Taking a Moon Shot. Lessons from NASA

I very recently had the opportunity to attend a leadership training course with a few Meta colleagues from around the world. The training course was focussed on what it means to take a "Moon Shot", delivered at the NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Johnson Space Centre in Houston. During this time, we got to spend time with Astronaut Brian Duffy , Mission Control leaders, Flight Directors and so many more truly amazing people, with so many out of this world experiences...

Here are a couple of my takeaways from an exceptionally rewarding and privileged experience...

• Taking a Moon Shot is hard. Very hard. It stretches far beyond what most people think is sensible, safe or indeed possible. But thats why it's important. It's about the journey, about progress, about overcoming "impossible challenges" and about the high reward.
• Galvanizing everyone behind a vision is essential. When Kennedy delivered his "Why Go to the Moon" speech in 1961, he did so in the face of enormous challenge (economic, social, war etc.) He used the vision of the "impossible" to bond every state, every level of society all people to get behind a vision. He put fear in peoples mind, by highlighting the risk of not being first.

• Technology that had not been invented at that time, that was needed to put people onto the moon, was ultimately invented and thus went on to influence much of our technical ability today. If not for the "Space Race" overall, we would not have; Artificial limbs, Scratch-resistant lenses, Insulin pump, Firefighting equipment, DustBusters, Shock absorbers for buildings, Solar cells, Wireless headsets, Portable computers, Camera phones and so much more (check this link) . The technology that we all are building today, has not been made before and we have not even thought of the right questions, never mind knowing the answers. The tech that we all feel normal today, will be redundant in a decade.

• People made this possible. Millions of people. All types of people, from all backgrounds ultimately made the moon landing happen. From the factory workers, to the scientists to Neil Armstrong... it was all about people. Creating the opportunity for people to try... and fail... and to try again is essential. Also, what really stands out for me, spending time with many NASA leaders and 4-time Space pilot and commander Brian Duffy was the humility of everyone and their focus and commitment to their mission, of advancing mankind. Brian even took time out, to send to my 9 year old daughter a personal video to inspire her learning journey and get into Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 10 years... the journey is every day (p.s. if you are interested, I will add that video to the comments! )
• Be Comfortable with the unknown... Imagine that moment of firing the first manned rocket, or that moment the booster fired for the first time into orbit or the millions of "first-events" that put Neil Armstrong onto the moon. Being comfortable with the unknown is a skill to master, recognizing anxiety, stress and learning not to quell it, but to focus it and help you prepare.

• Inclusivity, Diversity and Equity -?Space travel and successful exploration of space, scientific developments and the ability to work together takes people from all parts of society, all races, all beliefs. 1960s NASA was not diverse as highlighted in the movie Hidden Figures. It is a lesson to all of us, when creating a Moon Shot, when building a mission or when creating a new product or service, to ensure that we build for all of society. Now looking at Mission Control, we can see significantly more diversity than in the 60's, but inevitably it is a mission that has yet to truly complete for many places, many people around the world.

The META leadership model

Here @Meta we follow a leadership framework that focusses on leading from within, forward, through and across. When we look at the challenges of taking a moonshot, it is critical to be aware of these...

1. Leading within is all about taking care of yourself, mentally, physically, spiritually (insert your version of) and all other aspects that are important to you. Without you being at your prime, you won't perform at your prime. Thats why taking things like a holiday, taking time out to learn, spending quality time with family or friends are all essential for you and ultimately for your business.
2. Leading Forwards looks to help you create a vision, building your idea into something that others can believe in and get behind
3. Leading Across is about taking stakeholders on that journey with you, being part of the story, the failures and successes, but being true partners
4. Leading Through is about accountability and finishing what you started

So why is all of this important right now?

We are at the precipice of the next evolution of technology, communication, commercial, money, experiences and more. This is the greatest moonshot for many in generations. The Metaverse.

The Metaverse is exciting, scary, unknown, fantastical, enthralling and everything in between. But it is real.

This is a moonshot we are all about to embark on, whether you are directly involved in it or not. I am thoroughly excited to see where we land over the next years and to the many many moons that we build and land on.