Be Different or be dead

April 8, 2013

Why ‘comfy food’ will deprive you of a successful career

Source: Unsplash

Why ‘comfy food’ will deprive you of a successful career.

If you are to have a successful career, you must give up your comfy food and get out of your comfort zone

We all love our comfy food.

Food that makes us feel good. Food that takes away the pain when we hurt. Food that smooths the feelings of anxiety and apprehension when we are in a stressful situation.

Ice cream. Banana splits. Chocolate. Cheese cake. It’s different for everyone.

But when we discover our comfy food, we rarely go to anything else.  If chocolate ice cream soothes us, we tend to stay with it. we are creatures of habit and get sucked into our momentum track.

People in organizations behave similarly. They get on a track that is familiar.

They repeat the things that worked before; things that they know and understand.

They tend not to venture out of their comfort zone. It’s risky out there. It’s unknown. It will feel different. We might not succeed.

Unfortunately, comfy food robs us of taking on the new stuff that will help us and our organization grow.

And we don’t have sufficient time at our disposal to both continue to eat comfy food and try new food that will supply us with a different experience and renew us in some way.

Make a choice.

Choose comfy food. Stay with the tried and true all the way to the bottom.

Or, choose a different menu and open up the possibilities to grow and flourish. Career success awaits.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 4.8.13 at 09:11 am by Roy Osing
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April 1, 2013

Why the world needs ‘crazy ones’ to inspire and lead it

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Why the world needs ‘crazy ones’ to inspire and lead it.

I am sure that many of you have seen or heard this before, but it bears repeating. This was one of Apple’s very early ads. It personifies who Steve Jobs was and captures the “Think Different” culture he created.

This piece not only captures the persona of Jobs, it also paints a picture of what we might shoot for if we truly want to make a difference.

There was only ONE Steve Jobs, but maybe, just maybe we can try to emulate the character that separated him from everyone else.

And maybe, just maybe we can be tolerant with those we discover around us that look a bit like Steve. Cherish them. Nurture them. Make a pathway for them to succeed.

Check the video out and follow along…

“Here’s to The Crazy Ones
The misfits.
The rebels.
The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently.
They’re not fond of rules.
And they have no respect for the status quo.
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them.
Because they change things. They push the human race forward.
And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.
Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.”

WOW!

Thus manifesto should be a major element in how organizations recruit people in today’s world of uncertainty, unpredictability and chaos.

Are we actively looking for people with these attributes?

Are we trying to create a culture in our organization that fosters craziness? Or are we, by our very actions, forcing everyone into a pre-determined mold — a crowd of commonness and sameness?

I get that Steve Jobs was probably one of a kind, and we are unlikely to produce another one like him.

But what if leaders could, by inspiring craziness in our people, be lucky enough to stumble on 10 of them?

Would that make a difference? I’m thinking it would.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 4.1.13 at 09:57 am by Roy Osing
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October 15, 2012

How the ‘ONLY Statement’ is a great way to say your thing

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How the ‘ONLY Statement’ is a great way to say your thing.

How do you get your thing?

In an organization, what makes one person stand out from another?

Why do we “like” some people and not others? Why so some people attract confidence and others don’t?

The trick is to identify relevant and unique value that you have that will enable your organization to achieve its strategic goals.

Relevant - value that addresses critical business issues.

Unique - value that only YOU have to give.

I have suggested the personal ONLY statement as a tool you can use to sort this out and to stake your unique competitive claim.

“I am the ONLY one that….” is an effective way of getting at defining your thing.

Here are some things that I consider critical in terms of organizational success. How many do possess?

✔️ Distinctive knowledge required to execute your strategy;

✔️ Unique experience in implementing programs that will ‘breathe life’ into your strategy;

✔️ A network of connections you can draw on for help and to fill any competency gaps you have;

✔️ Your drive to get stuff done. It’s not about the plan; it’s about your ability to execute it;

✔️ Love of humans. People get stuff done. Customers are people. You must be an 11/10 in loving people;

✔️ Ability to focus on the few critical things that will deliver 80% of your strategy. Time and resources are scarce. Can you sift through the potential many things that could be done and land on 3 things that will create the most success?

You aren’t born with your thing, the needs of your organization dictate it

You must develop it based on what is required for your organization to succeed.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 10.15.12 at 07:50 am by Roy Osing
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August 27, 2012

Why a plan for 60-minutes is magic when you’re out of time

Source: Unsplash

Why a plan for 60-minutes is magic when you’re out of time.

If you knew you were running out of time, how would you spend your last 60 minutes?

What would be your burning priority?

What must you absolutely get done?

This is an instructive way to think about how to set priorities personally or as an organizational team member.

Time constraints impose the necessity to execute if you want something to change.

Pondering won’t do it.

Pontificating delays results. Intellectualizing creates inertia.

Imagine if you approached each day with an ‘I only have 60 minutes left’ mindset.

You would:

▪️ Sift through all of the possible things to do in search of the one thing that is absolutely critical;

▪️ Pour your heart and soul into getting results fast, and get inner satisfaction immediately;

▪️ Reach out to people for support, as rarely is a worthwhile objective satisfied through the efforts of a single person:

▪️ Never be distracted and diverted from your mission. No time to waste. Got to stay relentlessly focused.

The clock is ticking.

Decide on the most critical thing that will advance your progress.

Do it with wild abandon. Never look back.

Tick. Tick. Tick….

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 8.27.12 at 09:36 am by Roy Osing
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