21.08 You Can Be More

I have to confess, this week I was really excited to write about my interview with Bill Flynn from last week. He is an extraordinarily accomplished executive who is dedicated to Simplified Servanthood, spending each working moment helping to advance the human condition through having enlightened leaders focus on the few things that truly matter to their customers and teams. I will write about this!

And then during our weekly call with Marshall, we talked about something that resonated so profoundly with me, that I could not wait another week to bring it to you. It answered a riddle that I have been puzzling over for decades, and given the response of the others on the call, others felt the same way. Like many great ideas, this one seems profoundly simple after you hear it, and can be difficult to implement. But once you know, well, now you know. 

Here is the insight: You can be more. 

How do I know? Because society contrives to have you believe there are limitations to what you can accomplish, or even how hard you should try. “You don’t want to stand out” “striving is unbecoming” “great results should come naturally” and even “clawing your way to the top” are all expressions that have us imagine that trying to be more is in some way shameful. For too long I believed that my talents should be seen and appreciated without my calling attention to them. And of course, there are our inner voices that set limitations about what we believe we can accomplish. Have you ever wondered where those beliefs from? Often it is a parent or some adult that for one reason or another told you that you lacked skill or talent. “You are not musical, good at math, a writer, or…” And on the other hand, very often what you think you are good at is from someone telling you that you were good at it. They told you You Can Be More. If you were lucky, it was your parents, perhaps teachers, an early boss/mentor. People in positions of authority have a profound effect on our belief on what we can accomplish. 

Until now. 

We have permission to be our own coach. Understanding that when we hear someone tell us what we can be we reach higher, try talking about yourself in the third person and describe how you can be more. Be clear, specific, and actionable. Here are some examples from our call: You can be more by stepping out from behind the scenes and show your authentic self. You can be more by accepting or seeking transition. You can be more by not being afraid to dream big. 

You can be more by overcoming your fear of being vulnerable. 

We know this lesson from the immortal Wizard of Oz (no relation) in which Glinda tells Dorothy “You’ve always had the power, my dear, you just had to learn it for yourself.” Imagine the power of those four words that you can use to lift yourself to new heights. I am telling you and you should be sure to tell yourself: You Can Be More.

Is working from anywhere reality or fantasy? by John Baldoni with Lou Carter and David Burkus

The pandemic has accelerated the future of work. Trends toward employees working from home, or frankly from anywhere, are here to stay.

How can CEOs resolve this discrepancy between their wishes and the wishes of their employees? The answer is creating a sense of mutuality. “Co-creation is critical for CEOs to meet expectations,” says Carter. “CEOs must develop their perfect move back into the office together with them, and not ‘to’ them.

Going back to work in an office requires thinking ahead. “If you’re wanting to stay work from home, make a plan for when or under what conditions you’d need to be in the office and work to establish those boundaries right away,” advises Burkus. Read the whole article here 

Follow up story: Litterati

The global groundswell of support for Litterati comes from a confluence of three universal trends. The first is that cities everywhere have set their sights on zero waste targets. Waste is a massive global issue, and cities have said, ‘enough’. The second is that corporations are being held accountable for the materials they produce, and as a result, they’re setting very ambitious corporate responsibility goals. Finally – and perhaps most influential – individual consumers are demanding change, and they’re driven by scientific facts and evidence-based data.

In the Netherlands, for example, the government has now added cans to their deposit system as a direct result of the Litterati community’s involvement. And a group of fifth-graders in the United States used the app to discover that of the 1,247 pieces of litter they picked up on their playground one day, most were straw wrappers from their own cafeteria. After asking their principal why straws were needed at all, the school stopped buying them. Read the whole article here 

Robert Glazer supports BUILD. You can too

BUILD is an amazing non-profit that connects self-driven and underserved high school students with the inspiration, skills, and mentorship necessary for success. I currently volunteer on the board of BUILD Boston and support the organization with a portion of the profits from all Elevate sales.

On March 25th their annual event, Buildfest, is going global. In this 45-minute event, you will hear stories of resilience and success through the pandemic and remote learning. Discover how these high school students pivoted by creating digital solutions for their communities in the pandemic and used their entrepreneurial mindset to invent for a world struggling with isolation. This is a great opportunity to be inspired by the next generation. Buildfest is on March 25 at 8:30 pm EST; Register for free today.

And, as always, thank you, Marshall, for making all of this possible

With love and gratitude

Scott