Tag: writing

To your advantage

FabrizioLeave a comment

There is one absolute truth. And that truth is that no one is ever going to care as much as you do.

No one is going to care about how brilliant you are. And you ARE brilliant. But no one is going to care. Of course, that can change if you put your brilliance at the service of something that touches enough people, in a consistent way, over a period of time. Without getting demotivated because for a long time no one will care.

No one is going to care about the good job you are doing. And you ARE doing good job. But no one is going to care. Of course, that can change if your job touches enough people, in a consistent way, over a period of time. Without giving up because for a long time no one will care.

No one is going to care about your success, your breakthrough, your next big idea. And you MIGHT achieve just that at some point. But no one is going to care. With the exception, perhaps, of those few who have been touched by it, in a consistent way, over a period of time. Because you have not cared that for a long time no one cared.

The point is, no one cares is no longer an excuse. It is a reality. One that you need to turn around to your advantage.

When will you do that?

Prepared to communicate

Fabrizio1 Comment

If you do not have time, if you are too busy, if you have many things to do, if you are juggling different tasks.

Then avoid sending important messages or giving important speeches.

Effective communication requires time and intentional effort. No, you are probably not a natural communicator, and people will not get it one way or the other.

Depending on your role, communication might have different degrees of importance for you. If you are a leader, or if you are in a position of power, you should probably have it among your key priorities. But unless you can dedicate enough time to prepare for it, silence is your second best option.

[The time it takes me to prepare for a speech] depends on the length of the speech. If it is a ten-minute speech it takes me all of two weeks to prepare it; if it is a half-hour speech it takes me a week; if I can talk as long as I want to it requires no preparation at all. I am ready now.

President Woodrow Wilson

Discipline and compassion

Fabrizio1 Comment

I love how this article by Brad Stulberg sums up many of my thoughts and beliefs around practice and awareness.

The relationship between self-discipline and self-compassion is reciprocal. One feeds the other and we need to find a way to keep them in balance.

It’s the only way to avoid getting stuck.

It’s the only way to do meaningful work.

Doing is boring

Fabrizio3 Comments

Doing is boring.

It comes after the excitement of ideation and brainstorming. It is way ahead of the sparkles and glitters of reveal and success. It is repetitive, often solitary, unsung, at times painful, mostly bland.

And that is precisely why many fail at it.

Showing up day after day to merely do is a trait one needs to train. Without that, we are jumping from one thing to the next. With that, we are setting ourselves apart from the mass.

Doing, just like life, is boring.

To achieve anything, you just have to get over this simple fact.

Protect or build

Fabrizio1 Comment

You can protect your name, your reputation, your prestige. Or you can build it.

Rarely you can do both at the same time.

Protecting is about public relations, networking, promising, giving speeches. It is a reactive game. It is about ensuring that what you do determines who you are, how others see you. It is trying to control the outcome, that you can’t really control.

Building is about doing. It is a proactive game. It is about ensuring that who you are determines what you do, day after day. It is fully mastering the input, that you can always control.

Choose carefully.