I think I need total silence to work and ship my ideas. I think I need to be inspired to write.I think I need to be an authority.I know that all that doesn’t matter.I know that I need to sit my butt down and write.I know that my commitment to you matters more than my ego.I know that the work I meant to do is work that challenges us to think and act as our best selves.I think I should get back to work.

Start with the big idea.Add in your supporting ideas. Then winnow away everything that doesn’t matter.Keep the scraps.

Creators typically make things they think their audiences will love. Creators would do better if focused on answering the question Who is this work for? Is the work for the audience? Is it for the students? Is it for customer? Is it for my kid? Is it for me?

I would rather work myself into a position where I could afford to be patient; than be patient hoping that some will happen. Optimum positioning always beats out a hope and a prayer.

Today is the last day of the show I worked on. I’ll miss the cast and my band mates - we had fun. Whenever you end an endeavor, take a moment to reflect. What odds were against us and how did we overcome them? Where did we go right? What would we do differently next time? How are we better people for the experience? I don’t think we take enough time to reflect. If you have a moment, click here to read 2021’s post on theatre. I must have been closing a show up around the same time a few years ago.

One animation storyboard teaching children about emotions “happy” and “sad” leaves everyone in the room speechless. The scriptwriter reads: ‘A little boy and girl walk hand in hand in a park, each holding a balloon, looking happy. Accidentally, the boy lets go of his balloon. The little girl sees him crying and then releases her balloon into the air and smiles. The boy stops crying, and together, they watch their balloons ride high into the endless blue sky. That passage from Natasha Lance Rogoff’s Muppets in Moscow. The Soviet Union fell, and Russia had the challenge of creating a post-USSR culture. What language do we use to express happiness? Sadness? How do we greet one another? One of the producers described the challenge as “language limbo.” Who knew that a simple story about a balloon could help bridge the gap?To an American audience of that time, the story might seem silly. Why doesn’t the girl share her balloon with the boy? But, to a Russian audience, the story is powerful. What makes the story so effective is simple - the boy and girl have a shared experience powered by empathy.How might play the role of the girl releasing her balloon more often? How might we show others that we see them and their beautiful story?

Always keep yourself in the ready-for-anything posture because if things can go wrong, they will. The posture of readiness always beats the posture of rigidity.

Dear Milwaukee elected official,In 2020, I wrote a post about how Milwaukee could re-think parking tickets — read more here. Instead of my original idea, what if a parking ticket now read, “Congratulations, you just took one more pothole off the street?” If you adopt my idea you get 3 benefits right off the bat:Increase likelihood of parking tickets getting paid (we’re getting sick of the potholes); andLess potholes; and You, elected official, secure your re-election — because you got rid of the potholes.I hope this very unsolicited letter and its sweeping generalizations finds you well.David … Concerned citizen.… if only it was that easy to make change happen.

You are a new leader on a team. You are responsible for making change happen, and your team will resist the change. How do you proceed? Cultivate an ally.How do you cultivate an ally?Propaganda. Create a message and promulgate that message to your team. You may alienate some people that are likely not good long-term fits — you accept that risk. You hope that your message resonates with a potential change champion. Listening Campaign. Ask your team questions like What’s not working? What’s working? What’s getting in your way? What would you change? Though listening campaigns are effective, you could encounter listening traps. Mitigate the risk of traps with Option 3.Listening + Remaining Silent. Ask the question from step 2 and refuse to answer questions about your vision posed to you by the team. Every time I use this option, I cultivate a champion and effective change occurs. Why?Because you and I want to work with and for people who listen. That means we look for people who ask insightful questions and reflect back what they hear us say. But that’s not all. A great listener humbles themselves before the person they are talking to. They say I wish I could share, but I don’t know enough yet to have a strong opinion. I’m going to continue learning from you when their team asks for their vision of the future. Imagine how powerful an experience it would be to work for that kind of person. How quickly would you want to help that person? How quickly would you share with others, finally, someone who cares about us? Options 1 and 2 can work, I have seen them work with mixed outcomes. But, I am always effective at creating allies and results when I use option 3. People change when they believe the change benefits them.There’s always a benefit engaging with and giving efficacy to the stories and views of others. An effective way to give that efficacy is to humble yourself and learn from those in your charge.

When you feel the odds are against you.Re-affirm your beliefs about yourself and the change only you can make.Understand your situation. Find the best footing possible.Master the situation. Advance.Re-assess.