Why Try To Get Out Of Your Box, When You Can Use What's In It?
When the structure isn’t working, the habit’s staying a struggle, and no one’s happy with the work
break it.
Break the borders, the status quo, the colors they expect.
Most importantly, though, make breaking it fun.
Stay Positive & Start Again Excited
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Most of the questions we ask at first aren’t necessarily dumb, but they’re easy to get answers to.
They are questions to develop a benchmark of knowledge so you’re on the same playing field as others.
Then the hard questions begin to happen. The ones people might not have the answer to or if they do, your gut is telling you its wrong.
They are questions that make you uncomfortable because you’re stretching into the unfamiliar and making it about others in the room as much as you are about you.
If we can just keep going beyond the pressure of status roles in the room or the feeling of absent confidence when asking a question or the underlying belief that if we ask a question then there is only one right and one wrong answer, then – only then – can we begin to deeply engage with one another, challenge the status quo and actually make change happen.
Stay Positive & Yea, All It Takes Is A Question Or Two (Or Three)
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There will come a time that you go to sleep and dream about what you’ve been working on all day.
There will be a day that you’ll gladly let go of past responsibilities that you once enjoyed but are not tied to your current devotion.
There will be moments that life is explicitly unfair, maybe even cruel, but the energy you find to continue will be sourced from a single passion.
Life can get harder in a lot of different areas once we cross this threshold of devotion, but, boy does it get easier in others.
Stay Positive & See You On The Other Side
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It seems the world is powered by hype.
The more exciting the news, the more cutting-edge technology we showcase, the more powerful connections and status roles we profile, the more our perceptions of reality grow.
But reality, as we often face, is smaller than we thought.
Despite the hype: Doctors still can’t entirely prevent migraines. There’s no point in owning a vehicle that can go from 0 to 60 in half a second if you live downtown. More than 4 billion people own a cell phone but fewer use it to talk with a friend. And only 1 percent of the world’s population has actually seen RENT.
The paradox of it all is that the smallest realities can ignite the most powerful of perceptions.
Perceptions of self-confidence and free imagination. (Walt Disney, despite his battles with depression, found that a simply drawn cartoon had the power to change his entire world and his perception of himself and his potential.)
Perceptions of the power of connection. (Slack didn’t take over because it’s faster, stronger or cheaper; It took over because it created tension between those who would be connected and those who wouldn’t.)
Perceptions of dependability and trust. (Ever notice how much of it gets lost when you arrive to a meeting late?)
Perhaps it’s worth focusing more on the small realities and their big impacts rather than big impacts and their small realities.
With others. With the world. And most importantly, with ourselves.
Stay Positive & Lower The Bar To Make A Better Impact
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We know the first step to getting a conversion, creating a loyal customer or even impressing our significant other’s parents is to get their attention.
Many go about it all wrong, however.
It’s less about the flash or hook or what you can pay for their attention. Even less about the special offer only you have or a quality people know your brand for.
The best way to get attention is to be attentive.
Same can be said for finding friendship – start being a friend.
Or selling a product – begin asking people about the problem they have.
It’s sort of like listening, engaging and being a human.
Stay Positive & That’s All It Takes To Get Attention
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Quickest way to keep a project moving or get client buy-in or to receive the greatest endorsements for your work is to provide relief to someone.
Maybe it’s the relief of status, that – thanks to you – they don’t have to worry about trying to be cooler, hipper or smarter than they are.
Maybe it’s the relief of no longer feeling lonely, that – thanks to you – they have a community to connect with, a partner in their adventure or a mentor they can reach out to any time.
Maybe it’s the relief of hunger, that – thanks to you – they don’t have to worry about what they’ll eat tonight, or worse, if they’ll eat tonight.
Some brands relieve you from the struggle of finding a significant other – Hey, Tinder.
Some brands relieve you from having to talk about the weather. Hey, Johnny Cupcakes.
Some brands relieve you from the fear of no longer acting like a child. Hey, Razor.
To put another spin on relief, think back to your favorite moments of a project or memories of a product. No doubt they provided a feeling of relief.
Stay Positive & What Will You Relieve?
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Turns out it doesn’t take drastically different ideas and radically variant executions and insanely out there actions to be different.
It merely takes consistency. Showing up again and again with your promise, and keeping it.
Stay Positive & Let The Market Tell You When It’s Time To Change
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