Journey over destination

Since early on, they tell us it’s going to be easy.

That most things are natural, that talent is innate, that success is overnight. That relationships are a given. That having kids is just as simple as drinking a cup of coffee. That the way you go into the world, your purpose, your principles, are going to be very clear and eventually magically manifest in front of you. Without any effort.

Instead, it’s tough.

Almost every thing that is worth something requires blood, sweat, and tears.

And that’s probably what makes it worth it.

Journey over destination.

Harmony

Respect.

For some that means being kind to others. For some that means always telling it like it is. For some it is a matter of not wasting anybody’s time. For some it’s about making everyone feel involved.

Professional.

For some that means wearing a suit during workdays. For some that means being calm and in control. For some it is a matter of delivering on the promises. For some it’s about using a given lingo when talking and presenting.

Productive.

For some that means delivering a lot. For some that means delivering well. For some it is a matter of the time it takes to do things. For some it’s about money.

The point being, there is no absolute agreement on what things mean. And just because others have a different definition, it does not mean they are less committed to achieve exactly what you say you also want to achieve.

Your role in all that is to accept this very little fact – that different people have different definitions for the same thing. Not better, not worst. Just different.

Plus, you ought it to yourself and others to set some boundaries for your own definitions, boundaries that people should not overstep if they want to do business with you.

The rest is harmony.

One more chat

One of the biggest problems of companies that are growing is people turnover. The faster the growth, the bigger the problem.

Hiring and onboarding new people is a huge obstacle to further growth. And since growth is chaotic and managers don’t know how to manage (people), many will increasingly be demotivated, will burn out, or will simply leave. It is a spiral from which it is very difficult to get out.

The only antidote to this problem is start caring about people early on. Shifting the managerial approach from one more deal, one more feature, one more campaign to one more hour spent chatting with colleagues, both within your team and cross-functionally. Over-communicate and leave space to listen. Ensure that the team you already have will be a strong foundation for the growth that is coming.

Blow thoughts away

A thought is just a thought.

It comes and goes. It might come back, and certainly it will go away once more.

The challenge is that often we take that thought and build our reality around it. That person is mean to mean. Nobody wants me. I am not good enough. And by doing that, we twist our reality to match the thought. The thought will stay and we become conditioned by it.

Blow thoughts away, particularly the negative, devious, perverse, mean ones. They are just thoughts, until you build them into something bigger.

Paths

There’s I did not have time to do it. And there’s I didn’t do it.

There’s You sent the invite too late. And there’s I didn’t come.

There’s The team is not supportive. And there’s I am not delivering.

There’s They don’t care about me. And there’s I am committed.

One is the path to stagnation. The other is the path to continuous growth.

To take the latter, you need ownership.