Check out this post from the folks at 800CEOREAD for Six Pixels of Separation. First, I want to give cudos to the author and/or publisher for a GREAT book title. Titles natter. Second, I would like to encourage all you sage hipsters out there to check this out (and perhaps buy it for your not-yet-hipster friends). This notion of the connectedness of things and the new ways we can and need to navigate through the virtual human web (VHW - you heard it here first) is so critical for our success and hapiness. Well, unless you are independentally wealthy enough that you can buy your own remote island and live off shellfish and coconuts.
Here is the link for the book on Amazon - there is a nice short video clip that explains the focus of the book.
Two people who experience the same challenges can, and often do, react very differently. Some of us get overwhelmed relatively quickly, some of us rarely feel overwhelm.
Overwhelm is a choice. How we respond to the needs of our jobs, families, networks, friends, is unique and discretionary. What is your tendency? With all the new technologies out there, it is easy to let interest turn into feelings of "ought to" and them feelings of "not doing enough." Resist the urge to define learning in terms of enough and not enough.
To keep from feeling overwhelmed, try the following:
Put things into perspective - what do you really NEED to get done and what can wait?
Enlist support and help. Make requests that help you make your schedule more manageable.
Be willing to let go of some things, even some things you enjoy or want to do.
Focus on doing fewer things well and don't set expectations for doing too much. Life and time is precious.
Do a little bit each day and you will make significant progress.
Repeat this mantra: "Overwhelm is a choice and I choose to not let these circumstances put me in a way and place where I cannot do my best work."
I enjoyed talking with about 60 quality professionals tonight in Jacksonville. The topic was, "how to stay relevant," and I emphazied the importance of having impact through communication and relationship building. Thanks to everyone who attended, you were a great group and I enjoyed myself.
We get work done through others. Organizational work is inherently social.
We can have influence and impact when we are regarded as helpful and trusted.
To be trusted and helpful, we need to be open and nimble.
For the coming week, let's ask ourselves - what message are we communicating and are people hearing us as we intend? How will we know?
Here is a review of Hip and Sage in the Irish Times. Thanks Frank Dillon!
Frank shares several highlights from Hip and Sage, but starts with the beginning and perhaps the most important point. Being hip is a way of thinking, a way of being. It is:
One part nimbleness - be flexible, resist judging others, be easy to work with
One part curiosity - crave learning, ask great questions, be fascinated by others
One part courage - jump into it, be one with ignorance, be coachable
One part results orientation - take action every day, try and try again, try another way, try another approach, ask for coaching and take some of it
Stir, shake, add a twist. Don't short any one ingredient. What an elixir.... Have you had this cocktail recently? Enjoy!
I had an SEO expert tell me that 25% of all searches in Google (and like sites) are for video. Wow. What this means is that if you are trying to build your brand or business using online technologies, you better have online videos available for people to find. And if you blog, adding video clips will be a big bonus in terms of traffic.
Because if this, I recently went to a conference breakout session about how to create and upload easy and effective video clips. I need:
Badda Bing - that's all I need to get started. What about you? If you are a manager, consider using periodic video to communicate measures, plans, changes, thoughts about excellence, or to celebrate successes.
A hip and sage friend of mine sent me this email. I loved it and asked her if I could share it with you. This is a great example of a hip and sage mindset and a good illustration of the differences we might encounter when working with Ys and Xs. I love how she goes with the flow and sees the strengths they bring to the project.
A day later....
Hipness is a state of mind - I have written and said this many times. I love it when I come across someone who boldly personifies the spirit of hipness:
Last week, I taught a two-day class. One of the class participants was a sage professional who is also very hip. She asked lots of questions, engaged in the conversation, and then sent me an email two days after the class telling me (and showing me with URL links) what she had put into practice. That's how the spirit of hipness becomes the PRACTICE of hipness.
Check out this post from the ASTD blog called, Let's stop making excuses like, "our older workers wil not embrace learning new technologies." I agree that some are too quick to give up on people and make judgments about what's possible. Most of the professionals I know are learners - it might be deep down inside, but it's there.
This posts challenge us all to make sure that WE are not the real barrier. Because having a mature workforce is not likely the most pressing challenge to creating a hip and sage workplace.
Well, we do grow physically older, but great leaders don't act old. Check out this cool post by Dan over at Great Leadership called, Leaders Don't Get Old. Here is a snippet:
When an employee comes to you with a proposal that they are excited about, don't look for all the flaws in the idea or come up with ways to make it harder to implement the idea. You should tell yourself your job as a leader is to figure out ways to make it easier to implement that idea. Try it - it's a lot harder than it sounds - and you will be amazed with the effect it has on your employees and your organization.
And thanks to Dan for including a wee bit in the post from Hip and Sage. The Tony B Story (my favorite, I think). Incidentally, at the bottom of his post, Dan lists key terms from the post. It is an interesting collection!
Labels: agism, boomers, K.D. Lang, Lisa Haneberg, Management Craft, Michael Haberman, my generation, neil young, the who, Tony Bennet