Do The Boring Work

As part of the weekly Unthink team check in, everyone will socialise on the most tedious task they achieved last week. The list is, as expected, incredibly dull.

Yet, this is the gold; ironically, despite what we are known for, it is Unthink’s USP.

In less than two weeks, alongside a close client partner, 131 high-potential talents from four global continents will fly into London for an ‘Impact Week’.

What awaits them will be unlike any learning and development programme they have been part of.

They will be let loose across London, 9 different locations, and electrolytes in drinks that will change colour to dictate which personalised learning pathway they will be a part of. It will be a personalised learning experience at the highest level. They will work with over 18 guests, from astronauts to the new CEO; scratch DJs will play live, and the coffee will not be poured from an urn.

Unthink’s learning experiences are known for innovation and thinking entirely differently. None of this is possible without doing boring work, and the above, despite the excitement of what is being created, has gotten, at times, really dull.

The team has epically and meticulously timed how long lifts take to get to a particular floor of the Gerkin Tower. The size of bus stops is measured to understand the number of buses that realistically fit at one location. Tech checks, learning diagnostic data, groupings, and even obviously keeping an eye on the two-week weather forecast are all proudly part of the grind to make this the most impactful learning experience this talent cohort will ever be a part of.

Success is never in the grand gestures; it’s in the daily, unsexy, repetitive work that no one wants to do.

It seems we fail because we chase excitement. We start a new diet, then quit when it gets repetitive. We start a business, then pivot when it feels dull (read Amy Chua’s The Tripple Package and her thinking on Impulse Control).

We seek variety instead of mastery.

Unthink create the spectacular in learning and development by following these simple 3 steps, and we are giving them to you for free.

Step one: Find the boring work.

Step two: Do it.

Step three: Keep doing it.

That’s it.

No shortcuts.

Do the boring work longer than anyone else because most people won’t.

That’s the advantage. Outlast them.