Awareness of self springs from awareness of others

I am awesome. I know this. You know this (or you should). This is great. However, I am not an island.

I have said one million two hundred and twenty-seven times that no one can do everything (well) alone. We need specialists to make things great.

Being a ‘linchpin’ – a term I am tired of hearing – as Godin suggests in his book of the same name, is not being able to do everything; it is being able to understand how many things are done. I am broad, not deep, in many subjects. I have an intellectual curiosity for knowing how other people view their work and their worlds because I am interested in understanding how to communicate with those people. I don’t need to possess the technical skills to do a specialists job.

My favorite thing about my job and my volunteer work is that I tend to become the central clearinghouse for workflow and information passing between others. I get to see everything that is happening and make sure that everyone is on the same page. It is not creative direction; but rather project management. What this teaches me on a daily basis is that I am good at what I do and others are good at what they do. A mutual respect society is created.

I am not critical of others; but instead I find out through interaction what others are capable and incapable of. This leads me to recognize what I am capable of at the same time. It is self-realization. The statement that “you don’t know what you don’t know” rings both true and false in these instances. It is true from the standpoint of understanding that there are things you simply aren’t even aware of until someone else shows you that it exists; or is possible. It is false based on the availability of that information if you are paying attention.

So open your eyes and recognize the talents, skills, and value of those around you and, in turn, you will recognize your own contributions and shortcomings.

Or not,

Bully

Don’t Panic. It will probably be bad, but you’re a champ.

Lately, I have noticed that I know a lot of people whose natural reaction to a wrench is to panic. As a self-employed person and as a project manager, you would think I would be very prone to this same reactionary pitfall; but you wouldn’t want to work with me if I engaged in Chicken Little behaviors.

The key to sleeping at night is not to freak out at the – sometimes crazy – things that pop up in your well laid plans. Strategies for mitigation are myriad. Try these:

1) plan well in advance and write it down – you can’t plan for every contingency (and you shouldn’t; just make one path), but a plan is something solid that you can point to and identify where the cog was thrown. The best way to calm down is to identify the monster; then plan to kill it.

2) have resources/options in your rolodex – often the problem that arises to freak you out is that you have too much work and too few hands to complete it. Make sure that you have a few pocket aces that you can turn to when needed.

3) always have an escape hatch – if the worry is your clients pulling work, keep your pipeline stocked with people who know what you do well and have expressed that they could always use your skills. Keep in touch with these people and express that you are always willing; and if the opening arises, you’ll be there at the ready.

4) have a diversion – sometimes, what you run into is a delay. This is the worst for a project or timeline oriented person. We want to be on course and on schedule and sometimes we pack these too closely. If you simply can’t get a task done until something else happens, fall back on the list of things you either gave low priority or no priority to. Let everyone know that the project is off schedule and get all the “dead” resources on other tasks, then get yourself otherwise occupied.

5) breathe – you’ve made it through bad situations before. I don’t want to advocate ignoring problems, but I do advocate giving them only the appropriate level of life/death importance. You will wake up tomorrow. If you have to, remind yourself that there are people in Scottsdale, AZ without WiFi access. Your problems aren’t that bad.

6) step away and remember conversations – there are always important comments made by your superiors and peers that clue you in to the big picture importance of things and also let you know where you and your project stand in the grand scheme. Think back to whether you are on firm ground. How was your last review? Has your work been praised up until now? Is there a parachute around should you – gasp – fail on one thing?

7) don’t think about money – think about need. Are your bills paid? Do you have a roof over your head for the month? Is there food (even ramen) in the cupboard? Good, now go back to breathing and get a plan together for next month.

These are all very simple things that are not always easy but, applied in the appropriate situations, you should be confident. It looks and feels bad when you hear the bad news; but you’re a champ and will survive.

Calm Down Crazypants

-Bully

Oversharing

I bet I tricked you into thinking this was about ‘TMI’. You know why I bet that? Because I think I’m really smart. Don’t we all?

That is the point of this post: do you know when to share your knowledge and when you are just adding to the noise?

I have attended multiple events with both structured and open-format opportunities for people to share their knowledge and interests with others; events like Ignite, TED, Pecha Kucha Night, xCamps, and their many peers. There is value to this type of sharing and there is a slippery slope in it as well. When anyone is given the chance to share – even under application and vetting – we are assuming expertise.

Audiences, by their nature, check their filters for authority at the door of an auditorium. I am not saying that audiences are sheep; but what happens in these types of situations is a kind of exchange of credibility. The unfortunate result is that, when the presentation is full of holes or inaccuracies, instead of simply discounting the speaker, the subject matter loses status or becomes vilified as well. Often the wrong thinking in the presentation creates an environment for personal attacks in place of discussion about the content as well; which is also damaging to the intended takeaway or inspiration.

Presentations are best left to people who are not simply passionate about, or interested in, a subject; but who also have some academic or research background to support their authoritative position.

This proliferation of ‘experts’ is almost certainly a result of the culture of blogging and micro-blogging. When people such as myself are allowed a platform to speak from a personal position on any subject, there is the tendency to take an authoritative stance after a time because others are cosigning this position with their continued readership. People are listening, so I must be saying something of value.

On top of this problem is that of parroting or consolidation. If your presentation on a subject is informed by the statements or research of others, are you clearly stating their results or commentary? Do your authoritative sources actually support one another? Could you be extrapolating or embellishing incomplete fact? Are you helping the cause or driving it in skewed directions?

I do not make presentations on any subject, but instead offer my opinions and advice when I have the opportunity. I disclaim many of my statements to ensure that others don’t think I believe I am the final word on any subject. I know a lot; but unless you want to hear me prattle on about how to ruin romantic relationships with cold calculation, I’ve got no speeches to make.

Taking the step back to recognize that our value isn’t in whether or not other people will listen to us, but rather in whether or not we have anything to say that hasn’t been heard before, is an important motivator for digging deeper into our interests.

So, if you are an authority on a subject matter, please share with others. If you are an enthusiast, be sure to keep listening to the experts and learning more.

But hey, “I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV.” So I can’t write you a prescription.

-Bully