“There is no passion to be found playing small in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”
-Nelson Mandela
It’s Thursday and a lot has happened this week.
The Playground Project has been quite the (ad)venture and this week it included a 2 week stop-over with the incredible team at @ventureLAB_ (www.venturelab.ca) in Markham, ON. Specializing in helping entrepreneurs transform their idea into living reality, ventureLAB combines the powerhouse of mentoring, connecting, and partnering to make it happen. It is a member of the Ontario Network of Excellence and now it is an official member of Big Picture Fine Focus’ crew of organizations Unleashing Greatness!
This week, I also had the privilege of attending #Incentiveworks’ annual conference/tradeshow in Toronto.
Here are some of my most recent lessons to share from the Playground Project:
1. Regular field trips (meaning time out of the office with or without your team) are essential in keeping the creative juices flowing, fostering connection between people, and the opportunity to be inspired by things we may or may not see everyday. In essence, field trips like travel disrupt our everyday patterns of being and open ourselves up to new perspectives and insights.
2. Unleashing Greatness is a lifestyle. It’s a commitment to being the BEST you can be with what you have, what you know, and what you can do. Jim Collins, author of Good to Great says it best. “A culture of discipline is not a principle of business; it is a principle of greatness.”
3. Inspiration comes when you least expect it. Some call it luck. I call it life.
4. Change does happen over night. You just don’t know which night it will be.
5. Know Your Brand. If you have to use notes to articulate what you stand for, you don’t know your brand. Learn from the likes of @ScottHarrison and @charitywater, sharing a personal story candid-convo style is much more effective, engaging, entertaining, and appealing than using/reading notes. The only reason why you would need notes to articulate your brand is because you a) don’t know it well enough and/or b) don’t believe in it. Know your brand and be able to communicate it if you want others to know it too.
6. Complexity is just simplicity over discussed, analyzed, criticized. I often times believe that human beings like to complicate things (insert life, circumstances, relationships, etc.) for the sheer fact that it prevents them from taking action (because now the issue is too complicated, too difficult, too challenging). Instead it becomes a labour of on-going discussion, policy making, meetings about meetings, and planning to plan, which all leads to a lot of talk, no action, and even less impact. If you want impact, get to the heart of the matter and root of the issue and start with one small and significant action you/your team is willing to take. Life, circumstances, and relationships are simple. You and I complicate them.
Lastly, I came across this sign while driving, “Safe Driving is Everyone’s Responsibility. Do Your Part.” It is in a similar sentiment that I invite and challenge you to consider that “Unleashing Greatness/Solving Problems/Being Instruments of Peace, Prosperity, and Positive Power is Everyone’s Responsibility. Do Your Part.”
- Ladies (and Gents) Who ________: What’s Your Legacy? - May 15, 2018
- A Letter For Every Mother - April 17, 2018
- Dear Beautiful Soul… - March 28, 2018