The Perils of Flying Solo
The best kept secret: Portfolio Careers
I did a 'Panic MBA'
When I was 30 I realized advertising was not where I wanted to be long-term. But I had no idea what came next.
And 30 was 'much too old' to feel lost.
So I panicked. 🚨
And being the high-achiever that I am, I thought since I don't know what I want to do and because I'm 'so old' I had better quickly do my MBA now before I'm 'too old'.
Within 6 months I'd taken the GMAT, applied to programs, and gotten accepted to…
What Malcolm Gladwell Forgot to Tell You
You probably have heard the stat that Malcolm Gladwell popularized in his book, Outliers, that 10,000 hours of practice will make you an expert. 🤓
You may have also heard that deep expertise is what is required to be truly successful in whatever you do: get super good at something and then build a professional brand around that. 💪
And while this advice isn't wrong, it leaves out an essential insight:
Deep expertise from 10,000 hours of practice can only be successfully realized if it's combin…
The Mario Kart Philosophy
The Importance of Downtime
I recently read this relatively provocative article titled Darwin was a slacker and you should be too. The two main points that it makes are as follows:
1. No one can be productive for eight hours a day, 40 hours a week. In fact, productivity peaks around four to five hours a day and then is destroyed the longer you work. Fun fact: A study mentioned in the article found that scientists working 35 hours a week were half as productive as those working 20. You may have also heard that …
Fall in love with your work.
My friend and fellow coach Stephen Mayo has a great site with thought-provoking quotes and questions. One of my favorites is this one, from Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.
Pres. Obama: "How did you keep perspective? [after so much success]"
Jerry Seinfeld: "I fell in love with the work. And the work was joyful and difficult and interesting, and that was my focus"
What would it be like to be in love with our work? Imagine if what you did every day not only challenged you and consum…
When I realized what I was doing was not a good long-term fit, I would spiral into deep negativity and frustration - about the work and the people. This would cloud my mind and make every day at work painful.
And in this pain, I'd be looking for a way to get out ASAP.
Which would then land me in yet another environment that was not a great fit.
A vicious cycle.