleasantness. When you are in the midst of something you can’t possibly stand to do, your thoughts will wander to more enjoyable endeavors. Unless your focus is strong enough to resist playing the “I’d rather be doing x, y, or z” game, your attention will invariably fall upon the things you love to do. Suddenly, that black-hole cork you desperately tried to find earlier will come wafting to the forefront of your creative process.

While this method might sound like a Jedi mind trick, you’re leveraging your brain’s defenses to your benefit. Everyone’s mind works differently, so this might not work for you. However, there is some trigger that snaps you out of the doldrums. The next time you have an “A-ha!” moment, take a minute to note what was happening around you when brilliance struck. Were you cooking? Was there a song on the radio? Cataloging these stimuli will help you understand your unique creative processes for the next time you can’t think of a single thing.

Consider this …

1. When was your last “A-ha!” moment?

2. What were you doing immediately before this moment?

3. Take a moment to identify a few of your “least favorite things” that require your attention.

4. Start every day doing the feared thing first, but keep an inspiration notepad close at hand.

 

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.)

Accidental Success

“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”~ Thomas A. Edison

Accidental Success

I’d like to present a unique investment opportunity in Unadulterated Food Products. They’re an upstart juice company based in Brooklyn, but as part of full disclosure, the chairman didn’t finish high school. He also has no background in the food and beverage industry. He and his partners know as much about the beverage business as they do about building an atom bomb. The chairman, since his teens he… well… washed windows and graduated to a window-washing brokerage company. But, boy, he’s got moxie and their flagship product is a one hundred percent naturally carbonated apple juice. They accidentally let one of the batches ferment last week, and it popped the tops on all the bottles, but you’ve got to break a few eggs to make an omelet, don’t you? How much would you like to invest? Oh… you’re not interested. I understand.

Imagine that pitch was given to you in 1972 and you had the foreknowledge that Unadulterated Food Products would turn into Snapple. That dropout window washer was Hyman Golden, who would make a cool $100 million when Snapple was sold to Quaker in 1994. Golden and his partner’s vision was to produce beverages that were made from all-natural ingredients for health-food stores. The brand branched out into iced teas and became a cultural phenomenon in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Quaker’s subsequent failings in producing and marketing the Snapple brand had nothing to do with Golden or his partners.

Golden and his partners built a company using “the best stuff on Earth” and were bought out for $1.7 billion. Never underestimate someone with vision and a dream. Now can I interest you in investing in Unadulterated Food Products?

Consider this …

1. List three to five failures or setbacks you’ve had with your product, innovation, or business in the past couple of years.

2. Take some time to analyze and write down the root cause(s) of each failure or setback.

3. Now prioritize those prior setbacks or failures as to which ones are worth trying again.

4. Develop a plan for each, making certain you address the root cause of the previous failure as you chart your course to success.

 

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.)

What Are They Saying About You?

“It is surprising how little most small business values the customers. A positive feedback from the customer is critical to your business, and what’s more important is their referral.” ~ Fabrizio Moreira

What Are They Saying About You?

A major grocery store chain performed a series of focus-group studies to ascertain what constituted a good shopping experience. Everyone in the organization expected the results would include items like short checkout lines, an attentive staff , and an outstanding product selection at a reasonable price. When the study data was tallied, predictably all those items were high on the customers’ mental checklists. There was one item that did take the executive group by surprise—bathroom cleanliness. Customers overwhelmingly believed that if a grocery store’s bathroom was dirty, the staff was not paying much attention to the fresh food items the store sold. Many in the executive group had rarely been in a store’s bathroom because they were focused on sales floor operations and presentation. 

New equipment was purchased, and specialized training was put into place to ensure this chain’s bathrooms were always pristine. After implementation, customers still perceived the chain’s bathrooms were not clean. Why? The executives had money in their budgets for the capital expenditures but were unwilling to increase stores’ labor budgets. The already thinly staffed stores had scads of new cleaning equipment, but no labor hours to use it.

Listening to customers’ feedback doesn’t mean wedging in their expectations with our metrics. To grow, the metrics must align with the needs of our customers. In the case of this grocery chain, they did add hours into store operations for bathroom cleaning. At the end of the day, the executives found that in stores with higher cleanliness ratings, the customers spent more time in their stores. As customer “in-store” time increased, so did profits.

Consider this …

1. What would your customers say about you if you were to ask them some open-ended questions about their impressions of your business?

2. How might you put a process together to gather and act on regular feedback from your customers? (Research “Talking to Humans.”) Develop and implement a plan to get initial feedback from your clients over a period of time and then refine it into an ongoing process.

 

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)

Truth Conquers All

“Opinion is a flitting thing, but truth outlasts the sun.” ~ Emily Dickinson

Truth Conquers All

One night the three bodyguards of King Darius were standing post when one had a novel idea to pass the time. One guard proposed that each bodyguard would write down what the strongest thing on earth was and give it to the king. Dariuswould be so dazzled by the winner’s wisdom that riches and titles would surely follow. The guards slipped their answers in the king’s bedchamber, and the next morning Darius summoned the guards to elaborate on their solutions to the riddle.

The first guard said wine was the strongest because it makes men weak and a fortune can be spent on chasing flagons. The second’s answer was the king, for he rules and makes laws that all must follow. The third guard countered his predecessors by quipping that women are stronger than either wine or the king. Women give birth to kings and cultivate the vineyards where wine is produced. There was a caveat to the third guard’s statement—truth conquers all. For their strengths,
wine, kings, and women can all be unrighteous. However, the truth that God will judge us for our actions makes everything else insignificant. 

The story is taken from the Old Testament Apocrypha book of Esdras, and the third guard was Zerubbabel. He would go on to build the second temple after the Babylonian captivity. The lessons to the story are boundless. Humble beginnings are not indicative of future greatness. The trappings of the world can distract everyone from their goals. All things should be done with integrity because we are accountable to one who’s mightier than bosses or shareholders. No matter how fat our checkbook or ostentatious our office, acting on truth will always make one a success.

Consider this …

1. In what ways do you have a tendency to skirt the truth?

2. In what situations does your work, your project, or your workplace reward you for being less than completely truthful?

3. In what ways can you recommit to speaking truth in all situations, inside and outside of your work?

 

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.)

Gaining Wisdom

“A single conversation with a wise man is better than ten years of study.”~ Chinese Proverb

Gaining Wisdom

Alexander Pope said, “A little learning is a dangerous thing.” Sandy knew that phrase when she began her teaching career, but didn’t understand the full impact of the statement. Her head was filled with pedagogical theory and a working knowledge of her subject matter—history.

Sandy plunged in with an ambitious lesson plan, bringing her love of literature to the history lectures that were carefully typed and ready for delivery. When the students received the syllabus, many expressed shock when they saw that she had assigned various literary readings to supplement their history texts. Sandy left the classroom after that first day feeling confident and extremely pleased with herself.

The next morning, Sandy found a note in her mailbox. The headmaster of the school wanted to see Sandy ASAP. The headmaster didn’t ask Sandy to sit down when he began. “Mr. Sizemore, the high school’s English teacher, wants to know why you’re assigning your students many of the same books that he is having them read.” 

The headmaster went on to explain that Mr. Sizemore, a thirty-year school veteran, and master teacher, had constructed an award-winning curriculum around carefully chosen works. Sizemore was naturally curious why this newcomer was entering his domain. Sandy was embarrassed that she didn’t reach out to her fellow teachers. She didn’t consider that while everyone taught in individual classrooms, the faculty was still a team.

Before you think you know it all, consult with those who might actually know it all. Successful innovators, entrepreneurs, and change agents leverage a large network of mentors to broaden their base of expertise. The wisdom you can gather from those around you is an invaluable tool, and you don’t always have to reinvent the wheel.

Consider this …

1. List the areas of expertise that you don’t currently have, but need, to be optimally successful.

2. Identify the experts to whom you have access (or can get access through others) who can help fill the gaps in your expertise.

3. Prioritize the knowledge and guidance you need now, and make a plan to get it from the ones who have it.

 

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)

Go Ahead, Break a Rule!

“You are remembered for the rules you break.” ~ Douglas MacArthur

Go Ahead, Break a Rule!

A few years back, Robert Fulghum’s book All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten was all the rage. Fulghum’s text does remind us that simple actions like cleaning up our messes and playing fair are the keys to a good life. While Fulghum is certainly correct in his assertion that applying childhood lessons to adult situations is applicable, there is a danger in this philosophy. In kindergarten, we were conditioned to think that, above all else, we should follow the rules. As leaders, one of our unspoken mandates is to know when to break the rules.

If that statement conjured Scooby Doo howling “Huuuhhh?” in your mind, think about how well following established procedures worked for the folks at United Airlines in the spring of 2017. The forceable removal of a passenger randomly chosen on a full fight to free up seats for a United aircrew did irreparable damage to the company’s image. All the United associates involved in resolving that situation followed company procedures to the letter. If someone had had the courage to break the rules and diffuse the situation, things might have turned out differently for the United brand.

Manuals, procedures, and common practices are not sacred tomes designed to cover the nuances of every situation. As leaders, we must be willing to do what’s right when our guidelines fall short. Yes, there can be professional consequences for going rogue. However, the rewards of judicious rule breaking can benefit you and your organization. I can guarantee that the Board of United now wishes someone had broken the rules that day in 2017.

Consider this …

1. What rules in your business, organization, or industry need to be challenged?

2. How can you go about challenging those rules in a manner that limits downside risks, but creates the greatest upside potential?

3. Prioritize three major rules that need to be challenged and take the appropriate steps to challenge them. Once you’re done, move on to the next three.

 

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)

Help Yourself to Some “Me” Time

“If you are feeling some December blues, or even depression, don’t fight it. Instead, do something for yourself. Be reflective. Let the emotions exist. And be encouraged that, like me, you can get to a better place, but it can take time.” ~ Brad Feld

Help Yourself to Some “Me” Time

I once heard it said that everyone has a finite amount of love they can spend each day. Of course, we’re not talking about romantic love, but the love that is the underlying the care we project onto the people and events surrounding us. We all have a limited capacity of what we can pour of ourselves into anything. Careers, families, hobbies, and simply being an adult make withdrawals from our daily love allotment. If you think that’s not the case, remember the last time you thought, “If my phone rings one more time today, I’ll scream.” When you’ve hit the point of elevated frustration, you’ve spent all the love you can. Outward signs of anger, eye-rolls, heavy sighs, and poor decisions are then sure to follow.

There is a slight fallacy in the “finite amount of love to spend each day” theorem. The maxim is true if we don’t consider that our output of love can be revitalized in a day by taking time for ourselves. You are your most important resource. On first brush, that statement might sound egotistical and self-centered, but it’s founded on the thought that, if you don’t take care of yourself, you cannot take care of anyone else. This is the same rationale behind airline emergency briefings advising you to, in the event of depressurization, put your own mask on before helping others. It’s why paramedics are almost brainwashed to ensure the “scene is safe” before they go charging in to save everyone.

When driven to distraction, take fifteen minutes to do something that is all about you. Turn of your cell phone and then take a walk; knock of two hours early and go fishing, hit golf balls, or whatever it is that makes you feel like you again. Try that once and see how you feel when you come back. You’ll likely have a different perspective on your day.

Consider this …

1. What evidence do you leave behind that suggests you are just about at your wit’s end?

2. What activities make you feel recharged?

3. How can you build those activities into your regular weekly routine?

4. What triggers can you place around you to remind you of this need?

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.)

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