Project Exponential

Category: Observations

  • Are you in the right theater?

    This may sound hokey, but stay with me.

    If you were an outside observer watching the events of your life on a movie screen, would you enjoy what was playing?

    When we’re able to remove ourselves and consider our decisions objectively, we gain valuable information. Our emotions no longer dictate action. By stepping back, we can better identify the path we’re traveling on.

    Are you moving closer towards your goals and the person you hope to be? Are you creating something you’re proud of?

    Envision your life on film.

    People are watching.

  • 3 tips to make your meeting count

    Tip #1: If you’re looking to connect meaningfully, place the other before you.

    Most successful people are busy people. They’ve carved time out of their day to meet with you. Time is a resource neither party can redeem after you’ve parted ways. Be considerate.

    After every meeting, thank each and every person for their contribution and time. A follow up thank you builds rapport and communicates respect, paving the way towards a meaningful connection. Your thank you also provides an opportunity to make sure your intent and needs have been clearly communicated.

    Tip #2: People cannot help you if they don’t know how.

    “I’m looking for a job” will quickly place you into a forgotten drawer of miscellaneous. However, confidently stating, “I’m looking to support locally owned restaurants with sustainable missions” positions you in a specific category, making your ask an easy recall. Guess who will be first in mind when any kind of opportunity in the health, wellness, hospitality, sustainable industries pops up? Be specific and know what you want. People generally want to see you succeed and will help if they know how.

    Tip #3: Jazzy Jane from Toledo is sitting by the cheese dip.

    Effective networking and memorable impressions go hand in hand. It’s like learning names. Create a colorful story when you first meet someone, and you’ll have an easier time asking them to pass the salad bowl.

    What characteristics separate you from the crowd? Practice telling your unique narrative to a friend. If you aren’t comfortable making your remarkable presence known, chances are high that you won’t during your meeting, either.

  • Yes, you can choose

    The people around you have a direct impact on your vision, your drive, your goals, your performance, and the way you dream. Their passion can inspire you to reach for more, or their apathy can dissuade you from continuing progress.

    If you recognize the importance of carefully choosing friends, consider the responsibility when identifying leaders, company mastheads, presidents.

  • 14 tips to make your next conference worthwhile

    1. Ask if you can help.
    2. Better yet, email in advance and offer your services.
    3. Do your homework. Learn about the speaker, the attendees, the presentation.
    4. Don’t sit next to someone you know.
    5. Ask a question — everyone will know who you are.
    6. Ask only one question. Don’t be THAT guy.
    7. They are business cards, not playing cards. Distribute sparingly.
    8. Take advantage of the breaks. Chat with fellow attendees. Ask why they’re there.
    9. Organize a dinner and pass out invites during lunch.
    10. Hang out by the food table. Eat last.
    11. Don’t hound the speaker. Send an email three days later with something you learned.
    12. Stay an extra night after the conference ends. Set up coffee dates. Plan a sightseeing tour.
    13. Embrace the unexpected. Don’t over-schedule. Impulse and serendipity are good things.
    14. Graciousness and appreciation cannot be overstated.

  • Jumping is scary. Do it anyway.

    As a young woman, I hitchhiked alone and traveled across many countries. I went head-to-head with lawyers and counseled delinquents. I earned a masters from an ivy-league, received a state license, and wrangled my way into an entirely new industry. I directed and designed and produced successful events, facilitating valuable connections between people who otherwise might not have met. But it wasn’t enough.

    I needed more experience. I wanted more connections. I didn’t have enough knowledge. I wasn’t ready. And if I’m entirely honest, I didn’t think I was enough. (Turns out, I was wrong. I just needed to jump.)

    I know I’m not the only one. Everyday I talk to entrepreneurs, corporate executives, and artists who struggle to take the first leap into the unknown.

    …It’s not the right time…I don’t have the resources…I can’t find the time…I’m worried about money…

    We do this to ourselves. We sabotage our dreams. We’re afraid. Deep down, we know that if we put our mind to it, we have the capabilities to break our biggest goals into manageable, digestible chunks. But we over-chew. We convince ourselves the path we’ve been traveling on, the one we’ve been walking down for some time, is the safest and best option. We lower the height of our own sky and the limits to which we’re capable of flying. We lull ourselves into forgetting the sweet deliciousness of new experiences.

    Fortunately, it’s never too late. It is just a matter of making that decision. You must choose. Nothing will happen until you decide to venture away from the safe waters into territory where there is no rulebook, no play-by-play. While you can find leaders and teachers and people whose experiences might mimic your own (and it is imperative that you do), there is no “on the job training.” It’s up to you to figure it out.

    Sometimes the hardest thing is recognizing what you want. The next hardest is to begin. By recognizing there’s no prescribed way to land that dream job, dream family, dream life, we open ourselves to an entirely new world. A world that is uniquely ours to create.

    Dare yourself. Set goals and work backwards. Plan checkpoints along the way and reward yourself when you reach them. Gather information, collect the necessary experiences, and confidently step in the direction of your dreams.

    Don’t hold yourself back. If not for yourself, do it for the people around you. Show them what it looks like to lead a life that is uniquely yours, a life filled with magic and dreams and adventure. Jump.

  • The $12,392,786.00 blog post

    I have had the good fortune of meeting, counseling, and sitting in business seminars with intelligent, driven, successful individuals — and they just want to become better. Industries range from music to publishing, finance to social good, art to real estate. Age, life experience, and stage of life vary; students, fathers, midlife, C-level, nearing retirement, starting up.

    Despite a plethora of variables, I’ve noticed a few themes that come up again and again. In fact, they repeat themselves so frequently I wish I could bottle them for distribution, sending them around the world to inspire people to do more and dream big.

    I’m sharing them here in hopes they resonate with you.

    Why $12,392,786.00? Because I believe if you act, the following nuggets will add value to your work and life. And if you’re really diligent, you’ll see benefits worth even more.

    ———

    We get in our own way. Believe it, accept it, move forward.

    Be willing to listen — to the point someone could convince you to throw your idea out the window or drastically change it.

    Don’t wait. Do it now.

    No one is going to give you permission.

    You have a choice. Don’t be seduced into thinking otherwise.

    Relationships are important. The “unexpected ones” often prove to be the most valuable.

    Milk the in-between spaces. In-between jobs, appointments, calls, relationships, events, ideas. They hold more potential than you think.

    There are an infinite choices. Pick one. If it fails, there will be another.

    No decision is irreversible.

    Question. Ask lots of them.

    Who (or what) can you connect? Everyone can bridge two people, two ideas, two companies. And it will multiply.

    Stop trying to sell to people you don’t know. Start with the people you do.

    Be vulnerable. Connect, reach out. People cherish authenticity.

    What are you really saying? Get honest with yourself and with your audience. Cut the crap and get real.

    Don’t assume. You never know whose talents can help you and how.

    Set dates otherwise you’ll never get it done.

    Pick up that pen, make that call, stop waiting to begin.

    There is no perfect.