The Addiction Economy

We are a Nation of Addicts

The Industrial Revolution. The Information Age. The Digital Age. The Experience Economy. They all had their day. But today, it's the Addiction Economy that reigns.

Human beings are hooked. To drugs. To social. To tech. To all sorts of things and behaviors that have us both anxious and strung out. Creating and feeding our addictive personalities.

Which of these are you addicted to?

Tech Platforms

Someone said that tech platforms aren’t like the Medici in Florence, or those other rich patrons of the arts. They aren't aiming to find the next Michelangelo or Mozart.

They want to create a world of junkies—because they will be the dealers.

Addiction is the goal.?

They don’t say it openly, but they don’t need to. Just look at what they do.?

Everything is designed to lock users into an addictive cycle.

To steal their eyeballs.

Their thoughts.

And their money.

It's the most pervasive and insidious drug ever introduced to humankind.

Data

We’re Drowning in Information, While Starving for Wisdom.?- E.O. Wilson

Too much of a good thing. That’s what today’s abundance of data has become. Too much. In fact, the more we come to know, it seems the less we actually do know. It’s like a book full of random words that fails to tell a story. Then again, it may also be your opportunity:

The world henceforth will be run by synthesizers, people able to put together the right information at the right time, think critically about it, and make important choices wisely.? -- E.O. Wilson.

Bottomline: data without analysis and insights is both nice and worthless.

Inspiration Junkies

Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work. – Chuck Close, artist

If you read newsletters like this and never do anything about what you read, you may be an inspiration junkie. Someone who goes from quote to quote, book to book, guru to guru searching for an emotional sugar rush without really changing things.

You have the right to use these pieces any way you want, but I'm not here to feed anyone’s addiction.

In fact, consider this an intervention.

I’ll do my best to give you substance and you do your best to put it into action. Because well done is better than well said.

Narcissism is a Helluva Drug

Narcissism certainly is a drug. And with the rewards it reaps, why would you try to shake such an addiction? The majority of CEO’s show narcissistic tendencies. Because being outgoing, dominant and aggressive is how many of us envision leadership. It’s bull. Stop rewarding unchecked walking egos. The best servant leaders are humble and low-key. Focused. On their work. And on their people. Not themselves.

Verbal Addictions

Talking About Our Problems is Our Greatest Addiction

Talk about your joys. Talk about the weather. Sports. Fashion. You don’t want to gain the reputation as a dark cloud on the horizon. Someone others politely avoid when they see you coming.

Whatever you do, break the habit. And stop troubling people with your troubles, unless you’re seriously looking for advice to overcome them.

Excuses Make Today Easier, but Tomorrow Much Harder

People put things off to take the pressure off. And excuses are often the most immediate way to do that. The problem is that excuses only mask problems. Sometimes allowing them to fester undercover. And excuses only beget more excuses. Eroding accountability, honest conversations and the promise?of tomorrow.

Enslaved by Our Appetites

It is Hard to Free Fools from the Chains They Revere. – Voltaire

Cars. Clothes. Power. Money. Popularity. It’s easy to become a slave to your appetites. It’s better if you stay focused on the process and your product. And maximize minimalism.

As Long as You Think More is Better, You’ll Never be Satisfied

More, more, more... We are addicted to things. Stuff.

Of course, It’s all right to be ambitious. It’s good to want financial security. But know when enough is enough. Know when your values are being challenged by valuables. Things. Things that put selfishness over human connections. Own up to this?and explore things like minimalism to find the right balance for you.

Our Passions are Good Servants, But Bad Masters

Passion fuels us to act, but can cloud our vision. Those in charge need to harness that passion while staying levelheaded.

Holding on to Your Anger is Like Drinking Poison and Expecting the Other Person to Die

Breathe and let go. Workout and let go. Meditate and let go. Wherever you go, let go. Your anger isn’t getting you even, it’s throwing you more and more off-balance, off-kilter and off your game. Anger is self-abuse. And it can be an addiction. Try communication and forgiveness before you wound yourself long-term.

Starve Your Distractions, Feed Your Focus

Social media. Excessive notifications. Frequent interruptions. Multitasking.

If you’re ever going to bring your passion projects to life, you better put your addictive distractions on a diet and nourish your priorities with increased time, concentration and commitment.

Addicted to What Other People Think

Make Sure You’re Happy in Real Life, Not Just on Instagram

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. But what if that picture is a false one? What words would you use then? Fake? Phony? Deceiving?

Or, are you hiding something? Fear? Sadness? The truth is, whatever is driving you to put on a false front will eventually come and catch you from behind. ????Drag you down.

The key is to be authentic. Always try to be yourself. And paint a true picture of who you really are. Because no matter how you may feel, you’re more than enough.

Addicted to "Honesty"

Just Because Someone ‘Says What’s on His Mind’, Doesn’t Make it a Good Thing. Drunks Say What’s on Their Mind, too.

Tell the truth. Be honest. Be authentic. Unless you’re an authentic jerk.

Too many people have used the concept of radical candor as an excuse to validate their top-down management styles and chainsaw demeanors.

Trust us, stay raw and let it rip ain’t exactly a great long-term strategy.

For long-term success, no matter how passionate you may be, you have to stay calm. Level-headed. Keeping your outside voice in check. Filtering yourself.

For once something slips through your lips, you can’t really take it back. Leaving a lingering cloud of vitrol and venom in the air that will poison team morale and results.

All that said, say what’s on your mind, but mind how you say it.

Addiction to Abusive Behavior

It is No Measure of Health to be Well Adjusted to a Profoundly Sick Company

Working night and day and each and every weekend may be seen as a superpower to some, but it’s kryptonite if you want to live a physically, emotionally and spiritually healthy life.

And servant leadership does not mean becoming a slave to your job.

I distinctly recall being on a flight where a man was seemingly bragging to his colleagues that he was missing his son’s 8th birthday party. How twisted is that?

A willing dupe who becomes the frog in the boiling pot of water. As Jules Feiffer said, I Told the Doctor I was Overtired, Anxiety-Ridden, Compulsively Active, Constantly Depressed, with Recurring Fits of Paranoia. Turns Out I’m Normal.?

?Don’t let the abnormal become your normal.

Don’t Confuse Obedience for Loyalty??????

Loyalty. Perhaps the most abused word in leadership. Too many so-called leaders believe that since they’re “good people”, all their actions must also be good. Even if that means that the ends justify the means.

This need to bridge the gap between their self-image and their real-life impact opens doors for opportunistic “Yes Men” and henchman to constantly reassure and flatter them. About all you can do is keep your head down and give such bosses ideas that will allow them to do the right thing and actually become the heroes they crave to be.

Addiction to What You Don't Have

FOMO vs. JOMO

FOMO is the Fear of Missing Out. Missing out on that call from her. That text from him. Breaking news. Or whatever else you think may be more interesting than whom you’re with or what you’re doing at the time.?

In fact, FOMO is the very thing that takes you out of the moment. Keeps you from being present. And at times makes you annoying as all get out. Quite honestly, it’s gotten a bit out of hand.

JOMO, on the other hand, is the Joy of Missing Out- the antidote to FOMO. JOMO doesn’t mind unplugging.? Enjoying a tech detox. Taking a pit stop from the rat race. Mainly, JOMO is about focus.? Making the ones you’re with feel that you’d rather be nowhere else with no one else.

One way to defeat FOMO is to stay off your screens. As Rachel Wolchin says, People Spend Too Much Time Staring Into Screens and Not Enough Time

Drinking Wine, Tongue Kissing, and Dancing Under the Moon.

What Screws Us Up Most in Life is the Picture in Our Head of How It Is Supposed to Be

Many gurus speak of the power of visualization, picturing in your mind ahead of time how things will successfully play out. Yet fixing your mind’s eye on one outcome out can be pretty jarring when things don’t exactly work out that way. Especially when you’re trying to meet someone else’s expectations. Never mind what your family, holy man or teachers tell you what you should do. It’s your life. Your story. Your narrative. You’ve got to figure out what’s important to you. And release what’s lying deep, deep inside of you at your very core.

Jargonmonoxide

Jargon. Slang. Tech speak. They are all pollution. Still, we seem addicted. The worst are 3-letter acronyms. The only thing worse are 4-letter acronyms. You need to kill those ASAP!

Addiction to the Status Quo

You Never Change Things by Fighting the Existing Reality. To Change Something, Build a New Model that Makes the Existing Model Obsolete. – Buckminster Fuller, Architect, author, inventor & futurist

?The iPhone made regular phones obsolete. GPS made maps obsolete. Uber made cab companies obsolete. Servant leadership is making command-and-control leadership obsolete (we hope). Whether it’s technology or philosophy, true change rarely comes through incremental change. You have to offer something better. More importantly, you have to offer something different. Not just to your clients, but to your team. Surprisingly, when it comes to leadership and culture, the Creative Industry is amazingly uncreative. What a great opportunity for you.

The Difficulty Lies Not So Much in Developing New Ideas as in Escaping from Old Ones. – John Maynard Keynes, Legendary Economist????

Have you ever waited anxiously for your leadership team to introduce the "new way" forward, only to hear what sounds quite familiar to what you're already doing? No surprise, we love the familiar. It's comforting. It's understandable. It works. Or at least, it used to work. And it’s hard to move on from. Yet we must. It’s all about sticking to?? the fundamentals but redefining your vision for today.

The Certainty Trap

It Can Be Scary to Find Out You’ve Been Wrong About Something.

But We Can’t be Afraid to Change Our Minds, to Accept that Things are Different, that They’ll Never be the Same, for Better or Worse. We Have to be Willing to Give Up What We Used to Believe.

The More We’re Willing to Accept What is and Not What We Thought, We’ll Find Ourselves Exactly Where We Belong. -- Grey’s Anatomy

Certainty certainly feels good. It feels confident. Strong. Solid. But it will also feel like a ton of bricks landing on your head if you follow it blindly. You can’t change if you’re absolutely certain. No matter how sure of yourself and your position, you may want to pay attention to see what kind of foundation your opinions are built on. You may be surprised. You may also come to a new and more genuine comfort.

Addiction to Ideology

The Problem with Any Ideology is that it Gives the Answer Before You Look at the Evidence. So You Have to Mold the Evidence to Get the Answer that You’ve Already Decided You’ve Got to Have. - President Bill Clinton

?You can’t add to your story if you think it’s perfect as is. Sifting everything through the same filter is bound to twist and distort a lot of what you take in, not to mention your filter. As Bernard Baruch said: When you have a hammer in your hand, everything around you starts looking like a nail. You need an entire toolbox to build a community that can shelter and provide for all. Not just more tax cuts or government programs.? To best serve We the people, politicians need to become more pragmatic and less dogmatic. Rivals, not enemies.

If All You Had to Do to Get What You Want Was to Think Positively, You’d All Be Rich, Skinny and Married. – Gina Mollicone-Long

Positive Thinking has become an ideology. Yet, mind over matter means little if you don’t actually do something to make what you have in mind a reality.

Happy-ism is Like Alcoholism

Happy-ism. It’s the belief that you constantly need to be happy. That you have to soak yourself in it. That if you’re not happy all the time there’s something wrong with you. A belief that will mess you up, and mess you up good. Because life isn’t all one way or another. It may not be sexy, but a healthy life requires balance. An acceptance that sometimes you’re going to be down. But that you can bounce back.

That's a wrap on another Navigating the Fustercluck.

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Here's to self-editing our intake.

To taking control of our lives.

Here's to the future!

Wegs