Life Lesson

Most problems get solved.

It’s really not a matter of if they will, it’s a matter of when they will.

And if you have the opportunity to solve a problem or point it out for a person or company to solve, why don’t you? Better sooner than later, right?

And don’t forget. You may benefit in the moment, but dozens, hundreds maybe thousands of others will benefit from you down the road because you pointed to a problem or simply solved it.

Their happiness is on you.

And, potentially, so is their unhappiness.

 

Stay Positive & If You Have The Problem, Chances Are Someone Else Does Too

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You know what you would tell your boss after you make a decision.

You know what you would tell your parents or your significant other.

You might even know what you would tell your closest friends.

But what will you tell everyone else? The one’s silently observing your every move? The one’s who believed you stood for something that’s opposite your new decision? The one’s who you’ve built trust with?

Certainly it’s worth considering what statement you’d make prior to a decision, not post.

 

Stay Positive & What About To Your Tribe?

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You have two options when you’ve had a poor experience.

You can let it bring you down, which is the default for most (myself included).

I’m still bugged by an absolutely terrible experience with Hilton Garden Inn from a week ago.

The other option is that you can let it go, which is undoubtedly the better option.

No one said it’s the easier option, just the better one.

 

Stay Positive & Let It Go Go Go

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There was once an adage around the fact you’ll receive 10x more complaints than you will compliments.

In response, you can follow Jay Baer’s advice and Hug Your Haters. There’s merit in that.

However, better to make a better product than let the complaints continue.

Simply because one assumes that people are more likely to complain than compliment doesn’t mean it’s okay.

Those who take the complaints as a nudge to get better are the ones, who, well, get better.

 

Stay Positive & You Are After Better, Right? Not More?

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Like a long-distance relationship, work can be done between remote locations.

That’s why there’s Zoom, Slack, Skype and Microsoft Teams.

But just as what’s required from the long-distance relationship, both parties at work need to put in the effort, time and care into communicating across the distance.

Alas, the work gets done, but more often than not, it’s only good enough work.

The next layer of communication is a bit deeper and more personal. It involves close proximity and the ability for face-time, but more often than not, one party still sends an email, and if it’s important, maybe a phone call.

The result is better work because the feedback loop is tighter and the connection to one another is stronger by geographic nature. So, unlike the long-distance interactions, you can more clearly sense the team effort, efficiency and 2X the care.

The third, more meaningful layer involves close proximity and proactive face-to-face communication. This includes the drive-bys, the running into one another throughout the work space, the in-person meetings and, more often than not, work sessions with all parties involved.

No work is better than work done by a team whose sum is greater than all its parts.

 

Stay Positive & Give Sending An Email A Second Thought

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We’re often so quick to take something that exists and bring it to another level.

A presentation already has 15 slides, what if we add 5 more?

There’s already a committee for recruitment, let’s add another for retention.

How can we grow X by 20 percent?

Of course, growth is a good thing … except when it’s not.

And it’s not when we’ve forgotten the why of why we started in the first place.

Too often we fall back on the anchor of where we are, rather than the why of how we got here.

Next time you’re working to elevate an idea, consider how long ago it was at zero and why it all began. You may discover that less is more or maybe adding 5 isn’t enough, you need to add 50.

 

Stay Positive & All About Retrospection

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Think of thrashing as the hard work and speed you put into your work when you’re faced with an immediate deadline.

Focus tightens. You lean on others for help. You make executive decisions. You move forward more quickly. You must more passion the anyone else.

Now imagine thrashing early. Before the deadline looms. Before anyone asks you to take the leap.

Why?

• Because you’re going to have 1,000 more things to do on top of the one thing you should have thrashed early at when the deadline finally looms
• Because you’ll find flaws or situations that would have set you back later, but instead set you back now (which is fine because now you have time to solve)
• Because that thing you just thrashed early on? It’s done. You can move onto something else that matters.

The list can go on if you’d like, but three solid reasons should be enough to start thrashing early.

 

Stay Positive & Better Sooner Than Never, That’s The Saying, Right?

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