“Doing ‘almost nothing’ is much better than doing nothing. Because if you did nothing, you’d die.” — Dad

Weeks ago, my sister received a COVID-19 test.

She got the test because a co-worker’s parents, sadly, tested positive for the virus. Upon this discovery, my sister’s world changed. She would be isolated in the basement for 72 hours while her test results were being processed. She received cooked food on the regular, thanks to her big bro. She laid on the pull out bed. Caught up on work. And, mostly, did nothing.  

Don’t try to win!  You won’t! It’s not worth it!  Trust me!Having said that, if I were in a debate with a friend, here’s what I’d ask:What has to happen for you to change your mind? What standard of proof, from what source, is sufficient for us to accept that something we’re sure wasn’t true, is true?I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but we’re in the age of passive-aggressive, or straight-up aggressive online debate.  Suddenly our friends are infectious disease experts, political scientists, strategists, global warming experts, sociologists, or anthropologists. I know there’s a subtext in how I phrased my last point.  If you’re like me, you might be sick of it.  I’m sick of seeing friends put themselves and their beliefs out there and then get trolled, or worse, pulled into arguments where neither side seeks common ground, but rather, to dig in their heels.  Here’s my take:We all have different beliefs, stories, and lives - see sonder.Culture improves when we adopt the posture of curiosity and possibility - let’s look to learn from each other and be fascinated by what we discover.If you’re going to assert a belief, be willing to have it challenged. And be okay with it. Consider asking the questions above to those that would challenge you, and truly, to yourself.  If I’ve learned anything from my time on this earth is that winning doesn’t matter. This thought comes to you from a person raised by fiercely competitive lawyers. They bred an even more fiercely competitive son.  The questions come from Seth Godin’s recent blog post, check out his work. And, the thoughts on winning come from personal failures and learnings as a human. Please, help others.

The other night, before I slept, I found myself scrolling through apps on my phone. Have you ever done this? I was exhausted.  My body was ready for sleep.My mind was ready to sleep.Yet, my fingers kept scrolling. As if they were searching for some mythical fountain of youth.  I paused.  I asked myself, “what is this for?“The answer is simple - self-efficacy. Scrolling is for the feeling of accomplishment - “I found something!” It’s for the dopamine hit that comes from completing a task.  When I came to this realization, I reminded myself of what I accomplished that day - the reasons I had earned an invitation to do it again the next day.Then, I fell asleep.

Quite frankly, I’m sick of feeling like I’m so different.My views are different.My last industry was too different.My approach to leadership is different.My approach to recruitment is different.My approach is different.My story is different.I am different.I know!  I know I’m different.  I literally blog about my awareness of my “different” almost every day.  And, I’m okay being different. So why am I bothered? Because I’d like others to be okay with my different, too.  Because I’m getting sick of the lip service about how people are “inclusive,” but then use my “different” to discount my capability.Because I’d like others to see me the way I see them - for all they could be, would be and want to be if you only gave them the opportunity to show.  Is this a post asking for pity?  Hardly! No. I don’t need pity. I’m comfortable, and frankly proud, with and of myself.  This is a post that calls you to action.  To really think about the times when you look at others who are different, what aren’t you seeing in them? Are you discounting them? Are you underestimating them?    You and I can’t control how others see us. But, we can control how we see others.

Eventually, the terrain levels up.Maybe there’s another hill.There might be rocks on the path.Maybe the angle of descent is too steep.Maybe you’ll need to adjust your weight.What if you put your arms out?What if you slip and fall?What if you trip?I like hiking because it slows down the mind.I especially like hiking up and down hills.  Why?Because if you take your mind off what you’re doing in-the-moment, you’re sure to trip. There’s no time for second-guessing, thinking too far ahead, or behind - there’s only the moment in front of you. The minute you start thinking too far ahead, or too far behind, is the minute. And, nature has a funny way of keeping you in check.Consider a hike.

And I knew I would.

But I only knew I would miss yesterday’s post at 8pm when I felt like passing out.

Yesterday was my baby sister’s birthday.  

I keep forgetting that, though she’s almost 10 years younger than me, she’s still an adult. In my head, she’s still my baby sister, running around with her little friends and doing what they do.  

In fact, what was in my head never happened.  

Why do the things that are so small cause so much fright?Things that create fright for many, but not for all:MiceCockroachesFliesAntsSpidersCentipedes and their cousinsWaspsBeesNeedlesVirusesFor me, it’s spiders. I will literally turn over the entire house if I see a spider. Why?I am many times bigger than the spider.  I am quite a bit more lethal.I am privileged that I can get quality medical care if ever I should be bitten by one and need medical attention.  I think it’s because small things represent big things in our minds.  A spider is not just a spider. It’s something that can move around me without my noticing. A spider can land on me in my sleep and bite me (at least that’s what I tell myself). A spider could create more spiders, and they’ll land on me in my sleep and bite me.  Look at all of the levels of fear that I’ve created from a tiny insect?Quite honestly, writing it out my fears is helping me understand them a bit more.  What are you afraid of?

Ever hear the story about how, when a bear chases you through the woods, your fight or flight response kicks in?  This is not that story.It’s the story of when the bear finally catches up to you.I stand corrected from an earlier post about shame.  In that post, I had written that shame doesn’t serve a function. It does. The recommended tactic for surviving a grizzly bear attack is to put yourself low to the ground, bury your head, and place yourself in a position of shame/vulnerability.  This position is meant to signal to the attacking grizzly that you are not a threat and back off.  Shame is for grizzly attacks.  On a completely unrelated, yet related note, LinkedIn has offered a new feature. You can now place a friendly green circle on your name that signals you’re #opentowork. As a recruiter, I find the green circle helpful. I instantly know who to help!  I posted my thoughts about the green circle here.  Here’s what’s interesting…The post was encouraging job seekers not to be ashamed of letting others know that they’re looking to work.  The message of not being ashamed for who you are is so powerful that 7,000 others saw the post. It’s trending as I write.  So here’s what I don’t get.Should we feel that letting others know we’re looking for a job, publicly, is the equivalent of a grizzly bear attacking us? And, if so, why?  Why do we keep ourselves from doing things that matter to us? How can we be so afraid of ourselves?  Because we’ve been conditioned to fall in line.  Go to school.Get the job.Do the job.Put your head down, Get your raise, Get your promotion, Go home!I don’t know about you, but I’m not playing that game.  My life is worth a bit more.Is yours?

I had a gig today, but it was canceled due to the rain.  We’ve been in the thick of cancel culture for a while.  The weather isn’t right, we cancel.Being too close could spread a virus, we cancel.  An actor’s sordid past is revealed, they’re canceled from the show.My tone might suggest that I’m not a fan of “cancellations.”  Truthfully, If cancellations were to frustrate me, I’d be in the wrong industry. Candidates cancel interviews, gigs get postponed all the time.  Through the years, I’ve learned that cancellations are simply re-directions. “This didn’t work, now it’s time for something completely different.”  The challenge for us is that we never wanted the “something completely different,” we wanted the thing that got canceled. Now we don’t have it. And now we’re upset.  “Now it’s time for something completely different” is the invitation to adopt a posture of possibility. To say, “How fascinating?!” and open yourself up to something new.  Next time you need to cancel, before acknowledging the bummer, try giving way to the possibilities that it might open up to you first.  “And now, time for something completely different.”

I’ve been thinking about work lately.  How will I know whether or not I was productive today? Did it make a difference to the people who care?  What do I get to do tomorrow?To answer these questions, I started asking myself these three questions:What will I ship today?Who will I ship it to?Do they care about what I’m shipping them? Why am I using the word “shipping?“It merely means to transport, convey, move, deliver, distribute, or post.  This blog post is shipped to you via email;A candidate is shipped to a hiring manager via a presentation;A designer ships their idea via a pitch; Musicians ship their music via their concerts/streams;Develops ship their work by producing code; andThe list goes on!The idea is not to ship only your best work. If so, you’d never receive this blog.  The idea is to ship work you’re proud of, and often.  Because the people who care about what you do, want to receive your gift.