Buddhist Marketer

Google Calendar Now Has Tasks!

I have ongoing task lists that sit atop my Google Calendar every day (think:  “all day” events).  Now, however, Google Calendar has added a handy “Task” feature:

• Tasks sit on the right side of your window
• They can be sorted into different buckets
• Each task can have a small note that lacks character limits but will launch scrolly-bars if the note’s long

Am still playing with this feature but am looking forward to moving some of my all day events into the task bar.  Woo hoo!

Twenty Steps to Career Bliss

“I lost my job, but let’s be honest, I didn’t really love it anyway.”

I’ve heard this often (perhaps even from you).  I heard it while running DinnerGrrls.org.  I’ve heard it while moderating or participating on career panels.  And I’ve struggled mightily to find happiness in my own career path.

Many people have asked my advice regarding what they should do with their lives.  Now that the economy is adjusting back to something that more realistically reflects what we can afford in the absence of temporally manipulative financial vehicles, the advice requests have picked up steam.

Here’s my checklist for how you can figure out what to do with your life.

1. Center yourself.  Turn off your iTunes.  Try to find a room that isn’t too cluttered.  Remain standing.  Close your eyes.  Put your hands in the air above your head.  Breathe deeply, pushing your belly in and out with your diaphragm (think Kundalini yoga).  Clear your mind.
2. Ask yourself what you enjoy doing. While standing and breathing, move your thoughts towards that which you enjoy doing.  Do not focus this on money-making endeavors. Let yourself recall anything and everything that brings you joy.  This is not the time for censoring!  Once your mind is travelling in this direction, write these down on as big of a piece of paper that you can find.  The more you like something, the bigger you should write it!  These are activities that, in econo-speak, are those from which you derive maximal utility.  Put a nice big heart on this paper somewhere.  Me?  I like thinking about stuff, particularly identifying patterns and connections.  I also love reading and writing.  How about you?  Write it down.  Tape this page to the wall.
   1. I really like to:
3. Ask yourself what you do not enjoy doing. Again, do not censor the shape that these ideas take, but find a fresh piece of paper and repeat step two.  These are the activities from which you derive minimal utility.  Me?  I don’t enjoy being rushed, and I don’t enjoy collaborating.  Don’t get me wrong — I love brainstorming and ideation.  But when it comes to executing, I need to be in my own little corner.  But enough about me.  What do you dislike?  Again, write it down on a piece of paper.  Draw a heart and then an ‘X’ over it so you can recognize this sheet as your catalog of dislikes.  Slap it onto the wall opposite your heart paper.
   1. I do not like to:
4. What’s been your favorite experience in a job thus far?  Why? Write this down (you can use a regular-sized paper now).  Try to be as specific as possible.  For me, my favorite experience was my weekly meetings with my Citi team.  Those guys were great, and I really loved trying to figure out what it was that each of them enjoyed doing and how I could channel this into opportunities for their exposure to the right people within the company.  I enjoyed helping them to see the political angle to nearly everything and trying to figure out ways to build their brands and ultimately get them promoted.  I found this gratifying because I like to help people.  I like to feel that I’ve made a difference.  So write down your favorite experience and why, put a big smiley-face on the page, and put this page on your maximal utility wall.
   1. My favorite moment in my career thus far has been:
   2. This is because:
5. What’s been your worst experience in a job?  Why? Some of you may be able to think of one single searing-hot incident; others may find that your worst experience took the form of slow-burn drudgery.  Both types are valid but be sure to pick one and most importantly be honest with yourself as to why.  My worst experience was as General Manager of the Social Network at Beliefnet.com.  On paper, the job was perfect for me:  it tapped into my talents as a manager, exploited nearly every corner of my marketing knowledge, and I brought to the table skills that no one else within the organization seemed to have.  But I was unable to navigate the needs and workstyle of the person to whom I reported, and I felt like a grave failure because of this.  I couldn’t satiate the demands of, or fix, this human being.  Consider your worst experience and why, write it down, draw a frowny-face, and put it onto your minimal utility wall.
   1. My worst experience in my career thus far has been:
   2. This is because:
6. What are you uniquely good at? This is your comparative advantage.  Toss it about in your own head, and then call three different trusted friends, mentors or colleagues and ask them.  Try your best not to lead them with your own theory about what you’re uniquely good at.  Whatever you do, do not ask your family.  In fact, try and only ask people who’ve only known you post-puberty.  People who’ve once changed your diaper and/or remember what a piss-ant you were during tee-ball are unlikely to be able to see the adult you with much clarity.  Try your best not to react to their feedback:  you need to try and create a safe space for them to let their honest opinions fly.  If you feel yourself getting defensive, remember that they’re genuinely trying to be helpful.  If you need help getting this conversation started, try, “I need your help on something.  I’m taking this opportunity to reflect on my interests and values, and I need your thoughts on my talents, especially how my talents compare with others you’ve met in your lifetime.  I really value your opinion.  What do you think I’m uniquely good at?  What would you say sets me apart from other people you know?”  Me personally?  If I scan my LinkedIn recommendations the hints are there, and they’re vetted by conversations I have with friends — but it’s oftentimes difficult for me to really hear what they’re saying, if you get my drift.  But apparently I am smarter, more creative, and a little crazier (in a good way — so they say to my face) than the average bear.  Assemble all of these thoughts about your own comparative advantage onto a piece of paper with your name written on it in big and bold letters.  Put this onto your maximal utility wall.
   1. I am uniquely qualified at:
   2. (or) I’m better than most people at:
7. What are your weaknesses?  You don’t need to consult your Quorum of Three for this.  In fact, doing so may make them uncomfortable.  You probably have a sense of your weaknesses but for reminders, think of things that your closest friends or lovers have yelled at you during an argument.  Or think back to the portions of annual workplace evaluations that’ve stung the most.  You need to write your weaknesses down.  Write them down in really small font and with a light hand. Write your name on it too, softly, lightly.  I think you know which wall this page goes.  Me?  I’m too quick to get defensive.  I’m always ready to point out how stupid something is.  I can be a perfectionist control freak.  Meh.
   1. I am not very good at:
8. Identify your top five activities.  Now you’re going to refine your big list of maximal utility activities and find the five from which you derive maximum utility.  Put them in order.  Number them on your sheet and circle them or otherwise highlight them so that they stand out.
   1. My favorite activity is to:
   2. My second favorite activity is to:
   3. My third favorite is to:
   4. My fourth favorite is to:
   5. My fifth favorite activity is to:
9. Identify your five most loathed activities.  We’re now ferreting for minimum utility activities, activities that you’d like to avoid at all costs.  Put them in order, number them, and highlight them on the existing sheet.
   1. My most loathed activity is to:
   2. My second most loathed activity is to:
   3. My third is to:
   4. My fourth is to:
   5. My fifth is to:
10. Assess the Maximal Wall.  Read aloud your top five activities, your favorite experience in a job, and why (steps two and four).
11. Assess the Minimal Wall.  Read aloud your bottom five activities, your worst experience in a job and why, and your weaknesses (steps three, five, and seven).
12. Re-work your comparative advantage.  Look at it (step six).  Read it.  How does it sound?  Does it still have resonance? Tweak as needed and replace comparative advantage 1.0.
    1. I am uniquely good at:
13. Take a time out. Even if you’ve been doing this over the course of a few weeks and not all at once, right now you definitely need to quiet your mind before proceeding.  Go for a run, head to yoga, make yourself a complicated meal, or otherwise distract yourself.  Do not proceed to step 14 until at least 24 hours have passed from the conclusion of step 12.
14. Repeat step one, then craft your hypothetical career. What will you be doing in ten years?  Five?  In three?  In order to get to that place, what do you need to be doing right now?  Even if you’re not doing “the now” right very now, write it down as if you are!  This puts you in an action state of mind.
    1. In ten years I will be:
    2. In five years I will be:
    3. In three years I will be:
    4. In order to create these opportunities, right now I am:
15. Gut-check.  Re-read aloud steps two through five.  Now read your comparative advantage from step 12.  Does your comparative advantage still feel right? If not, revise:
    1. I am uniquely qualified to:
    2. In ten years I will be:
    3. In five years I will be:
    4. In three years I will be:
    5. In order to create these opportunities, right now I am:
16. Test drive. Attend a social event populated mostly by people that you don’t know terribly well or not at all.  Right now, you’re looking for blank slates.  They’ll allow you to feel most comfortable trying on something new; people who know you already will want you to continue to conform to their current perception of you.  I found a Meet-Up of Yale Entrepreneurs and am taking advantage of the holiday social season to continue to try out my marketer-transitioning-into-academic pitch.  When people ask you what you do, try out the hypothetical.  “Right now I’m …”  If they seem interested, then you can share what your longer-term goals are.  Note during your test drive how the ‘right now I am’ sentence feels during its delivery, and how the longer-term goals feel.  The first few times might seem awkward, but keep on throughout the event, and stay mindful and aware of how announcing your hypothetical new career makes you feel.
17. Take a time out. 24 hours off, again.  You need to incorporate the feelings that your test drive will bring up before you can come to a conclusion about it.
18. Gut check re-dux. Re-read aloud steps two through five.  Now read your latest comparative advantage.  Does it still feel right? If not, revise.  Do the same for your hypothetical.
    • I am uniquely qualified to:
    • In ten years I will be:
    • In five years I will be:
    • In three years I will be:
    • In order to create these opportunities, right now I am:
19. Call the Quorum of Three.  Run your stranger-tested hypothetical by your three trusted friends from step six.  What do they say?  Try to hear their feedback with open ears, an open mind, and an open heart. Take notes!
20. Reiterate steps 16 - 19 until your hypothetical feels comfortable.  You may need to try taking a few steps in the direction of your hypothetical future before you know if it feels right.  This is okay!

But now you have your hypothesis about what to do with your life.  Go test it.  Advance confidently!  And if you’re burdened by an inner voice that’s telling you you’re an impostor, tell that voice to shove it.  Fake it ’til you make it, baby.

1. Quietly assemble your walls into innocuous maximal and minimal folders if need be.
2. Refer to them as often as needed.   (Add a monthly recurring meeting on your calendar if needed!)
3. Revise it as your journey progresses.
4. Keep me posted.

To aid you on your journey, download and print the ‘Twenty Steps to Career Bliss‘ guide.

xoxo

Time

I want to share with you a little trick regarding getting things done.

Oftentimes people will send me emails asking me questions or asking for my time. Right now I have 657 unread emails in my personal account, and 705 unread emails in my work account.

“705 unread emails!” you might think. “It’s a wonder you haven’t been fired!”

Au contraire, mon frere. The fact is in my 9 official years of full-time capitalizing, which came off the heels of 4 years of part-time go-goodering and a lifetime of entrepreneuring, I’ve been able to get a ton of shit done. It’s like my old boss / coach TT always said: “Work smarter. Not harder.”

Ain’t that the truth. Working harder means reading every single email and getting back to everyone super-promptly. The problem with this is that it assumes that everyone else’s time is more important than yours. And when you make that assumption, you basically guarantee that you will forever be in a job where you are the least important.

Now, this is one of the reasons I can get shit done: I don’t waste my time on shit that isn’t important. And nine times out of ten, I am in a better position to determine if something is important. Which means that the request via email isn’t important unless I say it is, and it means I’m not going to read your email unless:

• I need something from you, at which point, I read the three most recent emails from you, address your needs, and then follow-up by asking you to give me what I need
• The subject line is related to something that I’ve decided is important

This is how I’m able to get a ton of shit done. When you think about it (and yes, I have thought about it), all through school I was able to score in the 99th percentile on standardized tests that took my classmates an hour to finish. I was done in forty minutes, tops. I could read by age three and took calculus as a high school sophomore.

I get shit done.

I do it well.

I don’t read your emails.

So here’s the little trick I’ve learned regarding getting people like me to pay attention to you:

• Get them to need something from you. If they don’t need you, then you need them. That’s the power dynamic, and get used to it, and figure out how to work around it.
• If they do need something from you, when they ask for it, don’t give it to them until they give you what you need. Duh. “I’d be happy to provide that report, and I’ll get to it right away. Before I begin, however, I’d benefit from some context regarding the shit that I need from you, big lady.”
• But usually, they don’t need anything from you. So you need to respect the power dynamic and pay it its propers. Ask yourself: how much time do I need from this person? Sometimes you just need them to give you a POV on a document. Okay — how long will it take them to read the document? Will it be easier if you walk them through it? Based on that, you need to:
  • Push time onto their calendar to walk them through the document. If you are in the same office as them, put a hard copy of the document onto their chair so they can read on their commute. If not, and if you have time, send them a physical copy of the document. On a post-it, say, “I’ll get some time on your calendar to walk you through this.” Include your business card as well if they aren’t going to know who the f— you are.
    • This is also the golden key to the crapper checklist re: How To Get People Much Higher On The Food Chain To Know You Are Alive Even If You Are Not 5′10″ And Of Indeterminate Ethnic Origin
  • When you’re pushing time on their calendar, do it for WHEN THEY ARE AVAILABLE. Don’t be the asshole that’s going to try and think that your little document is more important than what they’ve already got planned. Remember: smart people are the most qualified to decide what’s most important and how they should allocate their time. Don’t be presumptuous.
  • If you can’t see their availability, don’t push a request for any less than two business days away. Even successful, accomplished people don’t want to feel like failures, and if you don’t give someone time to successfully deliver to you, then they will feel like they have failed, and this will invoke shame, and once you shame someone, you are up shit’s creek and they will marshal their resources towards seeing you eliminated, peon. In the meeting request, state, “I’d love to walk you through this document that I’ve attached as part of the meeting request / left on your desk / FedExed to you and solicit your guidance, but if this time is not good, please do feel free to suggest an alternative.” Now, see how respectful of this person’s time your request is? And see how you’ve couched it as them giving you guidance? This has recognized their power and makes them feel special. Most people want to be helpful. You just need to set them up for success to give out that advice and … get what you need.
  • Let’s say you don’t need to walk them through it. Well, they still need to block out time to read it. So send a meeting request titled: Read this document, or something like that, and let them know they should feel free to move the meeting request to a time that works best for them, and that you can be reached at << your phone number >> to discuss should any questions arise during the reading of it. And then ask that they ping you after they read to give your feedback. This respects the busy-ness of their schedules and ensures that you get what you need.
• Sometimes, you need to get feedback from someone on a regular basis. Determine how regular, and how much time you need, and get on their calendars.

If I need something from someone I never assume that an email or a phone call will do the trick. Sure, sometimes it does, and I get through to most people because most people like me (and I return the favor) and generally, I’m one of the more entertaining people in any one person’s life. Look, don’t hate, but let’s be honest: how many Jello wrestling dress-wearing shoulder-tossing Scrabulatin’ half breeds do you know? According to Facebook, I am more desired than 86% of people, so most people want to talk to me and will answer my call.

But let’s say that the person I need something from is currently talking to someone who is more desired than 97% of people, including me? I respect the reality of the power structure and block out time on their calendar.

And then, I figure out ways to make sure they need things from me, so that the power dynamic can shift in the other direction.

This is how I manage up the food chain, across the food chain, and down the food chain. This is how I get it done.

If you keep these things in mind, I guarantee that you will find yourself getting a ton more done — and I mean, meaningful impacts. Not just running the baseline or looking busy. Not working harder.

Working smarter.