Mental Modeling

Tenured & Tired

Recognize, connect, and support those who consistently delight those they serve over a prolonged period of time. Rewarding such an initiative makes sense, but at what point does the comfort of a rewarded role devolve into a willingness to sail into the sunset?

When starters run into the aloof, misaligned energy can lead to a standoff. Time is the ultimate release, but what if progress is needed now? Every situation is different because of the complexity of an environment and the people/organizations involved, but here are tactics that seem to work no matter the circumstance.

The first uses social currency. It requires a change maker to set their ego aside, and instead, celebrate all that’s been achieved by the accomplished, yet tired gatekeeper. Use respect, kindness, and appreciation to form a bond. Relationships that feel less transactional often create leniency toward new ideas. When a crack in the wall of inactivity is created, be glue that maintains the integrity of the existing system. For example, “I’m too busy” is a common qualm, so lean into that pain by offering to execute on the idea that has sparked mutual interest. It’s important to be realistic in these moments, because when promises are made, credibility is on the line. As you not only light a path toward progress, but also champion change by evolving ideas into reality, trust is gained and your ability to continue making a ruckus increases. Want to extend your leash further? Take responsibility for failures, but give all the credit away when success is achieved.

If a larger organization is involved, another interesting tactic invites the tenured leader to level up the team by activating a colleague. This provides a new hire the chance to get involved within the entrepreneurial ecosystem, while the organization is seen as engaged within their community. It’s hard for some to understand that time spent in the wild is often more valuable than clocking time in the office, but if the organization allows this person to show up without limitation, everyone wins. The new community member feels the innovative energy and brings more intrapreneurial vibes into the organization, while the community benefits by having another trusted organization in the mix.

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“The way we make things better is by caring enough about those we serve to imagine the story that they need to hear.” -Seth Godin

If you’re reading this, you may be tenured, but it’s unlikely you’re tired. That said, we’ve all found ourselves in a motivational rut or lacking a clear sense of purpose. Along with a few solid sleeps, when I feel the urge to settle, it helps to have fun, build into other areas of your career portfolio, take a few days to rest if necessary, and then get back into the startup community. This creates opportunities to #GiveFirst, ask for help, or get extra curious about the creative work of others. Soon you’ll find new opportunities to collaborate.

New connections that emerge can bring you out of the motivational rut. They can boost your care meter and will add fresh personality to your work. Along with sparking fresh direction(s), you’ll be motivated by others and soon find new ways to be generous with your art. If you’re still thirsty for motivation after tapping into the entrepreneurial ecosystem, I’m here for you as well. Together, we can refuel the idea machine to avoid wasting any more time with being tenured, but tired. Sleep when you’re dead, my friends. Let’s keep building.

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“There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning.” -Louis L’Amour

By Ben McDougal, ago

Ask For Help

I was raised to “go figure it out”.

This DIY mindset was reinforced through years of education and employment in traditional, corporate environments. If there was a problem that I didn’t have the answer to, I would naturally slide into problem solving mode to independently determine different ways to ensure progress. By and large, this mindset has served me well. It has taught me to be resilient in the face of challenges, even when it’s not the popular path forward. It’s left me with an open, achievement-oriented approach with less limitations, because I am a DIY business woman.

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This caffeinated contribution was written by Laurie Brown. I had the pleasure of collaborating with this operational savant through her work inside the Kauffman Foundation and with 1 Million Cups. Laurie is now helping fellow founders optimize their own business operations, so let me know if you’d like a warm introduction.

Lately, I’ve been re-thinking this approach. Perhaps my DIY mindset should include more asking for help?

Within a recent career transition, I’ve been exploring this new attitude through an experiment. On numerous occasions, I’ve encountered unknowns. In these moments of uncertainty, I’ve resisted my life-long instinct to figure out every answer on my own. Instead, I have started asking myself, who in my network might be able to help me learn?  As this experiment has unfolded, I have three key takeaways.

  1. Asking for help drives results. I can learn from others who have pioneered effective solutions, which saves me time (and pain) along the way.
  2. The collaboration from these exchanges go beyond the problem at hand. Many times it strengthens relationships, the fun of helping each other forms friendships, and mutual professional growth is a welcomed side effect.
  3. By leading the way to ask for help, I serve as a role model to my peers and open the door from them to ask me for help in return.

My DIY ways will continue to serve me well, but I’ve learned that an added dose of curiosity and willingness to listen can add fresh layers of potential. I’ll continue to carry forward my resilient, solution-driven approach, but plan to incorporate more inclusive problem solving and an “AFH attitude” within my engaged network. This will keep problems from staying problems, while also creating a new catalyst for prosperity.

By Ben McDougal, ago

Bloop

Imagine yourself as a circle.

It’s tempting to suggest a sphere, but the added dimension is not necessary for this metaphor. Alright, with your circular self, take a tiny portion of the arc and “bloop”… push it beyond the circle’s circumference. Even the smallest nudge gives the entire circle space to expand.

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I had fun making all sorts of sounds as I considered the title for this reflection, but I’d love to hear how you’d describe the sound of such an expansion. Also, since I had to look up the terms to ensure this metaphor was translated correctly, here are the parts of a circle.

There’s plenty of research behind the idea of small improvements adding up. As we hear from inspired speakers and read about in Atomic Habits by James Clear, if you get one percent better each day, you’ll end up thirty-seven times better by the end of a year. It’s hard to define “better” and such steady progress would surely require sacrifice, but most will agree that small choices don’t make much of a difference, until they add up.

While establishing systems that support good habits and compiled improvements are great, this reflection is more about welcoming singular moments of exploration and growth, even when it seems unrelated, weird, or insignificant.

Perhaps it’s trying something new without preconceptions, saying yes when no is status quo, or being the initiator when movement is seen as risk? As we poke the box and invite a bit more bloop in our life, we give ourselves an opportunity to grow as our own circles expand.

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To thank those who have enjoyed brewing on these Roasted Reflections every week for almost two years AND to say hello to some new friends, here’s a free gift just for fun!

By Ben McDougal, ago

Winding Whys

Asking “why” seems to be innate.

As soon as kids learn to speak, the inquisitions begin. The first few whys may emerge from innocent curiosity, but it’s easy to tell when the game is underway.

It’s easy to see how endless whys may lead to frustration (especially when it’s bed time, eh), but I’ve found joy in making these winding whys into a fun challenge for myself. Instead of shutting things down, I enjoy trying to quickly answer every why with an accurate answer. Can I mindfully outlast the youngster’s attention span? What fun!

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I’ve enjoyed winding whys many times, but “Dad, why do you love me?” gave me pause. I found myself feeling appreciative as I tried to coalesce endless reasons into one answer.

As I poked around, it felt trite to reflect on how humans have so many whys we can not answer. Instead of going down the paradoxical path or leaning into understanding our own whys, I found the Five whys interesting.

Developed by system thinkers inside Toyota back in the 1980’s, this iterative Five whys technique was used to explore the cause-and-effect relationships underlying a particular problem. When following 14 specific rules, after exactly five whys, the last answer often points to a process that is not working well or does not exist. This rigid technique has critics and would seemingly lead to shortsighted interpretations, but it was fun learning about this historic use of why. Knowing the value of complexity vs. simplification, as well as, so many other methods like active listening, Socratic questioning, casual diagrams, storytelling, inverse charisma, and pure wonder, the Five whys may not answer all the winding whys of our world, but perhaps it’s another tactic to throw in the mix.

Why not?

By Ben McDougal, ago

Ideaworks

Our daily lives gobble up mental bandwidth. If you’re interested in building a business, compelling ideas may hit but lasting intention is needed to build momentum.

It’s unlikely that lightning will strike in a single brainstorm. Instead, combine detail-oriented initiative with pure wonder and open-mindedness to attract earned luck, thanks to serendipity. As ideas fueled by action create chemistry over time, different combinations will map more opportunities.

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We get what we repeat.

How might combining ideas be like a colorful fireworks show? Let’s begin with the anticipation a crowd feels before the show. Then a bright light flashes, and the sound of that first colorful explosion is celebrated.

To get color popping in the night sky, a fuse was required to spark early progress. Fuses such as linking slowness with urgency, actively listening, allowing new experiences to shift your perspective, and always staying curious give the idea machine more ways to continuously flip the switch.

As each fuse is lit, we hear that thump of a distant firework being shot into the sky. This sound of propulsion is like ideas darting into the limitless atmosphere of our mind.

With each idea sparked, there’s a thrilling hope that what’s about to pop is exactly what we’ve always wanted. Even if it’s not an absolute showstopper, each ideawork sparkles with different colors, shapes, and sounds that inspire the sky and connect into the broader experience.

Looking up into the stars, we appreciate each blast in different ways, based on the vantage point. This awakens the fact that every idea has value. Bad ideas lead to better ideas. This can spark great ideas that reverberate, and when given the space to merge, combine into a fantastic reality.

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Don’t wait for next year.

As ideas pop to create a tune, it’s like the grand finale a crowd waits for. The audience may scurry in different directions after the show, but they’ll keep talking about the experience long after that floating smoke clears.

When songs rhyme with a melody, the idea machine sparkles. When execution is a habit, even duds can’t stop a remarkable show from lighting up the sky.

By Ben McDougal, ago