A Learning a Day

There’s been a resurgence of the “Is the greatest basketball player LeBron or Michael Jordan” debate after Lebron James picked up his fourth championship ring.

I don’t care much for such debates.

But, it did make me reflect on “The Last Dance” documentary about Michael Jordan again. One of the ideas that inspired me was the level at which Michael Jordan performed throughout the season. But, then, somehow, he raised his game in the knockout stages. And, then further in the NBA finals.

Every time the Bulls landed in the final, he came out as the Most Valuable Player. 6 times out of 6.

I’ve had many sporting heroes over the years. Every one of them has had occasions when they didn’t come through. So, I was admittedly awestruck at MJ’s record.

He was far from a perfect human being. “Winning has a price. Leadership has a price” – in his words.

But, there’s something to be said for coming through when it counted.

Every time.

I came across a post from Erika James – the new Dean at the Wharton School – about lessons learnt in her first 90 days. Her third lesson was “Find the energizers”

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Even under the best of circumstances, assuming a new leadership role can be draining in the first few months. The need to be introduced throughout the organization, sift through myriad issues while simultaneously trying to prioritize people and projects, and respond to an endless amount of stimuli from electronic media (not to mention the actual work of thinking, planning and strategizing) can be relentless. I would say that identifying the people who energize you rather than drain your energy (inside and outside your new organization) is not just important; it’s necessary.

A well-timed conversation with the right “energizer” can both invigorate me and contribute to my overall sense of purpose – two things leaders need as they establish themselves in a new role. Seek out time with these people. Intentionally find time to interact with them rather than leave it up to serendipity. These exchanges may be the exact fuel you need to overcome the hurdles you will most certainly face. Conversely, I’ve learned that limiting my time with people unable or unwilling to provide me that mental “boost” is equally important for keeping me motivated to achieve my biggest goals.

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It resonated.

May we accept feedback just as graciously and easily as we give it.

A recipe for strong partnerships: Aligned on why, complementary on how.

Assuming mutual respect within the partnership, increasing the degree of complementarity makes it more likely the combined results are far more than the sum of the individual parts.

Yesterday’s post was about the power of community to change culture. A related question I’ve been interested in exploring for a while is – how might we better use the power of community to build better habits?

Three years ago, a couple of friends and I discussed the possibility of building out an app that would help people reflect more and share gratitude. We talked about the possibility of infusing community – but, we were hazy on the specifics.

Even as time passed, the idea lived on. We talked about it in passing. But, for one reason or another, we didn’t get to it.

That changed three months back when we excitedly exchanged notes and realized we’d all appreciate some positivity right now. And, thus, the idea for an experiment in enabling folks to share gratitude was born.

Ergo “The Daily Seed App” alpha test.

As of yesterday, we have ~100 folks testing the web app. And, over the next 30 days, we’re excited to see if infusing community into a daily gratitude habit makes it stick.

If it works well, the next phase will be building out a mobile app.

More to follow on what we learn…

We’ve seen growing adoption of the Apple Watch amongst our group of friends lately. A big part of the reason to adopt has been sharing fitness activity with each other.

So, we see each other’s daily activity summary and get small haptic nudges when someone in the group finishes a workout. It is a lovely way for us to feel connected and motivated.

So much so that it has transformed the new adopter’s experience. A good friend recently joined the group and, inspired by the rest of the group, he’s hit his activity targets every day since getting the watch.

“People like us do things like this.”

It has changed our behavior by changing our culture. The combination of community and culture are among the most powerful levers we have to effect change.

As we head closer to election day in the United States, changes to immigration rules have been coming thick and fast. Naturally, it is a frequent topic of conversation amongst those of us who are impacted.

One friend described it nicely when he sighed and said – “Let’s add this to our growing list of immigration related things to stress about.”

We then made a few jokes made about the fabled green card – a multi-decade process for most Indian immigrants. Those jokes reminded me of a video of Ormie the Pig trying to get hold of a few cookies on top of a fridge.

It sums it up nicely.

There’s a learning curve involved with habitually doing things we’re afraid to do.

My reflection from taking such plunges in the past is that their value is often misrepresented. When we hear folks speak about this, we only hear the positives.

We hear folks encouraging us to embrace our fear and step into the unknown. They tell us that it is always worth it to take those uncomfortable steps. Fear is overrated, carpe diem, etc..

Interestingly, such narratives implicitly assume that the reward at the other end always makes the discomfort worth it.

However, that is only true some of the time. Many a time, we learn that we were uncomfortable for good reason. And, sometimes, such failures can be costly.

So, if habitually doing things we’re afraid to do doesn’t always pay off, why should we do it? (or should we?)

My learning is that the reason to take such plunges habitually is because they’re good for our soul. By habitually removing any chance of regret, they change how we see ourselves. We go from passive observers to active changemakers. And, we find ourselves embracing more discomfort and, eventually, more growth.

So, it doesn’t always work out in the short run. But, in the long run, the learning and growth it inspires counts for a lot.

It occurred to me recently that spending time comparing ourselves to others is a lot like driving with our eyes focused on cars around us.

(Aren’t they better than us? Look how fast they’re moving)

Of course, it turns out to be a horrible way to drive because it is both unsafe and unproductive.

We’re always better off a) being clear about where we want to go and b) staying focused on the road ahead.

It is a better and safer way to drive.

It also turns out to be a smarter way to live.