When we’re in survival, like most of us are in now, it’s easy to only focus on now.  The problem is that when you solely focus on the present, it’s easy to lose track of where you are heading.  Use the present to make each step intentional.Look ahead down the trail.Then look where you are, find your footing, and take the step.You’ll survive the mess we’re in now while still heading towards the goal.  That’s thriving.

I resisted buying an iPhone for the longest time. Or was it that I could not afford to buy an iPhone for the longest time? Quite honestly, it was the latter. iPhones are always expensive. Why? If I am to guess, I’m thinking it would be the sleek finishes, the fancy tech, the fact that they were Apple products. Or was I paying for the premium of holding an Apple product? Probably all of the above. Probably I subconsciously felt that I would be privileged to call an iPhone my own. Buying one was something to aspire to. When it first came out, that might have been the case for some. Now, I think it’s a status symbol to have the newest iPhone on the market. What happened to the iPhone 5c? The cheap product. The one made from plastic. The one that didn’t produce for Apple. The one that even Tim Cook avoids questions about. That one. The 5c was a flook! It never worked because it was anti-Apple - cheap. What makes Apple great is that it’s not easily accessible. That’s what it means to be part of the Apple tribe. If that’s all the case, why make the 5c? Because it made economic sense. Apple could offer a low-cost product into the market that anyone could buy. “You can buy a cheap phone from anyone, so why not buy one from Apple - a brand you know and trust.” Average doesn’t work. When economists talk about being the low-cost provider, they’re talking about making charts look nice. When conventionalists speak about the “traditional path,” they’re talking about the way it was done decades ago. The artisan doer, one that masters the art of doing something - coming alive, does not follow the traditional path. They don’t want to be the low-cost provider. They want to do the things that matter for the people who care. Trust your gut. Defy convention. Come alive.

The word ritual" comes from the Latin, “ritus”: a rite performed in the customary and usual Roman manner. Typically, a ritus can have four parts:The ApproachThe Gesture and PrayerThe RequestThe ReplyMany different types of rituals were developed over time. In addition to those rituals meant for the many gods, families/clans/tribes would have their own as well.  Rites would include an approach to a god using words. You’d then use several gestures and prayers as an adoration followed by your request. Last, you’d wait for the reply. “It’s in the gods’ hands.“Flash forward to the present - now. How many people do you know “hold on” to the past? Perhaps they’re worried about the future? These people often have a hard time focusing on “here and now.” Perhaps these people need a rite?  Perhaps what needs to happen is that we need to pay a bit more homage to ourselves?  I have a ritual every morning, and it’s served me well.  Open eyes and smile.  I greet the day with, “today is going to be a great day.“I walk downstairs, I make coffee (always adding cinnamon and cardamom).I walk upstairs, take out my Evo Planner, and plan today.  I write out my fears, the things I’m thankful for, and how I intend to have fun that day.  Finally, I close the book and move on. “It’s in God’s hands now.” (I’m a Christian/Catholic, so I used capitol “G.")Who am I approaching? Myself. I’m approaching the part of me that yearns to see possibility, fun, and adventure. I’m also approaching fate/God/deity/universe/insert-whatever-you-believe to take things I can’t control and do something with them.  What are my gestures, prayers? Greeting the day. Asserting to myself that “today will be a great day.” I give substance to those words by engaging in a mindful activity, which brings me joy - making coffee.  What’s my request? To get the things that keep me awake at night out of my head, on paper, and to let the things I can’t control be what they’ll be.What’s the reply? My own productivity because I’m less burdened down by the things I can’t control, because I have given myself a direction, and because I’ve started my day out by asserting an intention. The results - I can do something each day that I’ve never done before, make an impact, and come alive.  If you could be more productive, consider creating a ritual.

Seth Godin, in a recent Akimbo workshop, asserted that “being productive is doing something that’s never been done before.” I agree. Being productive doesn’t mean the number of hours you spend checking emails. It’s not the massive amounts of projects you’re working on. It’s not checking the box. For me, it’s doing something new. Failing. Learning. Working alongside the edge. Making an impact. Humans tend to overeat when we’re bored. Eating triggers pleasure sensations, and that’s a feeling I think we’d like to experience instead of boredom. Instead, I suggest you “Embrace Boredom.” Embrace the idea of not having anything to do. Allow your mind to idle. Then start to think of something you’ve never done before. Maybe it’s learning a new skill? Reading a book? Getting outside? Not eating when you feel like you should? Doing the hard work of connecting with others like you. I’m not offering you medical or diet advice. I am offering you, no, giving you the authority to give yourself permission to do something simple and new each day. You can see what I’m working on by visiting my Now page. What are you doing now?

I use Grammarly to write these entries. I use Grammarly because I still make mistakes, and this app supports my learning. Today, before I started typing, I noticed the placeholder for the title read: “Add a title. Stay safe; stay well.” If you’re like me, you have recently learned how many mailing lists you were on. It’s almost as if each company/brand had to release their “COVID-19 Response” - because if they didn’t, they’ve done nothing - right? I ended up doing quite a bit of unsubscribing. Also, I did a bit of reflection - I don’t need a hundred updates from a hospitality group about their COVID-19 response. I’m getting enough news and media about the thing, I don’t need more of it in my inbox. It would be nice to see something that focuses more on me. A simple message to say - we’re not trying to show our corporate responsibility, “We’re just trying to make sure you’re well. If you are, simply click the button for a picture of a cute animal.” Or how about this, from Grammarly. Not even an email, but a simple and thoughtful message in the title placeholder - “Add a title. Stay safe; stay well.” For me, that’s care.

Imagine you’re at home. Physically distanced for the good of public health. Perhaps you’ve lost your job, maybe you’re homeschooling your kids, your parents might be sick… you’ve got a lot of stress in your life at the moment.

But to take your mind off things, you take out your phone. Open your Facebook app. You’re part of a few community groups, and you just happen to see a post from a neighbor that you respect.

Traditionally, when an organization decides to hire a new employee, a recruiter will meet with a hiring manager for an intake meeting. At the intake meeting, the two would discuss the deliverables, a timeline, and end with an executive summary (hopefully).  First, I take issue with this entire process.  Second, my explanation will take a minute to read - please read.Hiring Manager - the name sounds industrial. A throwback to bygone days when companies had personnel departments. Let’s call it what it is, a human being needing another human being to do something amazing for them and produce.Intake Meeting - psychiatric and rehab facilities have “intake” departments. Why not see this meeting as a creative conversation? I see answering two questions - what’s the work that matters? Who’s the person that will care enough to do that work?Deliverables - people are not deliverables. ‘Nuff said.  Hiring is already a stressful process, but it doesn’t have to be. It can be creative, artistic, and human.  If you’re in the business of recruiting - consider looking as yourself as a people artist. One that connects people with opportunities to do something that matters.  If you’re an employer - consider writing job descriptions that show the opportunities an individual has to make an impact with your organization. Ask them to solve interesting problems. Break the mold!  If you’re a job seeker - know that this is your time. With so many people laid off, there will be a mass hiring when things clear up. You have a chance to determine what employers serve you and your values.   Art exists at the moment when a communicator’s idea generates a response within the listener.  Art exists at the moment when a job seeker comes alive from the opportunity a recruiter presented to them.Art exists at the moment when their stress turns to relief once their newly hired team member actively engages in their work and ends their day fulfilled.  To me, recruitment isn’t a process.  It’s not a numbers game.  It’s not sales.  It’s an art, and it’s human.

When I used to lead a cruise line music department, I’d always be asked to look at average team performance as a way to measure, “how we’re doing?”  Based on the fleet’s average performance, we’d make different decisions that would support the operation.There are two rules that I’ve learned in this work:What can be measured gets managed - often times poorly.Average only exists as a number - it doesn’t actually exist in real life.You can argue that the fleet’s average offers you insight into how a majority of the groups might operate. And yes, that’s a healthy way to consider performance. But that’s like grading on the curve, we’re only helping the late majority/laggards. The law of diffusion of innovation would say these teams are going to be slow to adopt change. So why make the investment?  I argue, let’s prop up those sites that are making the most significant change. Something happened that made their work special. Or, why not look at the outliers - the extreme high and low performers? What are they doing that’s working? How can we continue supporting their efforts?When the outliers, the innovators, the neophiliacs, the drivers are invested in your mission, they’ll pull the rest of the curve with them. When you try to push the curve from behind to catch up, you risk starving the innovators of the chance to innovate. Or, worse, you’re killing their creativity.  The average only exists as a number.  And numbers don’t have heartbeats.

Or does it? Working from home can expose your poor work ethic if you let it. It’s easy to roll out of bed, head over to your computer, log-on, and do something that matters for someone else. And you might operate well that way. But how easy is it to slip back in bed? To say, “I’ll just keep my computer on in case someone needs me,” but then slip away to the couch and watch tv? To go to the kitchen and make food and cite that “checking your email” is working? Maybe you can still be productive this way. Perhaps you’ve spent a majority of time becoming better at tackling the challenge of remote work. But for some, this is brand new. We’re not used to seeing our homes as workplaces, and vice versa. The patterns of behavior we develop at our work are not always the same as what we have at home. We can become confused, overloaded, and we do what all humans (including this writer) do, default to the easiest possible thing - the things that take little to no effort. If you want to do work that matters, to do hard work of connecting with people and producing something for them that makes a difference - it will take effort. If you’re not used to working from home, more than ever, it will require effort. Start learning some best practices now. There are tons of people on the Internet telling you how to do it - I’m not going to be one of them. What works for me may not necessarily work for you. Find what works for you. Find what makes you most productive - your flow, and do more of it! Why? Because the feeling of being in flow is addictive. So what? Because when we’re in flow, we create magic. Who cares about magic? Because what the world needs now is magic, we need to believe that everything and anything is possible - because as far as we know now, it is.