Coloring outside the lines of entrepreneurship, tech, and social impact
A more productive and engaged version of you.
While exchanging emails with Adam Walker, a fellow Atlanta entrepreneur and friend, I noticed a message on the footer of his emails.
Adam’s message circa 2017:
Having batched email communication for years, this seemed like a thoughtful solution to the fervent-mailers who expect a reply within hours or minutes. If nothing else, it properly sets expectations and outlines personal rules of engagement.
I recently interviewed Ryan Nece. From the NFL Super Bowl to Investor, he dropped consistent value about being at the top of your game and working with a team.
Our team at New Story has been leading a social impact accelerator program: Founders Lab. The content has been filled with unique value and each session has been incredible. The Q/A with Ryan was no exception.
A few thoughts Ryan shared…
What Football has figured out, but business founders have to learn:
“One of the hardest things to do in life is to show up consistently. The next hardest thing, to be remembered.”
What do these people have in common?
“Good people talk about themselves. Great people have others talk about them.”
– Walter Payton
For this information and more, checkout Founders Lab. Cohorts last a few weeks and kickoff every few months. Space is limited.
Sports understand performance. Whether or not you follow a particular sport, we can learn something from how sports are structured.
These elements are common in games and competition. If we allow it, they carry into personal and business growth as well:
These are easy to overlook because they are not required. Setting them up is a choice.
Their presence can propel us toward success (however we choose to define it). Their absence can leave us feeling stuck.
Getting up early is the single greatest commitment I’ve made to my personal and professional growth in the last decade. Sleeping well is a huge part of why that works.
Over the years, I’ve refined the behaviors that lead to consistently good sleep. I’ve found these modifications ensure I sleep well.
• No coffee (caffeine) after 3pm
• No water 1 hour before bed
• No food before bed (1-2 hours before bed)
• No alcohol before bed (1-2 hours before bed)
• No email or social media before bed (1-2 hours before bed)
• No phone in bed
• No TV in bedroom
• Set iPhone in ‘do not disturb’ before dinner (3-4 hours before bed)
• Pee before you get in bed, even if it’s not “pressing” 😉
• Pursue consistent bedtime (9:30pm for me)
• Pursue consistent wakeup
• Pursue darkness (shades, curtains, no ‘night lights’)
• Hydrate regularly (1L every 2-3 hours throughout the day)
• Sleep naked (Regulating body temperature with clothes and sheets it too complex while sleeping)
• Exercise Regularly (I define exercise as 120bpm for 30+ minutes, 5+ days per week)
• Minimize distractions (getting in bed the same time as partner is SO helpful. Our dog wondering around the house at night drives me nuts.)
• Stretch after Exercise (Tight muscles make you squirmy in bed)
New Story is giving away our donation software to a few nonprofits. It’s FREE. No contracts, no annual commitments, and no string attached. It’s brand new and within a few weeks has helped us raise over $500k. We’re keeping a copy of the code and handing a version to others.
• No, there aren’t subscription costs.
• No, there are no transaction costs.
• No, you don’t owe us development fees.
• Yes, you’ll really own the code.
• Yes, it’s SLICK!
• Yes, it’s actually FREE!
Checkout the flow (and maybe support some local families while you’re at it): https://donate.newstorycharity.org/
We are not charging for software development costs OR the costs of configuring for selected organizations. Organizations will be responsible of covering third-party costs associated with CRM, email marketing providers, hosting, etc.
There is plenty of flexibility here to reduce costs but New Story spends around $100/m for these associated expenses. We’ve found the value to greatly exceed the costs.
If you, or someone you know is interested, I’d love to hear from you. Complete the form and a member of our team will be in touch soon:
Working from home provides tremendous flexibility. Unfortunately, it also begins to blur the lines between areas of life that were once separate. Because you’re working and living from the same space, it can feel like one flows seamlessly into the other. This can lead to depriving yourself of a true rest and separation from ‘always being on’.
I’ve found a few rituals to be specially useful in signaling to your mind that it’s time to switch gears. These work for me, but I’d love to hear other suggestions.
When most interaction involves being on-screen, it’s tempting to only ‘prepare’ for what people see (ie nice shirt and jacket, no pants). Changing into a complete outfit for work (shoes too) and changing out of it when you’re done is powerful. It signals to your body/mind whether it’s go-time or not. Our physical world often drives our mental state. The ceremony behind ‘getting ready for work’ is about way more than how you look.
Literally exit work programs on your computer (command + q on a mac). Because computers get used for work and recreation, you need to remove programs from sight.
Slack, email, calendar, asana, text editor (for software engineers), and more. Exit the program.
If you use Chrome, use the ‘people’ function. Most people don’t notice it along the top menu. This allows you to isolate work and personal sessions and web history. Not only is it a great privacy feature, it’ll be especially useful if you’re a ‘tab-junky’.
Remove email, slack, and other work related apps from your phone completely. You run the risk of being too digitally connected, not disconnected.
While you are at it, you can delete social media apps too. It probably won’t help transition away from work but could address anxiety issues or wasted time.
Schedule an alarm to start and end your day (and probably one for waking up, if that’s not typically your speed). Evergreen alarms are a great tool during normal work situation but especially when working from home. You set it, and forget it.
Load and unload your work equipment. Having kids is a great forcing function for this (but your don’t need to endure that amount of pain, frustration, and financial burden to gain these benefits).
Churches and Congregations are essentially event-based organizations. Many of these groups are likely experiencing availability due to events while also struggling to keep up with the needs in their community. Their day to day work looks drastically different.
I put together ideas for inspiration for churches and congregations. Hopefully it prompts some outside-the-box thinking and provides new ways to stay inspired.
Local business is hit hardest during economic downturn. Combined with social distancing, gyms and personal trainers are especially impacted. As members consider cancelling, it’s important that these groups get creative about driving attention and sales to their business by providing unique value to their members. I’ve put together ideas for inspiration for gyms and personal trainers. It’s not much, but hopefully it prompts some level of outside-the-box thinking.
Local business is hit hardest during economic downturn. Restaurants have a unique opportunity to get creative about driving attention and sales to their business. I’ve put together ideas for inspiration for Local Restaurants. It’s not much, but hopefully it prompts creativity.
Meetings can be an important part of work life. They bring people together. At their best, they facilitate meaningful interactions and fuel progress. The time and energy invests produces outsized returns.
Advocating for better meetings, the Meeting Manifesto serves as a litmus test. A few critical elements shape an effective meeting. By communicating and championing each expectation, meetings will improve.
Simplicity is not the absence of clutter, it’s the presence of only what (or who) is essential.
Was everyone present and ready to begin?
It’s not just about the clock or the people, it’s about preparedness. Attendees should be present and ready to begin. Starting a meeting at the agreed upon time shows respect for others’ time and primes attendees to take the meeting more seriously.
Starting late eliminates time for rapport building and can produces a feeling of hurry. Also, meetings that start late typically end late too.
Was everything resolved before the scheduled end-time?
Much like starting on time, ending a meeting on time (or early) is a sign of respect for everyone involved. Meetings that end late create new problems for each attendee. They risk being late to their next meeting, cutting into planned activities, or jeopardize their other commitments.
Honoring the end-time is also a healthy constraint that ensures the intended purpose is accomplished. Electing a timekeeper is a great way to stay on track and finishing on time.
Was the meeting schedule last minute or ‘day of’?
When meetings are scheduled far enough in advance, it’s more reasonable to assume that team members have considered if the meeting is necessary. They at least had the opportunity to plan their day around the meeting.
Last minute meetings disrupt schedules. By definition, they are reactionary and allow less time for attendees to come prepared.
A surplus of meetings scheduled last minute can cause a feel of “where did my day go?!” among team members. While everyone has the same number of hours in a day, I’d bet on the one with time to prepare.
What does success look like?
We’ve all been in meetings at seem to go nowhere. Undefined discussion or talking in circles. A clear agenda outlines the items to be discussed, the decisions to make, and a clear picture of success when the meeting is complete.
Using the ‘notes’ or ‘description’ section of a Calendar invite is a helpful way to distribute the agenda. Also, kicking off meetings with a brief review of the agenda is a great ritual that signals a meetings start. If the agenda takes more than 30 seconds to review, there is a chance you’re in for a long meeting or success isn’t well articulated.
Requiring an agenda is also a forcing function to ask, “Who is owning and running the meeting?” Having a clear owner empowers team members and increases focus.
Was the conversation moving forward and in the right direction?
Focused meetings reduce circular conversations or detours. Focus helps all attendees stay engaged and makes sure the agenda is accomplished in the time allocated.
Running over the scheduled time, needing to book an additional meeting, or not accomplishing the purpose are all symptoms of a poorly focused meeting.
Could the meeting have just been an email?
Meetings are great for activities that involve collaboration and creativity. They’re an opportunity to connect and interact. When meetings become status updates or one way knowledge transfer, they can feel unnecessary and wasteful.
The most common symptom of an unnecessary meeting is when one person does most of the talking or when attendees drift off into other activities without the distraction being noticed.
Is everyone in attendance necessary for success?
Simplicity is not the absence of clutter, it’s the presence of only what (or who) is essential. Keeping the number of attendees low ensures everyone has time and insight to make a valuable contribution.
Inviting too many people dampens discussion and risks people disconnecting. More often than not, the most generous act is excusing someone, or excusing yourself, when it becomes clear there time is better spent elsewhere.
Was the conferencing tool or other technology working like expected?
Technology should improve effectiveness. Unfortunately, situations arise where it becomes a frustration or a distraction. Investing more time earlier ensures the right tools are used and the barriers are reduced.
Time is wasted when slideshows won’t load, conferencing tools are glitchy, or “we don’t have a dongle for that computer”. When not promptly addressed, frustration begins to surface. Establishing organizational norms or enforcing preferred products can alleviate perpetual tensions.
Meetings are a tool. They are not the point. When meetings are thoughtfully constructed and consistently improved, organizations grow and thrive. These should accelerate our work, not impede it. Meetings conducted well leave attendees and team members feeling efficient, respected, and valued.
They might be inevitable, but they don’t have to be a source of tension. To help teams and leaders increase their awareness about meetings, we’ve built a simple tool to measure and improve meetings.
Meetings are expensive. With a greater emphasis on remote work, it’ll only become more important to save time and money while increasing results.
As times get hard, businesses need to get creative about driving attention and sales to their business. I’ve put together ideas for inspiration for Coffee Companies. It’s not much, but hopefully it prompts creativity.