Issue #33: On the Happiness Equation, Using Your Superpower, and More

If you’d prefer, listen to this issue here .

INSIGHTS (on leadership/self-leadership)

Everyone, including you, has a superpower, a super strength you can apply with fervor, like a superhero, to do good in the world, or to make big things happen that matter to you. But here’s the problem. Too often, we dismiss our strengths, reasoning they’re more universal than unique. Or we underestimate the strength of our strength and the impact it has. So, I ask, what’s your superpower? If needed, take a few moments to pinpoint it. Or ask someone who knows you well to help articulate it. Then use it to make big things happen. Repeatedly. Ride it to great results – I have.

My superpower is the ability to confidently commit to something, then figure out later exactly how I’ll deliver it. It’s not uninformed arrogance – when I commit, I know I have enough subject matter knowledge working in the background to draw from, and that I’ll work out the exact “how to” later. The point is, I’ve leveraged that superpower, over and over, to substantially grow our company’s revenue and the impact we have, five years in a row. You can do the same, and more, by consistently drawing on your superpower. ????

IMPERFECTIONS (a mistake many make)

Let’s continue with the theme of having a bigger impact, this time via a 5-word question most of us mistakenly never ask. Which is, “What can only I lead?”

Here’s the thing. I GUARANTEE YOU THERE’S AN ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION. It might be something only you can lead based on your position power, your personal power, or your passion for a deed that needs doing or a problem begging to be solved. But it is a question with an answer, just waiting for you to ask it. And to then follow through on it. ?

IMPLEMENTATION (one research-backed strategy, tip, or tool)

Here’s a powerful equation for happiness.

Happiness = Reality – Expectations.

Here’s how to apply it. Disappointment and unhappiness often result from a gap between an ideal (what you expect) and reality (what you actually get). In this case, happiness goes negative in the equation.

But all too often, we assume we can be happier (make the equation go positive) by simply lowering our expectations. You know the saying, “Don’t expect too much and you won’t be disappointed.” Fair enough, you might not be disappointed. But will you be happy? I say this: raise your expectations, then work your ass off to over deliver on reality. That’s the way to make the equation go positive. That’s the way to true happiness.

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