Is it Time for a Game Reset??

There are many, many benefits to working where I do. One of those came to reality about six months ago. As a leader, I was invited to participate in an executive coaching program. A few of us were approached in June of last year and I jumped right in and said "yes." I was excited and nervous at the same time. "Do I need coaching? What am I doing wrong?" Writing this from 30,000 feet in the sky from Seoul to LA, I was reading an article and I realized I really did need some coaching. Throughout these last six months during my 3x monthly sessions I have learned it is uber important to share my learnings on how to become a better leader and person because we are all in this together.

We all have a ton of things going on and we had goals to achieve and my incredible team smashed them in 2023. We move at mach 3 with our hair on fire most of the time as things move at an incredible pace in our business and industry. With all of the speed, I am continuously humbled everyday to have the opportunity to work with some of the most incredible individuals from around the globe who make it all happen. Yet, we are not perfect and neither am I. Last year, I traveled more than ever before, we collaborated with more people outside of our organization than ever before, and we pushed it to the limits professionally than ever before. This year, I want to do it better and do more than ever before.

One of the beliefs that has come out of my sessions is the power of a RESET. You can flip a calendar and move from month-to-month or from 2023 to 2024 and simply rinse and repeat. But, why? I am taking a different path and trying something new. I have a different outlook and take on things. Recently it has been about taking a breath and focusing on what is really important and what is going to deliver results in a positive way for my organization, my team and myself. I have not made a list of the things I am going to do differently or setting false expectations on New Year's resolutions - insert a green face emoji here. I am looking at 2024 as the year of opportunity for us to create agreements on how we are going to be successful...together. I stopped our team for a minute in December and went off site and talked about what is going on and how we are going to do better. We needed it. We took a moment to breathe and reset where we are going to go on this journey together. We could just rinse and repeat and hope that we will grow, but we all know that is not based in any reality.? Together, we created a clear vision for us and what the strategy is to achieve and deliver.

As we took that minute to breathe, we mashed our reset buttons and we are now off and running through to the next level of the game. I have a new outlook for 2024 despite all of the chaos, layoffs and reductions. I am more optimistic and positive than ever that we as an industry will continue to grow and flourish....how? We are going to take a minute to think about the direction we are going. We are going to rise above the chaos and be better. We are going to try something that has not been done before. We just don't want another better mousetrap, we want real change, we want to make real impact, and we want real honesty so we can affect change and help people to get to where they want to go.?

Here is how we did a reset and maybe there is something here for someone else too. People who know me, know I believe in the number 3 - it was my baseball number and where I used to live on the basketball court in high school.?

Stop & Think

We move incredibly fast and our industry makes shifts on a dime, especially in the mobile space. We read something, we hear something and we see something and most of the time the little voice in your head says "Oh no, here we go again." That is when I take it all in, stop for a moment, think and then communicate. Maybe this is why I don't sit down at the office in a chair but stand so I can turn and look outside at the rain (because it has been doing that a lot lately) and then write down my thoughts and then deliver. When I stop to think about what is possible and how we can make a situation easier and more simplistic, there is calm. Write down your ideas with pen and paper and then share the ideas and get feedback from your colleagues, mentors and employees on how to do better.

Set a Simple Vision

A vision is not instructions. Instructions are expectations. Expectations can break down. A vision is a belief about where we want to go somewhere in the future. It should be simple and communicated clearly.? Our vision for my team is "to work together to build trust to provide opportunity for everyone to succeed." I don't care where you are on some map. I don't care who someone reports to on some org chart. I care about why and how we are communicating and collaborating together to deliver something special and then sharing it with anyone who will listen.? It's the end of January and I have seen things turn around already for the better by providing clarity so we can see the vision of where we are going to go.?

Do the Right Thing

This is the hard one sometimes. The right thing is difficult and may go against the grain or instructions. It may go against what some book or article might say. Doing the right thing is getting on a plane and talking face-to-face when communications were breaking down and context was lost between languages. Doing the right thing is reaching out to new people and communities to learn and collaborate. Doing the right thing is asking questions of "how?" and "why?" to seek understanding versus "what" and "when". All three of these are being put to the test and are working. When the bullets start flying, I am the one running towards them because I know it is the right thing to do. It might be taking on that new project, challenging the status quo or reaching out to team members to help even though you don't have time on your calendar or it is not your direct responsibility. Reset how you look at what is important for your organization and those you serve. Just do the right thing and we will win.?

Thank you Amanda Jaggard my coach from Novus Global for helping me to stop and think. Thank you to the Xsolla leadership who did the right thing for us.?

Friends have asked me and pushed me for years to write and share more...so here we go. I would love to hear your thoughts. It's not about me, its about all of us and having a discussion. More thoughts and insights to come for how we can do more together.