Before you start setting goals for next year, do these 3 things: Setting new goals is much more effective when you account for the things that helped you succeed, the obstacles that slowed you down, and celebrate as many victories as you can conjure, because doing so helps you apply what you’ve learned in the past 12 months to the … Read More
What if it had to be done today?
I recently heard someone offer an exercise to small business owners: Take your core product offering and develop a version that costs 1/10th the current price, and another that costs 10x the current price. At first this exercise seems very difficult, maybe even impossible, but intentionally adding a 1/10th constraint or a 10x expansion forces you to look at your … Read More
Do you control what controls you?
During our summer camping trips, Nicole and I played a lot of Gin. We were pretty evenly matched, but each of us would find ourselves on a hot or cold streak from time to time. During a particularly chilly series of hands I found myself being playfully derided by my wife, which led me to a profound and liberating realization: … Read More
You don’t know what you don’t know
Once upon a time my daughter developed a rash that kept getting worse. After a few days it started bleeding and my mind wandered to some dark places. Will it leave scars? Is it contagious? Is it some sort of flesh-eating bacteria? My overactive imagination wasn’t doing me any favors. Anxious and afraid, we took her to the doctor. After … Read More
Adaptation IS the work
Only a tiny percentage of projects are going to work exactly as you expect. Here’s the weird part: most people know this, like in their bones they know it, and yet they are still surprised and frustrated when the unexpected shows up. That’s kind of like being flabbergasted that the sun came up AGAIN today or that small children will … Read More
This is why the money doesn’t make you happy
Here’s an overwhelmingly unpopular opinion: I don’t believe that anyone really wants money. They want what money can do for them. Money is a tool, and in the same way that no one really wants a pile of hammers, piling up money for sport isn’t really gratifying. You don’t really want to be rich… You really want to demonstrate your … Read More
What else don’t you know?
I recently came across a video in which a man is expressing wholesale amazement to his wife that the trackpad on his laptop allows him to SCROLL up and down if uses two fingers. He can’t believe that, per his wife, it’s a feature that has existed on every laptop he’s ever owned. The video wraps with him, still in … Read More
Someone loves to do the thing you hate
When asked what they love most about their businesses, most of my new clients struggle to nail it down with clarity or specificity. But they all know EXACTLY what they hate about it. They are so clear about the thing(s) that vexes them, and that clarity creates a problem most of them can’t even see. Their overwhelming disdain for managing … Read More
The overwhelm is temporary
Nicole and I were in line at an ice cream shop last week and overheard one of the young workers chatting with another while they were working. “I’m nervous about my driver’s test next week,” she confided. It’s been about 150 years since I took my driver’s test and it reminded me that the things which feel overwhelming today rarely … Read More
Three things to consider before you say YES
My wife and I have vastly different work experiences. She drives 20-minutes to her office where she runs HR at our hospital. I walk across the driveway to my office where I support small business owners over the phone. She spends most of her days in executive meetings. I spend most of my days working on my businesses, creating content, … Read More
This simple habit will change your life
I recently caught a clip from an interview with Kristen Bell in which she was asked about her husband, Dax Shepard. She was recounting her first encounter with him and, after more than a decade of marriage, was absolutely hyping him up for being so much deeper and thoughtful than most people assume him to be. I immediately sent the … Read More
Are you addicted to the struggle?
Nicole and I have been having a blast adventuring around Alaska in our small, new-to-us camper this summer. Our very first outing was on May 10th and in spite of months of watching YouTube videos to ensure we towed safely and set everything up correctly, things were a little clumsy and time-consuming. Each of the subsequent trips have worked more … Read More
3 ways to adapt quickly
You are going to make plans and then some unexpected twist is going to break those plans. In spite of all of your thoughtful consideration, something you couldn’t possibly see coming will tap you on the shoulder and force you to rework things at the 11th hour It’s inevitable. Here are 3 ways to adapt quickly when plans change. Grieve … Read More
4 lies to stop telling yourself
I have worked with so many small business owners across the years and these are 4 lies they consistently tell themselves. Do any of these sound familiar to you? It will be faster if I do it myself Maybe, but this argument falls apart if you ever have to repeat the task. This is a great example of short-term thinking … Read More
How limiting your options gives you freedom
Everything in my closet matches every other thing in my closet. What can I say? I love navy blue. Each morning when I scan my closet for something to wear I get to skip the part where I have to decide if these pants go with that shirt. Anything goes with everything. In a world where we spend our days … Read More
I feel like this is all made up
Once upon a time, Nicole and I were discussing a frustrating interaction she had with a colleague. The details are wholly unimportant because the conversation ended with us deciding that about 50% of the “facts” that were informing how she felt about this interaction were actually assumptions or projections. I offer this up to you because Nicole isn’t alone in … Read More