Go deeper

What makes you unique is not that you are customer-focused and have great communication skills.

What makes you unique is that you enjoy the challenge of finding the right audience for the company you work at, and that you dedicate effort to buy everyone in the story you are going to tell.

Lazy adjectives and terminology are particularly harmful when you use them to present yourself in the job market. They are shortcuts that flatten the contribution you have to make. They just make you feel like everyone else.

When you are about to use any of them, ask yourself three questions.

  • What do I mean with that?
  • In what situation have I proved that?
  • How can I describe that to my friend?

It will help you go deeper and unlock what it is that make you truly stand out.

Practice praising

We often found ourselves wanting to express appreciation for a colleague, our partner, our kids. Yet it seems to be so difficult to go beyond some generic remarks.

Practice praising and you will be rewarded with happiness and emotion all around you.

Start with someone you feel safe with and expand.

Start with just a few genuine words and expand.

Start doing it once a week and expand.

Soon you will realize that it is much softer to live in a world where praise is common.

When you fall

When you fall, you develop fear.

Some get back on the horse right away, some take their time, some never try again. I am not sure which one is better.

But when you fall, you develop fear.

And that’s something important to keep in mind as you work your way towards success.

Vicious and virtuous

Sometimes you can start a habit by breaking a negative cycle.

If you always check your inbox right before going to sleep, try not doing it just once.

If you spend an increasing amount of time with a repetitive videogame, surprise yourself by not reaching for it at the next occasion.

If you go for your phone as soon as a notification pops up, resist the instict next time – turning off notifications is an easy aid.

Sometimes you can start a habit by nurturing a positive cycle.

If you figure out that calling a friend puts you in a good mood, do that more regularly.

If you realize that reading a book calms your nerves and sparks new ideas, buy a new one once your are done with the next.

If cooking makes you think more carefully about what you are eating, carve some time every day to cook yourself a meal.

Sometimes, all you need is one less.

Sometimes, all you need is one more.

Opinions are sentiments

People can easily come up with an opinion on almost anything.

And two things are good to keep in mind.

First, opinions are opinions. They are more influenced by sentiment or feeling than reason. They are great ways to get started, but poor ways to get you across the finish line. The sooner you move from opinions to facts, the closer you will be to success.

Second, saying that you don’t have an opinion on a given topic is not a sign of weakness or dumbness. And most of all, it does not prevent you from taking action. Moving from opinions to facts is equally important when the opinions are not yours.