The philosophies of getting things done... and maybe a little leadership.

If you haven’t heard this from me before let me offer something up for your consideration —

"Everything we deal with can be categorized as either an opportunity or a problem". 

Sure some philosophies may offer broader considerations, but from a day-to day perspective it has worked very well for me over the years. You find yourself, on almost a constant basis, dealing with either an "opportunity statement" or a "problem statement". And an important consideration with regards to this, is if you can't categorize what you are dealing with, maybe it's not worth your attention or is of little consequence. 

Once an opportunity or a problem has been categorized and articulated it becomes an issue of assigning Goals and Objectives to whatever you are dealing with (this will help you zero in on what you are going to do with either your problem or opportunity). It should be pointed out that you may have a laundry list of opportunities and problems, so it’s also important to prioritize what you’re dealing with to ensure you are minimizing your big problems while taking advantage of your biggest opportunities — the problem of not knowing where to go after your favourite restaurant has closed pales in comparison to the unexpected government audit that has come your way.

As you move into the execution stage, there are three considerations that should be top of mind —

Ensure you involve people who are committed, have diverse perspectives (and skill sets), and are able to leave any ego (and agenda) at the door. If you are leading the effort let your team do their job because they’re definitely going to do a better job hitting those Goals and Objectives than you.

Have a framework and a process to move the thinking and execution of your initiatives forward. I liken it to a funnel — initially you want your approach to be broad and capture as much input and thinking as possible; as you prioritize and progress this thinking it allows you to focus in on key initiatives that you can execute on (and measure). A time and event will help you stay on track and meet your milestones.

Be aware of the time and resources you have to work with. This keeps you grounded in reality with regard to what you can and what you can not do — for example, planning out a multi-channel marketing campaign but only having the budget for guerrilla marketing will be a problem. Use your money effectively and show results because simply put, success attracts money.

And finally measure everything you do. Set expectations and measure how you are doing relative to them — whether it’s solving for the initial problem, understanding if you have met your Goals and Objectives, determining if you’ve initiated your key activities, or if you’re on schedule to meet your milestones. It should also be stressed that although you should never loose sight of hitting our Goals and Objectives, it’s just as important to always be progressing. Constant measuring will insure you are heading in the right direction.

It probably wouldn’t hurt if everyone around the table is also showing some leadership — my experience is this is how things really get done.

iamgpe

Reflecting on the world around us...

There is something about getting away, putting yourself in a different context, and giving yourself some time to regain perspective — as well as reflect and reenergize. This is not something new and you’ve probably heard it before, but if you are like me, you may think about it much more than actually doing it.

It also offers the opportunity to read on the plane if you are so inclined, and in my case, I read a book called Secrets of the Amazon by Barbara Gray; the book looks at the current disruptors in the marketplace such as Amazon, Tesla, and Uber. The book was lent to me by a friend who thought I would like it because I’m fascinated with disruptors, somewhat of a contrarian, and I’m always trying to stay on top of how we are doing things “differently”.

I was a bit flattered by the recognition, and I suppose after leaving a corporate setting, I have gravitated to a more entrepreneurial spirit, become involved with start-ups, invested in new technologies, blogged a fair bit, and have shifted my definitions of work, business, success, and professional growth. And I have only just started.

The book focused specifically on the change and disruption in the retail and transportation industries, as well as how we are utilizing physical space differently — it didn’t even touch on how we are augmenting our reality with VR/AR, literally changing the human condition with genetic tools such as CRISPR/Cas, how we manage our commerce, how we connect (let alone deal with the massive volume of information and its accuracy), et cetera, et cetera, It has become a very dynamic environment to survive and thrive in, and I mean this both literally and figuratively.

As I read, and reflected on what I read, I found myself writing five points for consideration on an Air Canada napkin. It was a framework of thinking and for understanding what is happening — why it is happening, and how to deal with the problems, challenges and OPPORTUNITIES that present themselves. How I will actually work these into my thinking going forward I am not sure but I know they are relevant with regards to our participation in what’s going on. And participate we must.

1. People are lazy — we want the most for the least amount of effort. Genetically, and from a survival perspective, it makes sense. It is not a reflection of anything, it just is.

2. We want what we want — some of what we want we need, and some of what we want we just want. Tools have made us the apex predator on the planet, and we continue to acquire them whether we need them or not.

3. We need connection — we need to connect with people for our very survival. We are a social species.

4. As people, we are valuable — philosophically and commercially our lifetime value is worth quite a bit; probably incalculable when you consider social contribution, commercial contribution, and emotional contribution.

5. Life is hard — yes it’s harder for some, but in general, life is a difficult endeavour all around.

These may ultimately be just the scribbles that came from a long flight, but then again, I may use them as a mental list when I listen to someone pitch their latest idea.

iamgpe

PS — The Yukon is a magical place and the air is very, very fresh.

"Don't be bold..."

I was with some long time friends and telling a colourful story when someone happened to infer what I was talking about was "bold". To that someone else offered up a detail from my past that I had forgotten, "Remember when your mom used to say, 'Graham don't be bold'".

It brought a laugh to be sure, and for a moment an adult's reflection on his youth — an adult interpretation of a child's interpretation of something said so long ago.

bold [bōld] ADJECTIVE: (of a person, action, or idea) showing an ability to take risks; confident and courageous.

I could not help but wonder how being told not to be "confident and courageous" had impacted me — a request to squash these virtuous qualities must have had some sort of impact. Why would a parent tell a child not to put these tools in his tool bag? What was my mother thinking? As I considered the shackles that had been thrust upon me so long ago I came across this:

Ná bí dána! 

It's Gaelic for "Don't be bold/naughty!"

naugh·ty [ˈnôdē] ADJECTIVE: (especially of children) disobedient; badly behaved.

It now seemed to make much more sense now because of my mother's Scottish roots and, as an adult, I could easily interpret some of my childhood actions as "naughty" — my loving mother's virtue was still very much intact. Ultimately this short trip down memory lane offered a glimpse into meaty topics such as the impact of words, the impact of words on children, how communication is precarious at the best of times, and how it's better to be "bold" rather than "naughty". It also had me consider another word —

reck·less [ˈrekləs] ADJECTIVE: (of a person or their actions) without thinking or caring about the consequences of an action.

I suppose it may have been more constructive if my mother had said, "Be bold, try not to be naughty, and definitely don't be reckless". If only I had a time machine.

Rest in peace Mary Margaret Edwards.

iamgpe