First Friday - June 2024
What I'm Reading
Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Jon Kabat-Zinn, a leader in the field of mindfulness, outlines mindfulness and meditation practices into practical advice for everyday life. I appreciate this book for its straightforward and relatable approach to mindfulness, offering insights on how to become more present, aware, and content with the here and now.
Key Points:
With distractions everywhere, these principles are more important than ever.
The hardest part of building anything is managing yourself X thread by Mike Beckham
Mike Beckham says it better than I can, but I couldn’t agree more: the hardest part of building anything is managing yourself. The most successful people I know stay fairly even keel. During low points, they maintain perseverance and keep going. During high points, they continue working hard and getting better. Success flows from a willingness to lead and challenge yourself through both the good times and the bad.
Concepts I've Been Studying
AI and the Importance of Speed in Business
Tech is changing more rapidly than ever, with advancements occurring on a monthly basis. This speed is crucial in business, and it's something I think about every day. For software companies, clients, and consultants, it's more important than ever to analyze their structure, approval paths, and decision makers to optimize speed of execution.
Firms that take months to align on strategic decisions will fall behind. Those optimized for quick decision-making will have a massive advantage in the coming years. I saw a quote that perfectly sums up this concept: "While we value patience in many areas of life, particularly in our personal lives, the notion of speed dominates in high-performing business life. There is patience for long-term goals, but every day there is a push. There is intolerance for inaction. The baseline expectation is that things move fast."
Speed is no longer just an advantage; it's a necessity for staying competitive in the consulting industry.
Best podcast of the last 30 days
领英推荐
Big Shots - How Issy Sharp Built The Four Seasons and Transformed The Hospitality Industry Forever
In this episode of Big Shots, Issy Sharp shares his incredible journey from his upbringing to building the Four Seasons brand. He speaks about his parents' influence, his fearless nature, and his strategic decisions that transformed the hospitality industry. The episode highlights key moments such as the story of his first hotel project, the reason behind the Four Seasons name, and how London became the prototype for the brand's success.
I particularly enjoyed this podcast because Issy Sharp started with a vision as a bricklayer and executed it to perfection. His story is awesome given that he saw an opportunity and ended up becoming one of the most successful people of his era. His ability to maintain humility and focus on continuous improvement, even when faced with challenges stands out. His journey from modest beginnings to creating a world-renowned luxury hotel chain underscores the importance of staying true to one's vision.
My Personal Growth
How I've Failed
Last month, I failed to write a "For You Friday" because I didn't properly plan my time. At Clearsulting, we operate with an "extreme ownership" mindset, which means taking full responsibility for our actions and outcomes. Zero excuses—this was a planning oversight on my part, and I need to do better. Moving forward, I'll ensure better time management and preparation to stay on track.
Personal development priority – balancing working “on” vs. “in” the business
Balancing working on vs. working in the business is a key focus for me, and I aim to develop this mindset across our entire leadership team. As we scale, our future vision, expansion, offerings, and innovations will increasingly come from our broader leadership team rather than from me directly.
Related to the "Concepts" section, with tech changing rapidly, our firm always aims to stay one step ahead. The challenge lies in allocating time between existing priorities ("in the business") and mapping future strategies ("on the business"). Leaders need both, and the balance varies based on many factors. My development goal is to challenge myself weekly to allocate time—ideally on Sunday nights—for prioritizing the week's tasks and sticking to them despite ad-hoc items that arise "in the business."
Closing Culture Thought
In our industry, I truly believe a rising tide raises all boats.
In a recent sales cycle, I learned that one of our competitors mentioned we weren't strong in a specific area—an area I know we are damn good at! We ended up winning the work, which is a testament to staying focused on our value proposition versus worrying about the competition. At Clearsulting, we will never "negatively sell" against the competition—even if it might give us an edge. That's no way to gain success or build trust with clients.
Historically, the consulting industry has had an old-school mindset, likely initiated by the limited consulting options from large firms. Times are changing.
At an event last week, I spent hours with leaders from some of our direct competitors, and they were awesome people. We're even on a text chain now, trading thoughts.
Constructive competition and mutual respect among firms can lead to better outcomes for everyone involved. I hope the industry evolves to embrace this mindset, fostering a more collaborative and positive environment.