SAMBA Blog

The power of your word

Our word is the most powerful tool we have.

Human determination is so tenacious, so limitless, so alive that once we commit, truly commit, we can achieve amazing things no one around us thinks is possible.

Jerry Weintraub, just an ordinary Jewish kid from Brooklyn told his wife he was going to bring Elvis to Madison Square Garden. He didn't have any idea how he was going to do it. It didn't matter, all he had to do was say it and mean it. He found a way.

Sylvester Stallone said that not only was he going to make his movie, but he was going to be the star of it. No one wanted his script, and the few that did, didn't want him to be Rocky. Well now he is, and by the way, he won an Oscar.

Lisa Shannon was watching Oprah one day and saw the the horrible attrocities happening to the women of the Congo. She said she would start a race that would raise awareness and money helping thousands of women. She did.

Time after time, we see evidence that our word is powerful beyond belief.  But we forget one critical factor. When we throw around our word irresponsibly: we ruin it. 

"Sure, I'll call you next week and we'll get lunch" (we don't)

"I'll go to the gym tomorrow morning." (we never do)

"I'll have that assignment on your desk by 5:00PM, no later." (we hand it in at 5:30pm).


Everytime we invoke our word, and fail to fulfill those commitments, even the tiny ones (especially the tiny ones) we diminish it's power. Gradually, one missed coffee date at a time, our word deteriorates so much, that not only do those around us not trust our commitments, but we don't even trust our own.

And so when our word really matters, when it really could make the biggest difference, for our stretch goals, the ones that push the limits of imagination, it fails us (or rather we fail it). Our word, our direct access to the human spirit, the one that has built cities, discovered the theory of relativity, and sent men to the moon is lost.

Landmark Education calls honoring your word, integrity. Integrity isn't the same thing as morality, it's not about right or wrong, it's about what works and what doesn't.

Integrity works. 

What would happen if we lived our lives with radical integrity?  What kind of power might we have access to?

Are Companies that Restrict Social Media Access Serious?

According to a 2009 survey from Robert Half Technology, more than half of the CIOs who responded, prohibited using social media at work.

More than half? Seriously? What outcome is that supposed to achieve? Increased productivity?

It's just difficult for me to imagine a meeting in which intelligent executives got together and arrived at the conclusion that the solution to their productivity problem was restricting access to Facebook and Twitter.

If an individual is wasting time on social media, once taken away, won't they find another outlet to waste time?

The benefits of a no social media policy with regards to productivity seem trivial at best , but the potential costs are enormous:

1. You risk alienating your employees. People wanted to be treated with respect. Like they're professionals. Not like children. A no social media policy feels like punishment that you might offer to a child.

2. You risk decreasing productivity. As Dan Pink makes clear in Drive, one of the essential elements of motivation is autonomy, the drive to direct our own lives. An action like restricting social media access, can be interpreted as a signal that your company doesn't trust you to get your work done.  That your company feels the need to intervene into your work habits. This jeopardizes the feeling of autonomy for employees.

If your company has a productivity problem, why not focus on the things that really matter, like creating a compelling vision for the business that makes them want to work harder. It seems to me, that focusing on social media is an easy way out (and a useless one).

Book Review: Chris Guillebeau's The Art of Non-Conformity

All this talk about The World Domination Summit made me realize I still hadn't read Chris' book yet.

So I did (long overdue).

The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life you Want, and Change the World is an inspiring read. It's a very personal and real book, a proposition for a new way of thinking and living. An unconventional one. I loved it.

In the very beginning of the book, Chris points out that when we're young, we're often told not to "jump off a bridge" just because everyone else is doing it. Yet at some point, the tables are turned and we're expected to do the very things everyone else is doing.

Chris goes on to describe his own personal journey, and offers great practical advice about overcoming fear and being true to yourself.  But not as a "Guru", more as a friend. This caring tone is what makes the book special.

Chris Guillebeau's 11 Ways to be Unremarkably Average:

1. Accept what people tell you at face value
2. Dont' question authority.
3. Go to colelge becaues you're supposed to, not because you want to learn something.
4. Go overseas once or twice in your life, to somewhere safe like England.
5. Don't try to learn another language; everyone else will eventually learn English.
6. Think about starting your own business, but never do it.
7. Think about writing a book, but never do it.
8. Get the largest mortgage you qualify for and spend 30 years paying for it.
9. Sit at a desk 40 hours a week for an average of 10 hours of productive work.
10. Don't stand out or draw attention to yourself.
11. Jump through hoops. Check off boxes.

And Chris' doesn't just talk.  He walks the walk. Anyone who has followed him, his blog, and his career over the last couple of years sees the benefits of the kind of thinking he preaches so passionately about.

His recent World Domination Summit is the perfect example.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone willing to stand out, stand up, or stand for something they believe in.

 

 

A lesson on decisions

You're presented 2 boxes: Box A and Box B.

One of the boxes has a million dollars in it.  The other contains a box of Smores Pop Tarts.

You're truthfully told that Box A has a 55% chance of having the money.  You have to choose one.  

What do you do?

You pick box A.  You open it up.  GARRR!  It's the pop tarts!

Did you make a bad decision?  Most people would say so.  In fact they might live their entire lives regretting it, and wishing that they had chosen Box B instead.

But the quality of your decision is outcome independent.  Hindsight is 20/20.

In fact, in retrospect based on the intelligence you had, you made the best decision. The perfect decision.  

Dont' worry.  Keep making good decisions, and good outcomes are bound to follow.

So eat the pop tarts.  Enjoy them.  And pat yourself on the back for a job well done.  

Khan Academy for Business

I recently sat in on a product update meeting at a well-known training company. The head of the product team informed the staff of changes to one of the core products so they could educate the customers.

He convened a meeting with 35 staff members and recited every single change out loud. The monologue took 45 minutes. With 15 minutes left, he asked for questions.

No questions here.

Since this was the first time the staff had heard the information, they hadn’t had the opportunity to even think of relevant questions. Faced with the prospect of asking a question that might seem stupid, attendees sat silently instead. Feeling the vacuum and because they felt sorry for the speaker, a few asked some inane questions anyway.

Over thirty-five working hours later (!), the staff slunk away, back to their desks, and entire week’s worth of productivity shot.

Imagine another scenario using the Khan approach. What if the product manager recorded himself giving his presentation into a web cam, watching it afterwards to make sure it’s engaging. He then edits it and sends it out to the group. The group watches the video online, self paced, with the option to rewind or repeat if necessary. Two days later, have a Q&A session. Think it will be more productive?

Perhaps there was ten minutes of the content that was controversial, sensitive, or nuanced, stuff that actually needs to be discussed or debate. Well let’s have the meeting centered around those topics.

When invited to a memo meeting, decline to attend. Ask them to tape it and send you the video instead.