Category: Personal Growth

Are You Planning Strategically or Just Putting Out Fires?

What is the difference between setting goals and achieving them? A few things:

  • Motivation (internal motivation)
  • Resources (relationships, time, tools, skills)
  • Accountability (external motivation)

As I have mentioned recently, I am in a process of refinement – of doing fewer things more effectively.

Inherent in this is the idea of honing one’s skills. The goal is to improve the return on investment of your resources. That so many people I speak to tell me that they can’t possibly fit one more thing into their life. They can’t do anything else. What they are left with is the hard choices of choosing what to do, and what not to do. And learning how to make better use of their resources, and hone their skills.

tea ceremony

The above image is a scene from The Last Samurai featuring the ritual of a tea ceremony. It’s an image that I try to keep in my mind often. The character here has devoted his life to this ritual, to perfecting the craft of tea. That this person becomes better and better, understanding the subtle nuances that those in line at Starbucks will never know. That, when I do this in my career, I will likely find value and serendipity in places I was too busy rushing past to truly appreciate.

And yet, in many work environments, I see the opposite of this process. I don’t see strategic planning, careful consideration, and a constant focus on specific goals. I see people running around, “putting out fires,” as they say. In other words: they deal with the squeaky wheel, the person or project that is suddenly under deadline. In the financial world, we bemoan this as focusing only on quarterly revenue numbers, sometimes at the expense of long-term growth. We can’t see the forest for the trees.

And all around us, we see this:
texting while riding a bicycle
(image by Josiah Mackenzie)

And this:
texting while driving
(image by Watchcaddy)

Being distracted from the task at hand, at the risk of your own long-term goals. If you are concerned about where your career is heading, how you will achieve your goals, this year, consider the following:

How do you spend the first working hour of your day?

Is it checking email?

Checking Twitter?

Checking the headlines?

Reacting.

Instead of acting.

Cluttering our minds.

Instead of clearing them.

Getting bogged down in the now.

Instead of envisioning what can be?

Putting out fires for others.

Instead of building a foundation for your own success.

Reacting day to day.

Instead of building accomplishments over the course of years.

When Steve Jobs passed away, I heard so many people react by challenging others to truly create something original, something worthy of a legacy. I wonder, how many of those people have changed how they live already? How many have set out on a new path, one that pushes away from the status quo, from the well-tread path, to cover new ground, to create something that has never been, something they would be proud to be their own legacy?

How will you hone your vision; hone your skills; hone your craft this year? Will you quickly get caught up in the sludge of email, of the metaphorical laundry of our everyday lives – the tasks that pile up every week, but doesn’t build anything of value over time.

If you need a helping hand in any of this, please feel free to connect with me.

-Dan

Risk and Reward: Giving Up Safety To Find Opportunity

Today I want to talk about risk. Taking an action that strips away the security net that we surround ourselves with. Knowingly or not, we all take steps to protect our financial well-being, our emotional well-being, our sense of self, and/or our place in this world.

Rebooting Your Life
In 2010, I threw security out the window. At least, security as many traditionally define it: a stable job and income. In the midst of the biggest recession of my lifetime, I left my job of 10 years, and didn’t apply for another. I actually turned down at least four unsolicited job offers from people I really respect. (that felt bizarre, and I was deeply honored by their interest.) That same year, my wife and I had our first child, a little boy. This year, my wife quit her job as an art teacher. She gave up amazing health benefits that were essentially free, as well as tenure at a job she enjoyed. I started a company, serving publishers and writers.

And yet, after having taking each of these steps that seemingly expose me to financial ruin, I have never been happier, felt more successful, or confronted with so much opportunity.

I enjoyed my corporate job – I liked what I did, the people I worked with, and the opportunities it provided. But deep down, I was often worried. There were always rumors about potential layoffs, reorganizations, and shifts in the corporate structure that would result in me losing my job. This was by no means unique to the company I worked for, friends at other companies expressed the same common themes that ran through their corporate life. By one colleague’s count, I had “survived” more than 20 rounds of layoffs over the years.

But now, without a “stable” job, with my wife not working, with another ‘mouth to feed,’ I have never slept better. I have never felt more helpful to others, more confident in my career. And I have never been presented with so many amazing opportunities.

Choosing a Path
It is interesting to consider career paths. In the corporate world, it would have been a slow movement up the corporate ladder. From Director to Senior Director to Junior Vice President to Vice President to Senior Vice President to President. On the surface, that embodies everything about the American Dream: opportunity.

Except…

So many executives I met at various companies over the years seemed unhappy in some ways. Yes, they appreciated their roles and the power and financial security that came with it. But their jobs had long since morphed from their true passion. The hours were brutal. They traveled often, spending great deals of time away from their families. The older they got, the more locked in they became. I could always sense the great unspoken fear of corporate America: “getting laid off at age 53.”

You can fill in any age to that phrase – but it implies that you are old enough to have achieved a nice salary, resume, and the wisdom of experience. But that if you are laid off at age 53 (or maybe it is 63 – I don’t really know), and have to find a similar job, you run the risk of being “overqualified” with a salary requirement that is beyond the range of what other companies want to pay.

The result of this scenario can be an aversion to risk: making decisions in your career that are survivalistic and protective, not expansive and innovative. It’s hard to take the risks to follow your true passion when you are too locked in to a certain path. When that path is surrounded by scary monsters, encouraging you to not take half a step off of it, lest your foot gets bitten off.

The Great Second Act
Steve Jobs’ career validates the dreams of so many mid-career managers. That they may feel they have hit a slump in their 30s or 40s, but that there can be a great second act where their best and most innovative work is still ahead of them. Frank Lloyd Wright’s career had an equally brilliant second act, as have some bands such as U2. Yes, it can be done.

But it’s hard. It’s risky. In the Steve Jobs bio, the ability to have a great second act was that “lasting companies know how to reinvent themselves… You’ve got to be like a butterfly and have a metamorphosis.” That is harder than it sounds.

Bono described reinventing U2 in 1990 as the following:

“You have to reject one expression of the band first, before you get to the next expression. And in between you have nothing. You have to risk it all.”

That middle phrase is the part that is often overlooked: “In between, you have nothing.”

I firmly believe that people get wiser and filled with more potential as they get older. Which is why I end up working with so many people who are trying to grow their impact and legacy through writing and publishing. It is incredibly inspiring to me.

The Myth of Being Your Own Boss
Being an entrepreneur means you are always standing on the precipice of success and failure. The most subtle change in the wind can dramatically shift your footing. Every decision is yours, and every resource you expend in both time and money comes from your own pocket. There is rarely a clear path. You have to analyze as best you can, then go on gut instinct. Risk is inherent in nearly everything you do.

Instead of one boss, the entrepreneur has many bosses. Every client or customer or student is a different boss. A relationship that has to be appreciated and respected.

And I love that. For my experience as an entrepreneur, it challenges me to become better at providing value to others, and to understand how I can do more to grow my impact and legacy.

But I often hear of people describing this as “being your own boss,” implying that you are no longer beholden to others. I feel like the opposite is true though, that I rely much more on others. And that it is truly a wonderful thing. In our culture, I think we need to become MORE connected to each other, not less.

Exponential Return on Investment
Yes, there is and will continue to be, great risk in what I am doing. Every year will be different as my business grows, waxes, wanes. I will experience what Seth Godin calls “The Dip.” There will be great challenges, often at unexpected time.

But, in this process, I am building skills. I am building wonderful connections with incredible people. I am pushing myself hard to provide as much value to others as I can.

Yes, a “regular” job has greater safety, and some really nice benefits. I would never begrudge anyone that. It is a deeply personal choice. But in that safety is often a diminished sense of opportunity, that there is a positive return on investment, but perhaps not an exponential return on investment. What you work on, who you work with, the outcomes of that work, such as salary, will likely grow slowly over the years. With risk of entrepreneurship does come the potential for unexpected and huge positive outcomes.

You Will Die. Build Your Legacy Today
Sorry to be so blunt, but it’s true. Regardless of what you feel happens once we pass on from this world, now is your time to build a legacy in this specific time and place. Only you can determine what that legacy will be. Some of the most amazing legacies are not defined by entrepreneurship at all: being a wonderful mother, a loyal employee, a giving member of the community. I love those.

Sometimes we are so fearful of the bad things that can happen if we take a risk, that we forget there could be positive outcomes. So we put off important goals time and time again. We live for the obligations of the present, and fear for the future. But…

If there is a creative dream in the back of your mind, but life’s pressures keep you from pursuing it, consider doing them in 2012. Give your dreams a chance, instead of constantly fighting to keep them down. I can’t guarantee safety, no one can. But if your goal is to have an impact on the world in a way you have not yet realized; if you hope to be remembered for things you have not yet done, then now is the time to start down that path.

Thanks.
-Dan

The Value of Social Media for Writers: Self-Promotion or External-Validation?

When a writer engages in social media to “grow their platform” are they turning into heartless self-promoters, shilling themselves for the desperate attempt to lure others to read their books?

I don’t think so.

For someone who engages in producing creative work – writers, artists, musicians – sharing is much harder than it looks. You are often alone, not backed by a corporate entity. When you are on your own, you don’t have the immediate validation that a regular job provides – fancy business cards, job title, or a stable salary and a benefits that makes you a “card carrying writer.” The writer lives and dies by their own confidence to create something from nothing, to push onward when the world chooses not to pay attention.

Validation is important. To know that your work matters; that you are growing; that it impacts the lives of others; that it is creating a work of meaning over time. The work is often very personal, even if not on the surface. It’s easy to read someone else’s book and call it ‘garbage.’ It’s hard to write a book and not be hurt when someone else calls it ‘garbage.’

It’s exposing to be a writer. I was listening to the commentary track of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (yes, this is what I do in my spare time), and something reminded me of the plight of writers: In one scene, a character is facing a crisis of identity, and he stares at George Seurat’s pointillist painting, “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.” Since the image is only made up of very tiny dots, the closer he looks at the child in the painting, the less of it he sees. The director explains the meaning of this as:

“He fears that the more you look at him, the less you see; that there isn’t anything really there.”

Here is the painting, and examples beneath it of the pointillist style used to create it:
A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte
(image source)

I’ve heard people describe having kids as the act of watching your heart run around outside your body. As a father of a 1.5 year old son, I can say that is true. But I think the same expression holds true for writers. After the sometimes arduous process of creating a work you are proud of, how do you ensure it flourishes and grows?

People always say: Don’t self-promote on social media. Don’t be self indulgent. But I feel that most people, and certainly many writers, simply want some sort of validation. A sense of self. To be able to own the identity of “writer,” even if for a single moment during the day. They want to matter, and they want their work to matter.

There is a perception that author platform and writers engaging in social media as jumping on a bandwagon to drum up publicity and sales. But what I often see is someone making meaningful connections around topics they are passionate about.

I also feel there is incredible value in putting yourself and/or your work out there. That there is a risk in the safety of writing without sharing. You can’t fail if you don’t share. But when you move out of your comfort zone to engage with others, that is how you evolve.

Some writers are brash self-promoters. Others are not. Social media is a medium that levels the playing field between the two extremes, allowing all writers to be a part of a community of like-minds.

Thanks.
-Dan

What Does It Mean To Build A Brand?

Last week, I talked about the value of writers building their “brand” by connecting with their community and potential readers. That a “brand” is not a dirty word that equates to putting a fake surface on yourself in order to sell something. That branding is about learning how to effectively communicate your purpose and value, within the context of the needs and desires of those in your community.

I have been spending the last quarter of 2011 considering how to build the brand of We Grow Media. This encapsulates two levels:

  1. The underlying purpose – what drives this company, and what effect we hope to have in the world.
  2. How those intentions connect to others, to really empower them to have an impact on the world and build a legacy for themselves.

I want this brand to be something bigger than one person, which is why I didn’t start “Dan Blank Consulting LLC” – I started We Grow Media. A company that can include others, that can grow beyond me. A company that represents something beyond just revenue streams.

In considering what the We Grow Media brand is, I have been considering the journey of the writer. In my life, I have been an artist, writer, musician, and photographer, among other things (*cough* soda jerk *uncough*.) When considering the work of a writer, you can’t judge the value of their work by financial measures alone. That a book earned X number of dollars, or received X advance from a publisher. Their effect is more profound. It extends beyond dollar signs.

Financial gain is not the ultimate validation for your work. The journey itself is often a big part the goal; how it shapes your identity, and provides experiences and connections to others that makes life worth living. That you have an impact on others, and in some meaningful way, help to shape their experience and abilities as well. And that this impact builds a legacy that lasts beyond your lifetime.

For We Grow Media, I want to build a purpose of meaning, not just a clever marketing message put in front of a sales pitch. I want to build something that gives more than it takes. Yes, this is a business, I need to earn revenue to create something sustainable, and support my wife and child to ensure they have a secure future. I make no apologies for that, much of what I offer has a price tag next to it.

But profit is not the driving motivation, it is merely a needed outcome, one of many. The purpose of the business – the effect on the world – the meaning I can create in the lives of others – is of greater value. Teaching and education are a primary focus for me. It is what fueled my work with a school in Harlem for the past 7 years. It is why I have focused on how people learn, and how to most effectively create online courses and in-person workshops. It why the topic of education is a constant conversation between me and my wife (a teacher) and my friends (many of whom are teachers.) Education is an incredibly powerful way to have an exponential effect on the world.

For each of us, what we create and build – whether it is a book or a business – is often with the goal of NOT becoming Willy Loman. Someone whose value is not based on a quarterly sales charts. Whose measures for success are not empty – a job title, a salary. Whose life is not merely a commodity for others to leverage in reaching THEIR goals.

That you want to truly impact the lives of others, not just move product. That you want to build a legacy.

I am excited for the 2012 plans I am working on. If you have any feedback on how I can better serve you, please let me know.

Thanks!
-Dan

3 Keys to Success: Show Up, Be Present, and Hope for Serendipity

No one has the secret to success. There is no simple answer. In the publishing world, you see headline after headline trying to sell you on the secret, when really there is not a single path. Not “writing the best book possible” (a lot of great books die a lonely death), not some “killer marketing tactics” (luck plays a big part – what works for someone else may not work for you), and even getting signed by a big publisher with a big advance doesn’t guarantee success. Just talk to the many jaded yet published authors walking the earth.

As the book Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy satires, the meaning of life may as well be “42” – an arbitrary number. Because really, we need to better define the question first.

How do you define success?

With the writers I work with, it’s about two things: having an IMPACT and building a LEGACY.

So today I want to talk about three things I find to be essential to success, at least success as I define it. Success that builds a legacy beyond quarterly revenue numbers, beyond being the flavor of the moment at the expense of having a meaningful impact on the world. If this is what you aspire to as well, then please read on…

Serendipity and Success
I exist because my dad decided to skip going to an annual stamp convention in 1965 and went to a dance instead. It was there that he met my mother. At the dance, there was a group of guys with thick accents that kept asking her to dance, but who she didn’t like. When my dad approached her to dance, she at first said no, because she thought he was from that group. Instead of giving up, he asked her again a bit later on. She said yes. Because of those simple choices on a random evening, I exist. That moment was 46 years ago last week. They began talking, they began dating, they got married. Serendipity, for me at least!

Our lives are littered with moments like this. Think about all of the teensy tiny things that had to happen in order for my parents to meet. Not just the big things, but the millions of moments/decisions that lead up to that evening. How missing one bus by 10 seconds can profoundly effect the rest of your life. By not asking someone to dance for the second time…

Success is the same way, often based on serendipitous meetings and connections. Tweeting at one moment means someone important sees it – a few moments later, they don’t. Being at the right place at the right time – as opposed to where most of us are: at the right place, but at the wrong time. Best practices only get you so far. Great work only gets you so far. Serendipity matters.

This author writes novels in 45 days & earns an estimated $60 million a year. Here’s how she got her start:

“It wasn’t until she was trapped in the house for a week during a snowstorm with two toddlers that she picked up a writing pad and wrote her first novel: a way, she says, of preserving her sanity. She sent it to the romance publishers Silhouette, which turned it down, but a year later she wrote her second, Irish Thoroughbred, which was accepted.”

Now she is Nora Roberts, uber-successful author. It takes more than talent and hard work. It takes luck. What if it didn’t snow that week. What if there was a great mini-series on TV? Maybe she never would have put pen to paper, or maybe a single decision to submit her work would have been different, resulting in her never publishing.

The Value of Showing Up
Woody Allen has the famous quote: “Eighty percent of success is showing up.” It’s true. Again and again, I can think of people who are a major part of my life – who have helped my business grow – who inspire me – who I met because I or they showed up at some meetup, some event.

Several of my clients and I met this way. A small, chance meeting at an event, that slowly blossomed into long-term working relationships, and dare I say, friendships. Some of these meeting started with a single Tweet.

This is why I have always been in the habit of turning Twitter conversations into in-person conversations over coffee. To help us each show up to form a deeper connection, and open the door for serendipity.

There is risk in showing up. It’s easier to stay home. But if you need a proven return on investment in order to take action, then you are missing out on opportunities that will propel others forward, as you stand on the sidelines kicking the sand wondering why success isn’t happening to you.

Be Present
It’s not enough to simply show up, you have to be present. Many publishers in the magazine and newspaper world didn’t properly show up to the web 15 years ago. Yes, they were there, but they weren’t “present.” they didn’t understand the web, what it meant, and how it could help their businesses and mission. So they used it at its most basic functions – always too late innovative ideas – often when they were forced to by others. Rarely innovating. Rarely understanding. Often merely following.

Create meaning when you show up. Work to truly connect with others, not pitch them on your big idea. I’ve used this quote by Scott Johnson again and again, and will continue to do so: “Caring is a powerful business advantage.”

It’s easy to not care. That’s why it’s hard to succeed.

As many of us celebrate Thanksgiving this week, I am considering those who mean so much to me. Those present in my life who I am incredibly thankful for. Those who have made the effort to show up, to care. Those who push, who expand what is possible. Those who make me a better person simply by being present in my life.

Thank you for being here.
-Dan