"Make money through enjoyment"

* Enjoyment of work = more motivation, more creativity, living up to a higher potential.  

* Employees must be aligned so that the motivation leads to the company's desired outcomes.

* Clients will be happier, because they'll receive better service with a better attitude.  Happy clients = more word of mouth = faster, easier growth.

* ...

 

 

 

CONTENTS

 

 

INTRODUCTION: FRUSTRATION WITH LEGACY MANAGEMENT THINKING, and PEBBLESTORM

 

 

Part 1. UNDERSTANDING

 

[Appreciation for what’s happening, others’ views]

 

What’s the problem with work?  What makes work unpleasant and obligatory?  Corporate servitude.

 

What’s happening in the world that lets us change work?  What makes it easier than ever to obtain financial and personal freedom?

 

• What’s wrong?  (Fear, Control & Drama, Inefficiencies at work, Servitude & Refugees)

   

• What’s changed recently? (Green movement, importance of values, internet, millennials)

   

• Is there a better way?  (Happiness, Working Through True Values, True Productivity, PebbleStorm/Systems)

   

• A vision for the future of work

   

 

 

Part 2. ACTION

 

[methods…what can you do?]

 

What can I or we do about it?  What are the values, practices and tools?

 

• Where do we

   

• Practices

   

• Exercises, Tools, Examples

   

 

 

Part 3. RESULTS

 

[outcomes]

 

What should we expect?  How will we know it’s working?

 

• How quickly will things improve?

   

• How do we measure progress?

   

• What if it’s not working?  What if the team gets frustrated?

   

•  

•  

 

INTRODUCTION

 

 

I’m really dissatisfied with the way work is supposed “to work”.

 

 

People are still frustrated and unhappy with work.  Work is still usually an obligation, not a choice.  Everyone hates being controlled, and control is the dominant cultural driver in today's organizations.  It's the essence of how they're managed.

 

Work can be fun!  And it should be fun, because that's what maximized productivity.  Fun doesn't mean playing basketball in the hallways - it means no drama, having a great time with coworkers, working for something meaningful, enjoying oneself at work. 

 

More importantly, companies aren't as productive as they could, or should, be.  Yes - aggressive, fear-based orgs do succeed, all the time!   That's been the dominant energy for as long as the corporation's existed...but now the nature of what works best is changing because of the internet.  Rather than physical resources and control, it is trust, attention and opennesss that will dominate in the future.  Farming rather than hunting.

 

An integrated life enables full potential

 

Because of the internet and an overall shift in the “energy of business”, I believe it’s easier than ever for people to fulfill their true potential. To fulfill their potential, three areas of their life must be integrated and balanced:

 

a) working with purpose (through their unique genius),

 

b) they’re healthy, and

 

c) spiritually centered. 

 

 

Imagine “maximum happy productivity” is a ball lying on the top of a stool.  The legs of the stool are the three areas.  For someone to operate at their maximum potential these areas need to be balanced, in harmony.  If one leg is shorter than the others (say, a person is

 

a) working in a job they don’t enjoy (purpose)

 

b) sick, or (health)

 

c) angry (spirit)

 

then that person’s balance and productivity will be off.

 

 

 

Pendulums

 

Life is never static, things are always changing.  The pendulum regularly swings back and forth.  Likewise, everyone’s status in each of the three areas will regularly vary.  Productivity, passion, health and spiritual balance will come and go.  The goal is to work to keep them at optimum levels as much as possible, to do your best, but realize that it’s ok if they aren’t always perfectly aligned.  No guilt. 

 

 

Health: it’s optimum health per person, whatever their personal health situation. The key is taking care of yourself the best that you can. It’s relative health, not absolute health.

 

 

Balanced Purpose (work), Health (body), Spirit (happiness)

 

You can reach your full potential when all three are in harmony.

 

 

 

What’s Wrong With Work?

 

Why do people expect work to be unpleasant?  Uninteresting?  Frustrating?  Stressful?  (OK – I’ll answer my own question…because it has been all of those for the vast majority of people.)  “Work” is something obligatory that causes our first thoughts in the morning to be something along the lines of “ugh, I have to go to work today, again?”   

 

 

We spend a huge amount of our lives working, why aren't we supposed to enjoy it and be happy with it?     Why is it that the harder we work, the further behind we get? 

 

 

Aren't we supposed to be living in the most affluent, dream-worthy country on earth?  

 

The Depressing State of Work

 

We spend an enormous chunk of our lives at work.  If the average American works closer to 50 hours per week than 40 hours, we’re spending almost 1/3 of our time working.  If we spend 1/3 of our lives at chores that are unfulfilling, unprofitable and often stressful, that’s sad. 

 

 

Stress is growing

Depression

Etc – get Tim Ferriss stats from his blog post

UK suicide rate

 

 

Choose Energy Over Exhaustion

 

But what if work could be a highlight of your day?  Energizing rather than exhausting?   Why can’t it be one of your favorite parts of your life?  Fun?  And not in the “work is fun but I don’t make any money” way, like theatre, but in the “I love my work and make a shitload of money at it” way.

 

 

Is there a way to help more people escape the gerbil track and fulfill their true potential?  How can we make more money, with more fun, and less stress?  And take control back over our work lives so we can stop feeling like we need to sacrifice our personal lives for work, or our work for our personal lives?

 

It’s possible – I can see how to do it.  This is the life I’m in the midst of creating for myself, as the first example to share with others. 

 

 

I want to show people how to do it, for three reasons:

 

1. I love helping other people succeed

 

2. There’s a network effect: the more people who think along these lines and system, the better.  As our network grows, the easier it will be for myself and all of us to make more money, with more fun and less stress.

 

3. It’s my life purpose to help change the way people think about work.

 

 

It’s actually not an option for me - changing the way people think about work is my nature – I frankly don’t have any choice in the matter.  Whenever I’m quiet, I guarantee 95% of the time it’s because I’m thinking about this, mulling it over…and about to take out my notebooks to start writing.

 

 

 

4 Work Personalities (and table of benefits/drawbacks)

 

• Starving artist (work is passion, but little $)

   

• Corporate (work is stressful & dramatic, but very stable and decent $)

   

• Entrepreneur (work is very risky and stressful to start, but if it succeeds it can be both fulfilling and high $ upside.  High obligation – you’re trapped by your work)

   

• Consultant (work is irregular, pays well enough, independent)

   

 

 

I decided I didn’t like these options.  I want a 5^th option.

 

(copy 5^th Work Option from PebbleStorm)

 

 

The Gerbil Track

By the way, I might sometimes here call the corporate career track the “gerbil track”, because a friend told me once that 50% of the reason a gerbil gets on the wheel is because it's there.  Most people take the next job in the career ladder because it’s the logical step to take, is the path of least resistance.  Taking a promotion in sales is much easier than switching careers or starting a company!

 

 

How about you?  Are you doing what you love, or are you doing it because it’s been the path of least resistance?  Be aware that your egos will initially want to defend itself and the automatic reaction is “of course I like what I do, it’s been choice, not following an easy path.”  But consider it.

 

 

What would you do if you could wipe the slate clean, and be guaranteed success?   [Could include jobmonkey analogy…never taking a break between jobs means no reflection on what you really want to do]

 

In all these options, there is an element of sacrifice: do I want passion, or money?  Stability or independence?  Family time or corporate success?   Money and stress, or fun?

 

 

Frankly, when it comes to work - I’m stubborn.  I want it all.  I want a perfect working world, in which I don’t sacrifice anything.  I want to be able to combine the passion of a starving artist, the stability of corporate, the upside of an entrepreneur and independence of a consultant.  I want to be able to work when I want, on what I want, with who I want…AND make a lot of money at it…AND have a perfect social/family life. 

 

 

In other words, I reject the need to sacrifice for work.  I want to have my cake and eat it too. 

 

 

I actually am having a wonderful time working these days – I’m making money, doing fascinating (to me) work, and have maintained my independence.  In fact, I’m writing this in a First Class seat (ok, bought with miles) as I return from spending a month in India, Bhutan and Nepal.  Oh, and this isn’t because I’ve started a company and sold it already for $$$.  No – my partner and I only started our company six months ago, and it’s generating just enough money for a decent monthly income. 

 

 

A friend asked “How can you be in the middle of starting a company, and take a month off?”  Answer: I created the intention, and just set the expectation with everyone that that was what I am doing.  No apologies, because I’m not doing anything wrong – in fact, I’m doing something perfectly right.  

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 Old: Secrecy, fear, sunk costs

New: Transparency, trust, opportunity costs

 

Opportunity costs of secrecy - what benefit am i missing out on by not sharing this information with my employees and partners?  Or by not starting my own business?  Or by choose to stay trapped in this unhealthy work environment?

 

 

-----------------------------

 

"The wise man is always similar to himself" (source?)  He lives as he is, by his passions, talents and most useful wisdom. 

 

Master -> an expert

Guru -> an expert who can teach others

 

 

 

Two Work Environments: Entrepreneurs & Corporations

 

There are two sides of the same coin here: one for entrepreneurs, and one for corporations (or really, any kind of organization).   The principles between the two are the same, but the practices followed in each are pretty different.  Having said that, either side of the coin can probably pick up ideas from the other to experiment with.

 

 

Entrepreneurs:

 

Although ___% of people want to work for themselves, many have never tried starting their own company, because of the risk in leaving comfortable jobs and their steady paychecks, fancy titles and benefits.

 

 

So called “life style entrepreneurs”, these are folks who truly re-invented themselves and took the risky path to pursue their passions even if it meant saying goodbye to fancy job titles, steady paycheck, prestige, etc.  They do an amazing job in balancing business and personal life.

 

 

So a process you might consider in your event is one in which folks sit quietly under a nice tree in Uruguay, and journal answers to the following questions:

 

·         If I was guaranteed success, what would I love to do for the rest of my life?

 

·         What do my friends and family say that I’m great at doing but never had the courage to do?

 

·         What kinds of help and questions do people consistently come to me for?

 

 

These questions should stimulate what people might re-invent themselves into.

 

 

 

Buddha's One Teaching

"One thing only do I teach, the cause of suffering and the way of cessation from suffering".

It's practically an exact parallel to "More money, more fun, less stress"  Stress is the modern equivalent to suffering.  Happiness and productivity get crowded out by stress.  Less stress = more money, more fun, more productivity.

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Goal for an organization: (5th Discipline / Peter serge)

A successful organization is one that can tap into people's commitment and capacity to learn, grow and share energy at every level in the company, a continually growing, learning and living organism.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Right Understanding > Right Actions > Right Results

(right understanding requires transparency, right actions require self-control and trust)

 

Or use "right view"?  You can't have a "Right View" without transparency.

 

Contents

 

I’ve divided the contents into three main books:

 

1.       Understanding: what’s holding us back at work?

 

2.       Action: what can we do to unlock our potential?

 

3.       Outcomes: what should we expect and when?

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Make work energizing, not exhausting

 

Does work exhaust or energize you?

 

How often do you find yourself wanting to get out of what you're doing for work these days, and find something fulfilling,energizing, and that you can actually make money at?

 

 

--------------------------------------------

PebbleStorm is not the solution, it's one "way" for people that connect with it and who value integrity and happiness.  They have to experience it for themselves, understand it and customize it for what works for them. 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Phrases/Taglines

More Money, More Fun, Less Stress

 

More Results, Less Drama

 

Dramaless Progress

Happy Capitalism

 

Unlock your corporate genius

 

Unlock your work / corporate potential

Work Nirvana

Corporate Happiness

Corporate Nirvana

 

Happy Hyper-productivity

Happy Capitalism: Economic Development + Spiritual Development

Create Your Own Perfect Working World

Make Work Energizing, Not Exhausting

Working Nirvana

 

(Work in) Passion, Money, Nirvana

 

Control Your Work Destiny

 

Live Your Work Dream

 

Work Doesn’t Have To Be A Pain In The Ass (/Suck)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Designing PebbleStorm

 

Deprivation is never a long-term solution.  Instead of more fun, less money, I want more fun AND more money.

 

 

Trying to get people, including myself, to appreciate a lack of money will be an enduring battle that won't go away. 

 

How to create a lasting system that indefinitely infects people?

What is the root FRAMEWORK?

There will be a few key tools and thought models that form the core of the new work philosophy.  In Buddhism it's the 4 Noble Truths and Eightfold Path.  What's the equivalent?   What's the first couple of layers of the thought onion?

 

Ideas aren't enough.  Vision isn't enough.  Fans aren't enough.  What else?

* Teacher, teachings, community...

* Vision, tools, success stories, advocates, tribal habits...

* Initiations, rules, principles, practices, habits, periodicitiy (certain things happening regularly at certain periods)...habits

* How can we help people & organizations unlock their unique genius?   In a way that dramatically increases results?  (Non-linear impact).  Like the 4HWW book that Tim wrote, and just blew it away

.

* Be aware of the flow, follow the course of where it takes you, without trying to control it.

- Have intentions

- Be aware of when a goal should be vey specific / specific time frame, and when it shouldn't

- Use goals / goal planning to increase self-awareness.  We want "optimistic reality" on what we can accomplish.  Goals should not be a source of self-punishment.  If you miss a goal, learn from it.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Understanding action results

 

Sources of unnecessary stress and challenge in work

 

Two main sources of unnecessary stress in work: starting a new company (especially for the first time), and working in a larger organization.  Stress reduces creativity, output, productivity, fun...and thus money. Yes, in the SHORT-TERM, in spurts, stress can enhance those things, but if it becomes chronic it becomes highly negative.   We can reduce the stress and let people make more money, with more fun!

 

Small businesses will keep multiplying, because it's easier than ever to research, start and grow one.  The business costs (and thus risk), in both time and money have been driven down by the internet and outsourcing (both of physical and digital goods).  The cost now doesn't lie in the risk or dollar investment as much in the investment in attention and time.

* The internet makes it easier than ever to research a market, competitors/options, sales & marketing plans, find partners...

* Makes testing & experimenting of ideas faster and cheaper, whether the ideas are around markets, products, or marketing programs/messages

 

The old forms of business friction (the costs of starting, building and running a classic business) are gone.  New forms of friction are replacing them, namely a) clutter and b) monetization.  How can you stand out from the noise?  And how can you make money from what you're doing?

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

PebbleStorm:

 

Make more money, with more fun, and less stress.  Live an integrated life, in which your income comes from, and is maximized by, living in purpose and fulfillment.  It’s about living an integrated life: purpose (“work”), health and spirit…without conflict between the three.  Conflict (or contrast) between any of these three bodies increases stress – which reduces productivity, health and happiness. 

 

Examples:

 

• You believe in good food and nutrition for your kids, but work for Coke. 

   

• Or you have unshakeable integrity – but work for a company that uses misleading marketing programs and packaging.

   

• Or you’re scared about global warming…but your company is a major polluter.

   

• You tell your kids to eat well, and then grab a Egg McMuffin on the way to work.

   

• etc

   

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Questions

* Are you more fulfilled by your work or more frustrated?   Say over the past couple of weeks?

* Do you work mostly for a paycheck?  

* Have you actively thought about looking at other opportunities in the past 3-6 months?  (Whether within your company or outside it)

* How often are you stressed about work?

* How often do you look forward to going into work in the morning?

* When exciting work-related thoughts wakes you up in the night, or bugs you on the weekend...what are they about?  What kind of work is most interesting to you?

 

 

--------------------------------------------

PEBBLESTORM INTENTIONS

* Create a living system / systems thinking

* Combine long-term vision and practical ideas & tools that people can use TODAY to make a difference

* Start simple, have increasing levels of detail for people who want to get into it

* Help people pick & choose ideas to try out & test (babysteps)

* Help people customize it for themselves

* Let people build on it, expand it

* Expand the whole pie

 

 

3 Levels at Which PebbleStorm Works:

1. Entrepreneur

2. Organization

3. Community

 

--------------------------------------------

PebbleStrorm Target Audience (Poor Working Situation & Positive Attitude) 

Y axis: high quality  >  low quality (working environment)

X axis: optimistic > pessimistic (attitude)

 

Quadrant

        ___________________________

        | *Usually     |     * Loves Work!    |    Great work environment

        | Unhappy    |      / Satisfied         |

        |__________|_______________|

        | *Always     |     * Unsatisfied      |

        | Unhappy    |       / Unfulfilled      |      Poor work environment

        |__________|_______________|

 

         Pessimistic         Optimistic

 

PebbleStorm's target audience are people who have a positive/idealistic attitude and don't like their working situation (lower right box here)

- They're optimistic/idealistic/visionary, but unfulfilled in their career.  They know there should be more, but haven't realized how to realize their potential.

 

 

 

 

---------------

How I’m putting this together

 

This philosophy’s like a set of puzzle pieces, except I’m creating the puzzle piece by piece, and seeing how they fit as I go.  I know the basic outline of the puzzle shape and the general picture it paints…but not sure yet how many pieces there are, what their shapes are, or how they fit together.

 

 

 

Have random thoughts / triggers

Flesh them out as ideas / blog posts

Cluster with other ideas

Shape and organize with other clusters

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PART 1:

 

UNDERSTANDING

 

(What’s Wrong With Work?)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Anthropomorphological / Sociopathic companies

If your company took a personality test, what kind of a personality would it have?  Stable and healthy?  Or sociopathic?  

- Multiple personalities (every time you talk to it, it has different things to say)

- Anger issues

- Manic-depressive (drastic performance swings from bad-to-great-to-bad...)

- Internal battles (there is more war inside the company than with competitors)

 

 

 

Does that sound healthy?

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Conventional wisdom: be bad to do well. Sharks.

 

 

 

The economist Keynes summed it up nicely, saying basically that if you want to succeed at work, ethics are bad for business and you really have to be a schmuck (in 1930):]"Fair is foul and foul is fair"..."avarice and usury and precaution must be our gods a little longer still..." [Keynes 1930 (p224 bhutan GNH) - Ethics are bad for business

 

The idea that ethical considerations aren't only irrelevant, they actual hinder success, is a common one.  And in the past it’s often been true (just look at any company dealing with the government…)   

 

But the world's changing.  Now ethics will be rewarded, and are important to being successful and happy.  Frictionless karma: the internet has created a situation where evil is uncovered and communicated instantly…as is good.  Lying's punished faster and more broadly than ever.  It’s harder and harder for companies to hide.  They can’t bury shady practices overseas as easily.  Big companies are slowly understanding that good values and trust are being rewarded by consumers (Whole Foods, green co examples…).  The new generation is avoiding meaningless companies.  Green sells.  Consumers are connecting with values-based products.  It pays to do, and be, good.

 

 

 

2 New Developments

The green movement and millennials have illustrated two major changes in the (first) world's business energy:

1. Money isn't everything (anymore)...people want to connect to meaning, whether as employees or consumers

2. Being good can be profitable

 

 

 

Keynes had another interesting thing to say (again, in 1930), predicting that after our material needs are fulfilled, we'll look beyond our bank accounts, but that the transition from a growth-pursuing culture to a life-pursuing culture would be very difficult as ‘the [unethical] habits and instincts’ have ‘been bred into us for generations’.  Keynes predicted the transformation will include a ‘general nervous breakdown,’ but that "those peoples who can keep alive and cultivate the art of life will be able to enjoy the abundance when it comes."   [Keynes p 463 - transition from pure growth to appreciating abundance… Essay "Economic Possibilities for our grandchildren" (1930)]

 

 

It’d be hard to argue that our world, and especially the USA, isn’t abundant.  We have so much abundance the shit’s squeezing out of our houses, cars, landfills and ears.  It may not be distributed evenly across people, but it’s here.  Can you imagine taking someone from 100 years ago and walking them into a modern supermarket? 

 

Despite the abundance, it feels like just as many people are struggling as ever. 

 

--------------------------------------------

Two Dead Ends Combined Lead To A New Path

* Pure economic development is a dead end - money without morals, a corrupt environment and culture.

* Pure spiritual development isn't realistic in today's world, and is a neverending effort to appreciate scarcity in life...easy for Enlightend Ones, but very challenging for the other 99.9999% of the world.

* But combine the both of them, and we can create a system of abundant wealth AND happiness

 

 

 

 

 

 

SOURCES OF PROBLEMS

 

 

 

 

 ------------------------------

What are the cancers in an organization?

ego, politics, drama/gossip, unhappiness, dissatisfaction, desire for power/control, miscommunication, misalignment, greed, insecurity, secrecy, pride, mistrust, FEAR (root), obligation, backstabbing, race for perks, hierarchies, disconnected managers, craving, aversion...

...FEAR is the common thread.

- Fear of failure, loss of prestiges, missed targets

 

- issues with direct manager  (see 3 signs of a miserable job)

- Personal fear (individuals) & cultural fear (across an org/team)

- People take their fear and try to get rid of it by spreading it to other people...but it doesn't leave them...so fear is thus multiplied!   There might be some "Fear multipliers".

- Fear can't be forcibly removed - it has to be supplanted with something better, more positive, that makes the environment unhealthy for fear.

- lack of commitment / connection: why should an individual care more about the company than the company cares about the individual?  The more a company works for the person…the more the person will care about working for the company

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Why is it easy to create problems?  We externalize them / externalizing Costs

* An exclusive focus on making money, or shareholder value, externalizes important costs.  You know, little things like the environment, family, happiness...

* Externalizing those costs increases pollution, divorce, stress, unhappiness

* Kills perspective

* Wisdom is lacking /  reduces the incentive to learn true wisdom

 

--------------------------------------------

Externalized Costs (Social, Environmental, Cultural, Happiness)

In the West, business is focused solely on maximizing shareholder value.  This single-minded focus, which has been great for economic development, has pushed to the sidelines social, environmental, governance issues (again, Worldcom...).  There's been a turning point in the past two years, illustrated by the Green movement.

 

The shareholder value mantra, chanted single-mindedly, leads to the exclusive concern for maximizing profits at the expense of the community, families and environment.  These things aren't free - society still pays for them!  There's a 'tradegy of the commons' effect - an individual company is incented to pollute in order to maximize profits...and the taxpayers are the ones left holding the bag.  Or a company is incented to push its workers to sacrifice their family lives, leading to more divorce, separated families and social costs.  These costs might not show up until that generation of children enters schools...but it will show up.

 

We externalize these important costs to the environment, family and society, leading to rich people with depression, children with poor role models, morally corrupt organizations, unhappy families, pollution, cultural pollution, media pollution...

 

The average westerner polluters his environment AND himself, in a physical and spiritual sense, in today's working world...resulting in more stress, and an increase in physical and mental unhealthiness.   (More than 10% osuffer from serious stress or burnout - source?  Tim Ferriss has good stuff too)

 

 

 

 

------------------------ 

 

Economic Development = $

Spiritual Development = Contentment

Happiness = purpose/work (purpose freedom), + spiritual freedom + health freedom

 

If happiness is the goal, a) what increases it? B) what reduces it?

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Corporations create environments that breed fear

Fear has worked really, really well for companies, and success breeds conditions with incentives to do more of the same: i.e. create fear.   But if integrity is the future, how can we rethink the environments and incentives in order to breed integrity and trust, not fear? 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Problems:

1. Fear
2. Control
3. Mistrust
4. Culture of secrecy

 All lead to Drama, cravings, conflict…and the conflict sucks up energy

 

 

 

 

 -------------------------------------------

The opposite of fear is love (or is it?).  But the term "love" may not be palatable to the business culture yet...alternatives: appreciatio, aspiration, equanimity, passion...

 

 -------------------------------------------

Key rule: "NO SURPRISES" (comp plans, reviews, new goals...)

- forces ongoing collaboration

- people hate surprises (how often are surprises good in business?)   good things don't happen overnight...but bad things do.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

cravings, aversions, sufferin

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

What tools are most often (ab)used to promote fear and control? 

Any tool can be used for good or evil...here are the ones most abused...

* Hierarchy

* Secrecy

* Bureaucracy

* Artificial constraints

* Authority/control mechanisms

* Titles

* "Turf"

* Roles that are used to constrain people

* Authoritarian comp decisions (rather than peer-based processes)

* Stretch goals (that never end)...once in awhile they can be stimulating

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Corporate Drama is like a weed, corporate happiness a rose

Drama is natural, like weeds - it happens everywhere without any help, and it keeps popping up no matter how hard you try to rid yourself of it.  Organizational health & happiness is like a rose - it's delicate and requires constant care and attention to thrive.  You can never take it for granted.

 

Why do people tolerate the drama?  Most people don’t like confrontation, and want to fit into the crowd by not rocking the boat.  It’s just easier to do nothing and just ignore it.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

What are the root causes of corporate drama?

- Dysfunction/unhappiness: when people are unsatisfied or unhappy, they have to "burp" stress in poisonous ways, such as gossip or infighting or manupulation.  So what causes unhappiness at work?

Combat drama by:

1. Stimulate awareness & undersanding of the drama, its impact, and its sources

2. Prepare people to appreciate the value of the solutions (and the change required)

 

3. Equip the team to act on the solutions (what tools do they need? how do they sustain it?)

 

 

 

-----------------------

3 signs of a miserable job

 

 

 

 

 

 

-------------------------------

3 signs of a miserable job:

 

http://time-blog.com/work_in_progress/2007/08/three_signs_of_a_miserable_job.html

 

 Anonymity: Employees feel anonymous when their manager has little interest in them as people with unique lives, aspirations, and interests.

 

Irrelevance: This condition occurs when workers cannot see how their job makes a difference. "Every employee needs to know that the work they do impacts someone's life -- a customer, a coworker, even a supervisor -- in one way or another."

 

Immeasurement: This term describes the inability of employees to assess for themselves their contributions or success. As a result they often rely on the opinions of others -- usually the manager -- to measure their success.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HAPPINESS

 

 

 

 

Happiness, not money, is the true human driver of behavior.  We all seek happiness – which doesn’t mean we all know how to find it!   Because PebbleStorms mantra of “More Fun, More Money, Less Stress” really means “More Happiness,” it’s important to share some research and insights on the topic of happiness. What makes people happy?  Unhappy?  What can add to happiness, or detract from it?

 

 

 

Happiness Isn't Euphoria

Happiness isn't a state of constant euphoria or excitement, which isn't sustainable, but equanimity, contentment, peace, "flow".  Study ___ showed that people where happiest when they weren't even thinking about being happy - they were in "flow".

 

 

 

There isn’t a single definition of happiness.

 

Chinese Folk psychology says happiness can be achieved with the wisdoms of discovery, contentment, gratitude, giving & self-cultivation

 

 

 

It’s a state of gratitude and appreciation for everything you have in life. 

 

Everyone's definition can be different....what's yours?

 

In work: instead of trying to keep everyone excited all the time, how can we create cultural peace, flow, equanimity?  No drama helps unlock and free people's creativity and passions.

 

--------------------------------------------

Happiness Cause/Effect Tree

Ultimate Desired State/Effect: HAPPINESS

 

What are the top few non-genetic (environmental) things that lead to happiness?

1. Self-control / freedom / options

2. Happiness on 3 levels...passing, enduring, life meaning

3.

4.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

3 levels of happiness: passing enduring, meaning/lifetime

 

--------------------------------------------

The impact of stress and purpose on happiness

People who only seek short-term pleasure are more prone to stress than those who seek a higher purpose, who seek meaning rather than pleasure.  Meaning is generally derived from values such as serving others, going beyond short-term goals, or changing others / changing the world.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

“Happiness Multipliers” / removes friction from happiness

- Wealth (with purpose), passion, networks (social or business), meaning, unlocked unique genius, right environment, acceptance...

 

--------------------------------------------

Finding your life purpose can be the greatest source of happiness.  It helps focus EVERYTHING in life around simple, meaningful goals.  Reduces the clutter and distractions in life that cloud the mind and happiness.

 

 

These should be things that can't be changed easily or quickly...enduring or lifetime sources of happiness multipliers

 

Translation for work: what are happiness/productivity/success multipliers in companies?  For entrepreneurs?  A work purpose for a company crystallizes everything, creates a north star for the entire org.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Main Happiness Survey Question

"Taken all together, how satisfied or dissatisfied are you currently with your life as a whole?"

1 2 3 ...   .......  8 9 10

Dissatisfied     Satisfied

 

(use 'fulfilled or content' instead of satisfied?)

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Happiness multipliers

The happier and more content you are, the happier  you can be for others when they do well.  The less jealous you'll be.  So one method of reducing corporate drama/unhappiness/fear is by helping people there increase happiness & contentment.  A business benefit of more happiness = less drama/fear = more productivity.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Gratifications

Martin Seligman: Abiding/enduring pleasures characterized by absorption, engagement, flow

 

--------------------------------------------

Happiness / Conditions / Productivity Tracking Experiment

Measure different conditions every day / half day for a month with a population.  What affects their perceived productivity?  Are there any correlations or causes?

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Burns' 12 steps to practice to enhance happiness

be active, be outgoing, be flexible, be passionate, be compassionate, be focused, be positive, be aware of possibilities, be a problem solver, be a sensory seeker, be connected, behave in a happy manner

 

+ Aaron's be patient (be interested, be curious, be accepting...?

 

 Happiness Multipliers 

* Sharing generates & multiplies happiness

* one gains happiness by sharing time/wealth/advice with others, which rids oneself of unhappiness-creating greed or scarcity, and by observing with pleasure how one's generosity has created happiness among the receivers. 

* when wealth is shared out to others it spawns happiness among them.  the giver is thus happier in giving, and the receivers are happier in receiving and in appreciating the generosity of the giver. Happiness is multiplied.

* Pay it forward

(Unhappiness can be multiplied the same way, such as with drama, gossip, ill-fortune...ugly things that people like to spread.  Spreading it doesn't relieve the source of the unhappiness, but it does make the receives unhappy.)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Focusing Efforts on Who To Fulfill First

1. first secure your own fulfillment / contentment

2. then your coworkers/executive

3. then employees (or even partners, customers...)

 

If you're a CEO, first make yourself fulfilled/content, then figure out how to infect your executive team fulfilled and content, and then employees...contentment/lack of drama will trickle down from the example set at the top.

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Wealth as "Options" / Freedom  "A Wealth Of Freedom"

The purpose of development should not be simply to generate more wealth, but to a) offer people more options and b) increase their capacity to choose from those options".

 

Likewise, in a company, a company's strategy shouldn't just be to 'grow larger', and often stepping on the bodies of its current employees as it grows...but to offer its employees as a whole more options, and develop them to be able to choose and succeed in those options.  The more options there are, and the better prepared employees are to choose & succeed in them, the more likely individual employees are to choose something related to their unique genius, and increase their inherent/implicit motivation.

 

Me: I want to be able to work when I want, on what I want, with who I want, where I want.  That's a wealth of freedom.  Today the only way to really do that is as an entrepreneur.  Why not have a form of it in a company?

 

--------------------------------------------

When you're fascinated by your work or life, it crowds out the illusory/passing cravings for things that don't really matter or aren't enduring.

- When your job is fulfilling, titles/income/explicit rewards, while still mattering, matter less and become easier to manage (less drama)

 

--------------------------------------------

Inner Causes & Outer Conditions for Happiness (Productivity / More Results, Less Drama)

Economic development (mo' money) is only a condition for happiness/success...real happiness resides in the mind and is generated only fromt he use of right attitudes and actions.  Likewise, corporate happiness/productivity resides solely in the internal culture and practices of its people, which is hugely influenced by the behavior and example set by its leaders.

 

Inner Causes:

1. Attitude of not-harming (others or yourself; be mindful of the small harms you cause others esp with words)

2. Attidude of helping others (work for others' success)

3. Contentment (fulfillment/flow increases implicit motivations and reduces sources of drama)

 

Outer Conditions:

1. Economic Development

2. Good Governance

3. Cultural Promotion

4. Education

5. Environmental Harmony

 

--------------------------------------------

CONTENTMENT

...is a source of appreciation and ability to rejoice (freedom to rejoice...as discontentment makes it hard to rejoice).  Happiness can be measured by contentment, and contentment functinos as an antidote to feeling need, greed, anger, jealously and miserlyness.  A content person will b able to appreciate and rejoice in others' good fortune or wealth (knowing that wealth/good fortune's the result of previous good work karma). 

 

If you feel jealous, needy, angry or miserly - what's not content with yourself?  Look to yourself first!   Is there drama withing your team or organization?  What's the source of discontentment that's allowing drama to flourish? 

 

Many people misunderstand contentment - it doesn't mean that one who's content must give up everything and be denied anything beyond the basic needs of survival.  Contentment doesn't mean the appreciation for wealth or ongoing development disappears.  It's not stagnation.  Being content means that one can be satisfied with whatever one has, the current state of their world, and the needs and desires for having too many things are lessened.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

DOWN WITH CORPORATE SERVITUDE!!!

 

www.corporatefreedom.org.com

www.corporateservitude.abc

 

Can we create an Index of Corporate Freedom?   I have a bunch of ideas and notes out there about this. Someplace.

 

Let corporate slaves register and vote on which companies are more controlling, like the global dictator/closed economy index that the Heritage Foundation (?) publishes every year.

 

It'd be a giant magnet for new work ideas.

 

Create visibility / awareness...which interests people...lead them to understanding....to actions and to results

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Corporate refugees /escapees

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

It's about 10 days since the trip began, My mind's relaxed and ready for "Buddha's Recipe", a unique book I found in Bhutan.  Things clicked when I read it, and it reset in motion some old ideas that had stilled, such as using Buddhism as a key model for both the structure and principles of PebbleStorm.  Building on past thoughts.

 

Buddhism: a practice of personal enlightenment.  Buddhism helps people achieve happiness by removing mental disturbances.

 

PebbleStorm: a practice for work (entrepreneurial or organizational) enlightenment....corporate happiness / happy hyper-productivity.   PebbleStorm helps companies achieve happy hyper-productivity by removing internal disturbances (drama).  Companies know what the business needs to do, but they're held back by the drama within their 4 walls.  Get rid of the drama (an anchor on the company's performance), and productivity will improve.

 

There are all kinds of self-empowerment books and systems today for individuals, teams and companies.  Why is ours different? 

 

This isn't for "an individual" - it's for two audiences: entrepreneurs (including those who want to be one), and organizations.

 

Takes the best of the East (equanimity, happiness) and the West (economic development)...to get the best of both worlds, happy hyperproductivity.

 

Fear still dominates organizations and "work". The word "work" itself has so much negative baggage.  People are still sacrificing family, health and their happiness for their careers and work.  How can we integrate health, spirit and purpose? 

 

What will it take to systematically and sustainably change the way people think about work?   To help them achieve modern enlightenment?  (Happiness through integrated purpose/work, spirit and health, with the focus on unlocking the work piece as the main blockage today).

 

 

--------------------------------------------

PebbleStorm Prescription

1. Understanding - What's the situation?   Root Issues?  (Fear's corrosive effects, drama, lack of trust...)  Values issues & solutions.

2. Actions - what can you do about it?  Practices.  (keep it interesting, 80/20 rule, stay patient, keep income coming in)... focus on 1 increase internal/ 2 external success / 3 productivity

3. Results - how do you know if its working?   (more $, more fun, less stress)

 

-------------------------------------------

Motivation

Motivate through Aspiration, not FEAR

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Systemic Solutions

When a system can be improved structurally, in how its actually designed, it can easily solve many problems.  AT&T said "The system is the solution".  A system-level improvement doesn't need management, it's a passive solution.  In the modern organization, there are three values which, if followed, can lead companies to make ongoing, systemic solution changes on their own. 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------

Conditions / Domains for maximizing corporate productivity /genius (more results with less stress/energy)

1. Economics (both corporate and invdividual prosperity, sufficiency)

2. Social/cultural (vision, values, identitity, fun)

3. Good Governance (management, equity/fairness, groundrules)

4. Environment (harmony, 'hygiene' - no irritations -  conducive to productivity/innovation, health, sustainable)

5. Education / Development (source of knowledge, corporate & individual wisdom, growth)

 

 

--------------------------------------------  

The Three Jewels (?) for an Enduring System   

To create a system that lasts and infects millions, there are the key pieces:

1) A Teachre

2) Teachings (consist of both Principles and Practices/Tools)...what to do, why it's important, how to do it

3) Community

 

 

--------------------------------------------

How can we help companies remove disturbances? 

Just as interruptions and internal disturbances within your mind reduce your concentration, disturbances reduce the success & productivity of an organization.

1. First, surface hidden issues so they can be made aware of them.

2. Awareness/understanding leads to action leads to results (Right Understanding > Right Action > Right Results)

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Culture is the single most important success factor in knowledge worker companies

Anyone can work hard - that's not a competitive differentiator.  It's an ante.  Working harder than others is an illusion to success, and sometimes an impediment.  People who are working too hard, for too long, lose perspective. Their psyche's can't unkink and make the kind of random breakthrough connections that lead to exponentional improvements.  Some stress can be good in short bursts, but chronic stress is a creativity and health killer.

 

In teams, the harder and faster you work the less marginally productive you are.  That is, the 61st hour you work won't add 61/60 more productivity. Marginal productivity goes down.  I'm sure we could run experiments on teams to find out where the output per hour becomes significant...

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

The Death of Meaning In Corporations

Naked Capitalism Has Killed Meaning In Corporations

Corporate Fundamentalism: Shareholder Value is God

Capitalistic Fundamentalism: Money is God

"Money is the ticket to heaven/nirvana/happiness", isn't it?

 

it's like religious sects that pronounce "obedience is everything"..."obedience" (or ___) is the ticket to heaven...but it's not.  One day you wake up and realize they're all full of shit.  XXX or YYY may be part of living the kind of life that you feel good about (which might include getting into heaven, if you believe it)...but it's not THE CAUSE of happiness (nirvana).  Money's not the cause of nirvana, and in fact it's just as likely to distract people from their happiness as it is to help them find it.  When you focus on money, it's easier to focus on how much you don't have, or what you're missing, versus what you have....creating cravings...leading to habituation and addiction cycles.

 

Work is dominated today by companies empty of meaningful culture. Gray cubes, blue shirts, khaki pants.  They're empty of real values.  The religion of money has crowded out everything else of meaning.  What wouldn't the company sell or compromise in the search for more money?  The environment, human values, the health of its employees...

 

We're seeing the new generation appreciate this and the emptiness of corporate culture.  They're choosing volunteerism, social causes, starting their own companies,  or joining companies who value (in words and actions) purpose beyond profit.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Happines  - Cause & Effect w/Productivity

Happiness does not cause productivity. 

1 - Happiness can be an output of productivity (flow)

2 - Happiness (or less stress) can be a condition that helps increase the likelihood of productivity

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

A commitment to money = no commitment

Founding a company for money feels meaningless, and someone's passion and commitment is more likely to waver.  Example: PATH with Linzi and her friends. Linzi's super-committed, because it's her passion.  Her friends aren't - to them it's just for money.  If they see another way to make money, they'll lose interest in PATH.

 

At a company, if someone's working there for money, as soon as they see another way to make more money, you'll lose their commitment and attention, and perhaps them. 

 

--------------------------------------------

Robert Kennedy: GDP measures "everything except that which makes life worthwhile"

"income statements measure everything about a company except that which makes working there worthwhile"

 

 

--------------------------------------------

PebbleStorm

Dedicated to the creation of an enlightened business community in which all participants (entrepreneurs and organizations) may realize their full potential

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Dilemma of Relative Happiness

- Part of our happiness can depend on our relative position to our neighbors (see NYT article on unhappy silicon valley millionaires)

- So if we don't learn how to refocus happiness on other, more meaningful long-term issues (like what we have, our purpose, ...) we'll always be in a state of less-than-optimal happiness.  There will ALWAYS be someone or a neighbor who's wealthier, smarter, better looking...  caring about those issues puts someone on a never-ending treadmill.

- In the workplace, someone will always have a fancier title, bigger income, better perks... people need to be encouraged to focus on their own happiness & productivity.  One way to help this is create an environment that reduces distractions and comparisons: no prestige titles, similar offices and work rules, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PART 2:

 

ACTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Describe the perfect organization:

5th Discipline (Peter serge)

A successful organization is one that can tap into people's commitment and capacity to learn, grow and share energy at every level in the company, a continually growing, learning and living organism.

 

 

 

Components of that organization:

1.

2.

3.

4.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Simple path to improvement

a) Less bad/undesireable,

 

b) More good/desireable. 

 

 

Keep removing poisons and toxins and what's left will be more and more pure.

- Need to define what's desireable vs undesireable

- What adds to internal success, external success, productivity?  What increases flow, happiness?

- What detracts from this, or increases fear, or disturbs flow?

 

 

 

Less bad = less conflict = more productivity = more results

 

 

Undesirable in workplace:

Fear, anger, control over others, suffering/stress, ego, intolerance, craving, dishonesty (among people or within someone), aversion, explicit incentives far outweigh implicit incentives, drama (defined as unnecessary hubbub), gossip, unhappiness, dissatisfaction, insecurity, manipulation/emotional abuse, blackmail, freeloading, corporate servitude, dependency, inflexibility, parent/child relationship structures, individual success, obligation, guilt, servitude, extraneous trauma, "failure" (it's not a failure if you learn from it), pessimism

 

Desirable:

Passion, control over self, CHOICE, humbleness / lack of ego, integrity, appreciation, trust, alignment, love, aspiration, acceptance/tolarance, happiness, contentment, equanimity, success, support, teamwork, self-confidence, fun, flow, contribution, cooperation, joint success, fairness, gratitude, empowerment,  "Let it go", challenges, not problems, optimism

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

MASTER VALUES (fundamental, guiding values that inherently lead companies to make the right positive systemic decisions)

These values are not exclusive to more, personalized values a company can identify for itself

 

Values: ideals or pinciples you wouldn't sell out for money

 

1. Trust

2. Transparency 

3. Alignment

 

1. Trust is the #1 value, PERIOD.  It consists of

-"Internal Trust" (employees, people within the org) and

-"External Trust" (with other parties). 

Another kind of trust could include individuals' trust in themselves (self-confidence)...it hugely benefits a company to help people increase this. insecurity is probably the main root of fear-creating behavior

- what are the conditions that can help make it easier to increase trust in a company?  - more transparency, - ?

 

2. Transparency is a modern form of truth. Especially in business, truth is always relative - but transparency is absolute.  Transparency helps structurally solve issues caused by mistakes and fear (miscommunication, control, secrecy, no trust).   Also, decision-making at the lowest levels is critical, and effective decisions can't be made without the right understanding of what's going on...which requires transparency.

 

transparency...information is today's truth. tell the truth, all the truth, by opening all information to everyone.  But use judgment if the information could be surprising, misinterpreted without context or unpleasant.  information , like anything, presented in a vaccuum is easily misunderstood and can cause as much damage as a lie.  make information a part of the flow of your culture and everyday business, so that it smooths things rather than causing ripples.

 

 

3. Alignment = 

a) Common Purpose,

b) Common Values

c) Common Goals

 ?? d) Common ground / equity / fairness (special treatment of one group over another, including execs, reduces alignment)

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Rules of thumb / sayings to encourage right behavior:

1. “No Surprises” (forces collaboration, helps increase trust, transparency)

2.  

 

--------------------------------------------

People with integrity not only refrain from cheating, but don’t want to cheat.

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

3 Key Organizational Purposes / Goals

(Right Priorities)

1) Internal Success (work for the success of everyone in the org: founders, employees...)

2) External Success (work for the success of all related parties: customers, clients, partners...)

3) Productivity (constantly work to improve key metrics: financial, operational, creative, morale...)

 

(If you have happy, successful, aligned employees...it will lead to successful customers...and then productivity can be measured and improved).

 

What's needed to create a pull management system?

- vision, transparency, trust, confidence (lack of fear), encourage & incent proactivity, tolerance, focus on developing people, alignment, encourage employees to run themselves as internal entrepreneurs - take control of their fate...don't discourage them

 

 

 

 

-------------------------

 

Hypothesis: a tipping point for productivity/innovation (corporate genius) rather than a linear increase

 

From personal experience, I have a theory that an organization will see some improvement as they move from old values to new values at work, and at first it will be gradual.  But at some inflection or tipping point, when the incentives for new behavior are greater than for old behavior, when the new values are practiced broadly (all teams) and deeply (all levels) across an organization, there will be a tipping point, and big leaps in morale, productivity and innovation will occur.  Unfortunately, just like in any situation, one “old values apple” can spoil the whole bunch…

 

Productivity Tipping Point

 

Penetration of new work into and across organization (trust, transparency, alignment)

Penetration of old work into and across organization (fear, control, secrecy)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

------------------------------------------

Miscommunication = Misunderstandings = Stress / Conflict

 

People are people – there will ALWAYS be some level of miscommunication and misunderstandings in the most perfect of cultures.

Spend a little time bringing people together regularly to burp off the pressure of misunderstandings

2^nd Ave:

 

“To update you: over the past few weeks, various 2nd Ave teams had seperate meetings across different departments to seperately address each of the issues that you raised and Patrick felt that the various teams felt that those meetings were very productive.  For example, they had a whole meeting to discuss: "are there quality issues in the factory or not..."  And, supposively the meeting resulted in a big "ah-ha" as much of the perceived issue(s) actually related to communications and process breakdowns.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

"Pull" vs "Push" Management

When a manager has to try to pressure and cajole employees to do things, it's a pain in both parties' asses: the manager and the employees. The manager, in this "Push Management" model, has to keep "pushing" things at the employess: new goals, new comp plans, new projects, new measurements, new rules...and then they have to keep pushing the employees to adopt these things!  It's incredibly energy-consuming.

 

What if we could create a "Pull Management" model, in which employees are equipped with the vision and control to run their own self-businesses?  And they were knowledgable enough to know when they needed to "pull" more help, information or guidance from management proactively?

 

Foster motivation rather than work by prescription.

 

Why don't we see this model more often? Well - it takes a lot more effort.  Hiring, educating and training this kind of workforce is much more time-intensive on executives and managers than the traditional "Push" management model, where new employees are hired, thrown into a two-day training session and then let loose to sink or swim. 

 

So, it's easier in the short-term to follow the Push model.  But if you can get to, and maintain, a Pull model, the long-term benefits will be tremendous.

 

 

 

 

------------------------------

Goals buddys / buddy systems / social help

 

 

 

 

goal

date committed

priority

date acheived

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Decision making - a KEY SKILL

The larger companies get, the worse they become in making decisions, because the complexity goes way up (more information, more variables, more people involved).  Decisions slow down, deteriorate.

- It's impossible to engage all the relevant people (or even know who's relevant)

- Too complicated (info, variables, people...)

- Can't know everyone that will be affected by the decision

 

Executives' fear prevents them from letting go of control of decisions. But what's the price of not accepting risk in pushing decisions down to the rep level?  Does it really outweigh the benefits of letting line employees make their own decisions?

 

* hierarchies are excellent at training people in how not to make decisions, since they need to pass important ones upstairs.  hierarchy reduces responsibility, reduces the practice of making decisions, and reduces accountability for the outcome.

*  push decision-making as low as possible...which is the opposite of most companies that push it as high as possible! 

* when all the decisions get pushed up, it clogs executives' communications.

* create ownership of the decision - who's the single best person to own it? 

* AES had it right - make a single person responsible for making a decision.  They're responsible for using their judgment in soliciting all the advice they need from people in order to make the decision.  But they own the final decision, which is real accountability.

 

To get good at making decisions, people (and orgs) need

* Practice

* Ownership / accountabilty

* Common sense

* Clear decision process(es)

* Access to advice / information needed to make the decision

* The org needs a tolerance for mistakes and an encouragement for people to learn from them.

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

HOW TO REDUCE DRAMA

How can you structurally reduce politics? 

- Alignment (common vision/values/goals)

- Transparency (more visibility reduces gossip and potential issues for politics)

- Trust (encouraging trust must, in its nature, reduce politics)

- Reduce turf...rotate execs regularly? 

- Get rid of hierarchy so there's less (turf, budget, people, titles...) to argue over?

Case study: Look to WL Gore

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Trust is a scarce commodity in companies

 

[This section might be duplicated for transparency too]

 

Increase trust by making it less scarce (incentives to increase trust, and reduce the risk of trusting

 

Scarce commodities are jealously guarded, and released infrequently (lack of trust).  How can we make trust a common commodity, removing the scarcity?  To create incentives to increase trust?

 

-          reduce the risk of trusting

 

-          increase the awareness of its benefits

 

-          trust more regularly (practice)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Bureaucracy

* It's not rules that create justice or fairness, but their application

* Rules without guiding principles or values are like a rudder or ship without a map

* Bureaucracy's to be avoided as much as possible b/c it creates an anonymous injustice, tranferring individual responsibility away from people and to dead rules.

* When does the explicit benefit of consistency outweigh the hidden cost of reducing decision-making practice/judgment?

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Practice loving-kindness, not politics, in organizations.

 

Work for your teammates' success first, then your own. 

 

How can you structurally encourage people to work for each others' success?

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Even Benign Control Reduces Productivity & Total Potential

But what about organizations that seem to be working well, and everyone's satisfied?   Everyone might be doing well (you think?) - but are you truly maximizing the org's potential?  What if EVERYONE in the company came in to work FIRED UP every day?  When you remove the dampers on their potential, it can happen.  Even benevolent dictators are still dictators, and the people get used to not having to make critical decisions on their own.  [I need to redo this one]

 

 

--------------------------------------------

The Sales Sacred Cow

Why do we pay individual sales commissions to salespeople employed in an organization?  (As opposed to independent salespeople, such as reps or real estate agents).  We pay hardly any other role in a knowledge company based on specific results.  We take it for granted that we have to pay sales commissions.  And selling is more and more of a team sport in many organizations - why should one person make so much more money than their teammates, many of whom might contribute more to the sales process than the salesperson?

 

Well - we pay individual sales commissions because it's easy to measure sales...not because it's the right thing to do. 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Equanimity - detachment from external dramas so you can focus on your own internal passsions.  The more self-confident you or your team is, the less you/they will care about other peoples' dramas.

 

Equanimity is the key to conentment (happiness)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

How can we help people detach from caring about the outcome?

Desirable: increase tolerance for risk, reduce fear/stress and new things by reducing people's attachment to the OUTCOME.  The fear of 'missing an outcome' causes people to do destructive things.

Examples: fear of missing numbers this quarter prevents companies from making investments necessary to make next year's numbers.  Fear of losing income or prestige prevents people from taking jobs that will truly let them put their talents to work.  Fear of not making a business successful prevents people from starting one in the first place.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Interesting Work Questions

Agree / disagree...

"I learn a lot at work"

"Work is interesting"

I enjoy my work activities"

"Work is meaningful"

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

80/20 Self-development in workplace / independent study

* Instead of just telling people they should follow the 80/20 rule, allocate a day specifically for it (like we're doing with BBR)

* Independent study (like they do in schools): 2 weeks vacation/year is not enough: For a short-term one (1-2 years), it's fine, but not for long-term employees.  What about a "work/study" program, where they can take a week to study any topic of their choice, that's professionally-related in some way...and at the end they only need to do some kind of summary of what they learned for the company?   After x years, they can do this 2 weeks/year.  Could be especially relevant to engineers.

* "Lean teams" aligned around a full customer process, and where teammates can pick up each others' responsibilities, as in manufacturing, will let people be more flexible around their time management.   It'll help reduce dependency on individuals.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

The Happiness / Productivity Intention

Happiness is something you have to strive and work for.  You don't fall into it, and it doesn't find you by accident.  You can proactively increase individual or corporate happiness, productivity.

 

What are you doing to increase your productivity? (Not just your volume of work)

- increase talent / identify unique genius, improve network, improve health/confidence...

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Avoid obligation, guilt, ego

Attract /cultivate appreciation, contribution, gratitude...

 

--------------------------------------------

More Focus on Short and Long Term Goals, Less on Medium Goals

We focus too much on short-term (month, quarter) productivity and goals.  We need more balance with long-term goals and vision.  And we need more focus on each day, making each day fulfilling and productive.  A month's really just a sum of days, so if each day is productive...months will be too...and thus years...

 

Months and quarters should be used as barometers / health checks, not goals. 

Revenue goals should be managed 18 months out (in b2b).  Takes longer to ramp things and people in b2b.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------- 

 

Fear is a self-fulfilling prophecy

 

March 4

 

Leads360 conversation

 

Board is putting more pressure on the team

 

Charles is ___ (insecure about his role?  What is his defined role?) and so is releasing some of this pressure as stress onto Trang.  Justifying his role.  Not burping it off productively…creating some drama and tenion / conflict.  Jeff’s snappish. 

 

 

The fear of missing goals is fulfilling its own prophecy: the fear is creating stress, which is creating tension in the company, increasing drama and distractions and lowering the chance they’ll hit their goals. 

 

 

I’m sure there are some anecdotal success stories about how pressure and fear drove people to breakthroughs to hit big goals, but it’s more likely that as a percentage of cases, the times stress improved results would be a much smaller % than cases where stress made things worse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Right People > Right Priorities > Right Momentum

Leads360: if you get the right people focused on the right priorities, you'll get the right momentum

 

--------------------------------------------

 

An Enemy at Work: Craving

Leads to politics, infighting...   How we we systemically reduce craving in a company?

* Get rid of titles (or at least levels of titles). Only descriptive titles or functions. WLGore has only two executives (?): CEO and CFO.

* No power or control over people - distribute it to the peer groups.

* Fair/peer compensation

* Allow choice in the method of job execution: focus on what has to get done, not how.

    - Allow people more outlet for personal choice and creativity.

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Telling Right From Wrong

The same action, looked at on its own, (such as donating money) could be right or wrong depending on the context.  Have to look at:

1. The intention

2. The effect on oneself

3. The effect on others

 

The intention of or message communicated by an action can be more important than the action itself.  

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Lean Teams / Client-aligned teams

I'm using "lean" for right now, though it needs a better name.  It comes from "Lean Six Sigma", in which teams are oriented aroudn a customer or full process, rather than segmented into stovepipe teams or batch processing.   Leads360 is an example of a team that could take a few baby steps to making the vision of lean teams a reality:

1) Mixed physical seating - sprinkle leadqual and client success with sales

2) Create a common process that everyone shares

3) Decide on common metrics

4) Re-arrange organizationally...create lean teams with a team lead, basically a "general manager"

 

--------------------------------------------

Elephant Ride from Tiger Tops (thoughts)

- Work should be energizing, not exhausting

- People - what qualities are inherent vs coachable?

    * Hard to shape/coach: optimism, self-confidence, trustworthiness, passion, intelligence

- Metaphor: rather than convincing capitalists that money isn't the key to happiness (it's not, but it sure helps if used appropriately!), which would be a frontal assault on the castle gate, easier to educate the new generation on how to achieve money AND happiness (dig at the foundation until the wall falls)

    * or with a rock in a stream - impossible to move the rock itself, but if you can dig the sand out from underneath it, you can shift it

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Time (our enemy, but not in the traditional sense)

* To get something done, first take off your watch

* Be aware of time w/o being impatient

* The more certain you are of your vision and the output, the less uncertainty (fear) you have about it, letting you focus on it more productively.

* practice non-attachment to time

* the irony of accomplishing huge things is that you can't control how or when they happen...but you can control how many seeds you plant and in building the right environment for a tipping point to be reached

 

 

 

 

 

CAROL Email exchange (2/29/08)

 

"Let's get together then and in the meantime I will be praying for clarity regarding IF."

 

One thing that will be a keystone of new work thinking - the better you can detach yourself from "the when" things happen, the better.  If you believe enough that it will happen, it helps you not care about when it does!   And I'm sure IF will happen. 

 

 

It's just like getting married in that sense...trying to push for it can create stress that reduces the chance of it happening.  Best to focus on believing in it and planting seeds to help the right people, ideas and situation to find you.

 

 

I think, like a lot of life experiences, that when it finally does click, you'll understand the reasons behind the journey that required the delay.

 

Does this sound familiar?  It's similar to advice I've gotten from you and others, but recommunicated in a work context :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Buddhism: There will always be. Old Age, Sickness and Death.

There will always be plateaus, cyclic problems and liquidation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Negative energy infects people

Think about it when your friend cries –

Poisonous communication is effective as spreading negative energy

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

4 Kinds of Poisonous Communication

* Lying (including misrepresentation)

* Gossip

 

 / backstabbing (a form of rot in the foundation.  if you can't say something nice...)

* Anger-based communication (anger blinds you, increases negativity, and multiplies rather than solves problems)

* Thoughtless communication/babble (it wastes others' time and attention and mental energy.  prepare your thoughts)

 

Less Communication But Higher Quality (less thoughtless communication)

We're overwhelmed with information today: messsages, emails, advertising, goals.  Be thoughtful in how you communicate.  Are you helping increase understanding or are you helping increase noise? 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

"Rule of 3's"

For communicating, prioritizing.   What are the 3 most important goals / messsages / points...?

 

--------------------------------------------

"Rule of 7's"

Chunk the main components of information into blocks of no more than 7 pieces. People can only hold 7 different chunks in their heads at a time.

 

--------------------------------------------

Law of 150

Once a community of people grows beyond 150-200 people, it loses the kind of tight culture that occurs in communities where everyone knows everyone else, and thus peer/social pressure can work much better than rules and regulations.   WL Gore and the Hutterites are two examples of organizations that split a group once it grows past 150.  

 

In knowledge-worker companies, there's a huge benefit to knowing the people you work with well.  It smooths communication, reduces drama, reduces dependence on bureaucracy, improves agility, improves decisions.  Although the explicit cost of duplicating overhead might make it look more expensive, the implicit benefits of these sub-150 groups outweigh the costs.

 

The Hutterites have a smart method for making sure the new community that splits from the old one isn't short-changed: the community divides everything up into two camps, and then the day before the split, everyone draws straws to see which camp they end up in.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Working Hard as a Crutch, Not As A Solution (The problems with ditch-digging)

There's nothing wrong with working hard, especially when you enjoy what you do. But there is something wrong with working hard as a substitute for figuring out what would work better...

 

Working hard is easy - just do more of what you're doing.  Rethinking the work itself and reconfiguring it into something BETTER is HARD...which is why it doesn't happen often.

 

Example: salespeople making cold calls..."just make more calls" rather than "figure out a better prospecting method".  Or executives "hire more salespeople" instead of "make current sales process twice as productive"

 

Working harder doesn't scale - there's an upper boundary.  As marginal productivity goes down the more hours per week and weeks per year worked.  What's the alternative?

 

Sometimes it makes a lot of sense to work hard for awhile - when a metaphorical ditch is identified and needs to be dug, just dig until it's done.  But that kind of work happens less and less in knowledge companies.  When people treat creative work like ditches, you get marketing collateral that is just like the boring marketing collateral that every other company uses.  More ditch-digging doesn't help you differentiate and stand out from the noise...

 

How can companies reduce the pressure on people to treat knowledge jobs like ditch-digging?  More is not always better.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

INFUSE CONNECT INSPIRE

 

Tools used @ Leads360:

3 goals

whiteboard wiki/priorities

"results, not activities"

buddy system to promote new habits

pbwiki

whiteboard planning sessions

practicing awareness of output through monthly and daily goal setting & tracking

generating a vision / values statement

presenting board slides to the whole company afterwards

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Customize This - Make It Yours

This isn't a set-in-stone practice.  It's not monolithic.  Feel free to take and test out bits and pieces to determine what does and doesn't work for you, before you come back for more.  Please experiment with it!  Experimentation leads to improvement.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

States of Contrast/Conflict

Contrast between people, and intolerance, breeds conflict.  There's no reason why we can't create an environment within a company with almost zero conflict. Isn't there enough conflict in the market or world today without a so-called team having to create more?? 

 

Excess Drama Creation

People are great at creating drama, especially within their own organizations.  Isn't there enough conflict in the world already?  Why do we have to create MORE of it within a team that's supposed to be working towards similar goals?

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Site visits / primary research

Semco, WL Gore, AES, Creative Company, Google

(Hutterites, what other communities are emergent / self-organizing?)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Titles & Comp

Linking titles is bad - separate titles from comp.  And keep performance reviews separate from comp.  As we saw at sfdc, if comp depends on performance reviews, the review gets tainted in order to position the employee for the comp change.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

3 Levels of Comp...

1. Classic Comp: steep hierarchical pyramid, huge difference in CEO-line worker, no/little trust, authoritarian/arbitrary comp decisions, control & fear-based, mostly individual-based

 

2. Progressive Comp

* Semco, WL Gore, Kingfisher

* mostly team-based

* individuals have choice in structure

* peer-based reviews/adjustments

 

3. Future of Comp

* Progressive comp on steroids?  boosted by wikis/technology?

* Based on corporate metrics/ lean teams, like manufacturing co's?

* Profit sharing (23%)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

BBR: The Cold Calling 2.0 practice: "Billion Dollar B2B Lead Generation"

 

 

--------------------------------------------

When are you most productive?

(I'm sure there are books on this subject...)

* You have a clear purpose/mission and an emotional connection (inherent motivation) to it

* Supportive environment (right tools, team, comp, etc)

* Excited / motivated

* More than money is motivating you

* Your talents are put to use in a way that they can be taken advantage of

* Feel progress & a sense of accomplishment

* Others around you are also working for your success (and encouraging you)

* ___?

 

What's missing from the above in most organizations?  In fact, many organizations create adverse environments to productivity. 

* No vision or connection (motivation)

* Fear and money are the main motivators

* Don't feel progress (such as when someone takes your credit, or your work is mired in bureaucracy or shot down arbitrarily)

* No appreciation for your work (or people actively try to put you down)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Why It Pays To Work for The Success Of The People Around You (Partners, Coworkers)

 

Working for the success of your teammates and partners is a multiplier.

* Teamwork's more important than individual success

* Very little happens without teamwork

* Let's say you work with about 10 people.  Let's say you're always working for their success, and they're doing the same - working for each others' success.  Now you have 9 more people looking out for you!  You've planted 9 seeds.   What's better - you working just for your own benefit (or even working against others), or you + 9 people working for your benefit?

* Creates good work karma that will pay you back time-and-time again over your lifetime

* One good work deed can pay you back time and time again over years

* It's planting good work karma seeds that pay back time and time again (the gift that keeps on giving, in a good way)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Money without purpose

The Intention Behind Making Money - is the money itself the objective, in order to satisfy a craving, or is the money a desired side result of doing something fulfilling?

 

There's a big difference between someone who wants to make money because they think (unconsciously) that it will feel some need or hole in themselves...and someone who wants to make money as a right output of doing something they love very very well, and in a way that other people value.

 

Wrong intentions behind money: anything that's really a craving or aversion, such as to show off, for prestige, as a replacement for love/confidence/etc, just to keep score...  when money's made because of a craving and the money's the objective, the person will only have a temporary respite from unhappiness. They'll soon get used to the money (habituated), and need to feed the addiction again.

 

Earning (or having) money wirhout purpose doesn't relieve unhappiness

Example: that movie "millionaires" about the superrich family heirs who are directionless

No purpose is wrong, if that purpose is a true one.  It could be someone's purpose to socialize / throw parties (Stanlee Gattee), everyone's different.  The trick is recognizing what your internal purpose is...to try to isolate it and understand it, uncorrupted by outside pressures.

 

Although your situation has a big influence on your happiness, every single person is unique.  two people in exactly the same situation can have wildly different happiness levels.  this is the same in work - the same work situations don't, ahem, work for everyone.  It's to the benefit of an organization to allow employees a lot of control over their environment (either as a team or individual).  This is where success, trust and transparency come in handy - the more advanced an org is on these values, the easier it is to let go of control...and the more benefit individuals can derive from the increase in their self-control (entrepreneurialism)

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Work Domains:

Are needs satisfied?  Or are some unmet?

 

Center circle/hub: work happiness / work productivity

 

Surrounding circles/spokes: such as: Finances, Physical environment, cultural development, health/self-care, work, intimacy, social/fun, family/friends/community

 

--------------------------------------------

Overcoming Adversity, or "What to do when shit happens"...cuz things will always change

Burns' list: (p363)

a) be optimistic rather than pessimistic

b) focus on the positive aspects of the situation

c) be "other-centered": motivated to overcome adversity for the sake of others (friends, coworkers, etc)

d) stay flexible - accept bad things happen in life and we go on

e) be hopeful and future- oriented, not holding onto the past or stuck in a problematic present

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Seligman's 24 strengths

p363 - will need to look these up online

probably better to use "StrengthsFinder 2.0"

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

3 Poisons

version 1:

1. Desire

2. Anger

3. Ignorance

 

version 2:

1. Greed

2. Ill-will

3. Delusion

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Story: man lost keys int the dark...

is looking for them elsewhere under the lamp, because that's where the light  is (p457)

* As long as we're looking to money to make us happy, we're looking under the light for happiness.

* As long as we're looking to more people, more work for more results...we're looking under the light for success.  It distracts us from looking in the right place, the Core Values (trust, alignment, transparency) and Key Goals (internal/external success, productivity)

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

No Gossip / Harming (p492)

* 3 doors > body, speech & mind - should be trained because harmful thigns can easily emerge from these doors

* gossip is poisonous speech...it both poisons the gossiper and the people around them

* gossip is just a method for someone who's not fulfilled/content to spread discontentment to others, increasing drama. it goes against the practices of doing no harm and of helping others.

* gossip is a drama multiplier

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Four Positive Virtues

1. Loving Kindness                    / Appreciation

2. Universal Compassion            / Universal Tolerance (Acceptance)

3. Sympathetic Joy                    / Team Success (work for the success of the community)

4. Equanimity                            / Contentment

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Four Positive Actions

Charitable actions, pleasant speech, working for the well-being of others, tolerance

1. Charitable Action, helping others (counters greed)

2. Cultivate positive communications, and avoid gossip / idle chatter / frivolous speech / angry speech ...

3. Perform community work that helps the well-being of others (literally within a community, or within your work community)

4. Practice tolerance

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Right Intentions (Right View -> Right Meditation -> Right Action)

Almost all training in leadership and management is geared to helping people acquire new skills and knowledge.  But these skills only realize their potential when used with the right intentions (which have to be based on a correct understanding of reality).  For example, giving $1m to a charity sounds positive...but what if the intention was to show up a neighbor?  Or 80% of the intention was for tax benefits?  Those intentions rob the action of its good karma.

 

Right View leads to Right Meditation leads to Right Action

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Avoid Wrong Livelihoods

Old - trading in weapons, animal flesh, intoxicants, poisons, human beings

New - trading in fast food/drinks, intoxicants, "industrialized" or non-sustainable food production (whether vegetable or animal...this is chemical-intensive or fear-intensive methods), pollution, animal harm.

 

Avoid Wrong Means/Methods: unproven claims. lying / misrepresentation, trickery or manipulation, taking advantage of unsophisticated buyers (it's the vendor's responsibility to educate them before the buyer purchases, as with complicated mortgages).

 

Both Wrong Livelihoods and Wrong Methods will corrupt the morals and karma of the doer, bringing them distrust, ill-repute and failure in the future.  Even if it takes years (can you say Worldcom, Enron...?)   Evil deeds don't die now, because of the internet, so if you have another 50 years to live, that's 50 years left that old, bad karma has to catch you.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

--------------------------------------------

Uncomfortableness

Some of these ideas will make you umcomfortable.  They're new.  They aren't accepted in our money-obsessed society.  But your uncomfortableness is a sign of your old training being challenged by new thoughts, and its a good sign.  When it happens, pause and reflect on what about the new idea is making you uncomfortable.  Examine your assumptions.  If you need to, pretend that the new idea is truer and more valuable than your old idea...what would life be like this new way?  Am I rejecting it just because it's different? What if I embraced it?

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Maximizing Productivity (p521)

        ____________________________________

        | *  Rank #3             |     * Rank #1            |     Pursues well-being of others

        |    "Doormat"           |    Most Superior     |

        |_________________|__________________|

        | * Rank #4              |     * Rank #2            |

        |   Most Inferior       |      Self-centered      |      Does not pursue well-being of others

        |_________________|__________________|

 

         Does not pursue           Pursues well-

        well-being of self            being of self

 

Why is #2 ranked higher than #3?  Isn't it better if someone works for the benefit for others, without regard to themself?  No - it's not possible for someone to truly pursue the benefit of others if they're morally corrupt or depraved.  Not pursuing your own well-being is wrong.  How can someone uncentered help others' development?   It'd be like following a false guru.

 

--------------------------------------------

The Four Immeasurables  (p540)

* Boundless Love, as an antidote to aggression

* Boundless Compassion, as an antidote to passion

* Boundless Sharing Love, as an antidote to jealousy

* Boundless Equanimity, as an antidote to indifference (anger, hardship, ...?)

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Buddhist Lists (p561)

84,000 teachings

Cultivate the 9 Values, avoid the 7 Negative Effects, the 3 distinct values, the 4 great pillars, 16 pure human dharmas, 10 virtues, 7 riches of sublime beings, 4 extremes, 4 ways of reversing the mind, 2 safeguards

 

7 Negative Effects:

6 destructive forces, 3 poisonous rusts, harsh behavior, reckless behavior, the 8 wordly reactions, 5 perverted livelihoods, 4 causes of exhausting merit

 

6 Different Methods - as the path to be used to pursue happy development

4 Mindfulnesses, 4 excellent transformations, 5 perfect livelihoods, 4 flourishing friendships, 6 sources of generating happiness, 6 peaceful paths

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

WHY??  Always communicate the "Why"

 

--------------------------------------------

Badge tool: "I am in silence"   (easy way to communicate without disrupting the intention of the practice

 

 

--------------------------------------------

When the karma of a relationship is done, only love remains.  Let it go. 

* As smoking is to the lungs, resentment is to the soul

* We do spiritual ceremonies and rituals to order to create a safe resting place for our most complicated feelings of joy or trauma, so that we don't have to haul those feelings around forever, weighing us down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PART 3:

 

RESULTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Quality of life indexes

CHQLI: Calvert-Henderson Quality of Life Indicator

Nova Scotia's GPI: Geniuine Progress Index

 

 

 

------------------------

Hit a roadblock?

 

1. babysteps
2. bite sized chunks
3. Pause and reflect
4. Put the current program on the shelf for awhile and try something different
5. Talk with a coach
6. Try really listening to your people

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

When LOST (Sometimes people take longer than you want to realize there are problems)

- When you're lost in the woods, sometimes it takes awhile for you to admit to yourself that you're lost in the first place, and need help.   Most people today may not even admit to themselves that they aren't fulfilled - they're making plenty of money, have a family...what's missing?  Shouldn't I be happy?

- Mental consistency: people guard their egos jealously (or at least the ego itself is excellent at self-defense)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INDIVIDUAL PRACTICE

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

DAILY SCHEDULE / PRACTICE

Living life isn't about years and months, it's about moments and days.  A day is the most logical unit of time to create an ongoing practice of life or work.  For a person, every day, do something for your purpose, your health and your spirit.  For an organization, make a difference every day (3 goals).

 

I've learned through the past few months at Leads360 that

- 8-6 / 9-7 isn't the most productive or healthy workday for me.  It's not optimal.  I need to break the day up into at least two chunks, with a workout or serious break between the two, or get all my personal preparation done in the morning (3 goals, meditation, breakfast, intentions...) before work, and start at say, 10am.

    Ex 1: wake 6a, workout, mediate, breakfast, intentions, 3 goals, writing/capture thoughts, gratitudes...) work starts 10a

    Ex 2: wake 7a, start work after 8a, workout/afternoon break from 2-4p, finish work late

- I like easing into the day without rushing (less stress)

- I like to workout without rushing...although I've been a morning workout person for awhile, the time of day doesn't matter so much as whether the gym is convenient and if there are some people around.

- I like waking up without an alarm (or with my sleeptracker)

 

 

 

 

Walking Meditation (or Water Meditation)

2/16 - Bhutan walk up the hill in Panakha reminds me how I enjoy it.  It opens my mind & lets ideas and thoughts find me.  When you're trying to find ideas, sometimes it's like being in a big department store: you zig, it zags, and you miss each other.  When you let your mind STOP, then the idea(s) can find it.

2/26 - Water meditation in Oberoi

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Buddha's  Self-Cleansing Practice

Essentially: decrease the unhelpful thoughts/intentions, increase the helpful intentions...

1. Discard unwholesome thoughts that have arisen

2. Eliminate unwholesome thoughts as they arise

3. Nurture wholesome thoughts as they arise by putting them into daily practice

4. Cultivate wholesome thoughts that have not yet arisen

 

--------------------------------------------

 

The 5 Precepts of Buddhism

- Avoid killing or harming living beings

- Avoid stealing

- Avoid sexual misconduct

- Avoid lying

- Avoid alcohol/intoxicants

What are the equivalent precepts in work?  5 Evils?

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Pushing Boundaries w/Radical Ideas

Me: I like to push the boundaries of thinking, or at least play the devil's advocate.  One way to stretch people's thinking is to give them an idea that makes them really uncomfortable (like having open board meetings)...and then they take a lesser version of that idea and incorporate it into their practice (share the board slides with the company after the meeting).  It's like a piece shirt/rubbert band that doesn't return to its original shape after being stretched too far.

 

others:

* compensation (no individual comp, only team comp)

* lean teams

*

 

 

 

 

MISC

 

 

CEOs have an outsized impact on the culture - more CEO stress = more org stress = less productivity.

the more open, happy and honest a co is with employees, the more the employees will be for the co. the more motivated a company is to help its employees succeed, the more the employees will work to make the company successful

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

 

BBR / PebbleStorm Peer Groups

 

young president's has a similar venue (or one of those orgs)

 

- come together to help divine "more $, more fun, less stress"

 

- peer groups - similar interests, geographies

 

- have one @ my house in LA, one in SFDC AppEx

 

- Cells of 7 +/- 2 people

 

- Bring a question, issue or something to share

 

- rotate 2-3 people through the group every year, to mix things up

 

is there an emergent, self-sustaining system here?

 

other examples: AA or Toastmaster

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

The Beauty of Doing Nothing

"Bel far niente"

 

l'arte d'arrangiarsi...the art of making something out of nothing

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

What are the 4 Means and 6 Perfections?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Blog/Sites

* Is PebbleStorm the main umbrella for new work? Or Project2057?  Or ___?

 

Outcome: Project2057

Method 1: PebbleStorm

Method 2: ?

 

"Re-engineer capitalism"

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Sikhs

- people fight and argue because they end up in "contrast/conflict" states, saying "me superior, no me superior"

- differences aren't tolerated

- people get educated to make money, not to learn things

 

there's enough conflict outside a company or person, why do we have to add to it ourselves with drama?  less conflict = more energy for $, fun, less stress

 

 

--------------------------------------------

4HWW

The internet changes everything.  It's cheaper than ever to research, start and maintain a business.

3 functions: leadgen, lead conversion, fulfillment

the more unique or personable you are (true to yourself), the easier it will be for like-minded customers to find you and appreciate you

find a partner ;/ buddy system

experiment (as tim does with lifestyle experiments)

 

 

 

--------------------------------------------

A key strength of mine: I really believe in people (often more than they believe in themselves).  Confidence is a wonderful thing though, and sometimes the only missing piece separating potential from success.

 

 

--------------------------------------------

Check out the Montessori schools system

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EXERCISES

 

 

Journal entries.

Sit quietly under a nice tree in Uruguay, and journal answers to the following questions:

 

 

 

 

If I was guaranteed success, what would I love to do for the rest of my life?

 

 

 

What do my friends and family say that I’m great at doing but never had the courage to do?

 

 

 

What do my friends or business colleagues come to me for help for? 

Leadership Test/exercise

Create a rough scenario not related to work …like a shipwreck.  Get people out of their trained work roles.  Form teams with random roles (pilot, stewardess…).   Then see how the leadership dynamics play out – does someone unexpected take charge, or show unknown leadership, once they’ve been freed of the day-to-day hierarchy?

 

 

 

 

Prisoner of habit and routine.

Imprison your audience for one hour and test whether they can come out of that experience with magnanimity? 

 

 

 

 

Induce your listeners to recognize that renewal in and of itself is a tepid term, and that the new or innovative has substance when organized around a meaningful goal or belief. It is this that needs to be sought first.

Love it. Leave it.

A simple exercise around personal renewal used in sessions with dysfunctional exec teams (which works best with groups that tend to know each other reasonably well)

 

 

 

 

- Write down three things about yourself that you like and want to retain.

- Three things you’d like to leave behind.

- Three things you’d like to be able to do / people to think about you that they currently don’t.

- Then work in pairs, sharing lists and developing practical behaviours and actions to get started on the journey

- A twist on this is to ask each pair to do the same task on behalf of their partner – providing a reasonably reliable external perspective.

Write your obituary.

Twins.

Describe your “ideal” twin / describe your “evil” twin. 

 

For some poignant six-word life stories: http://www.smithmag.net/sixwords/