You Have Been Endorsed!

LinkedIn-Endorsements

Is there anything quite as worthless as a LinkedIn skill endorsement?

Today, I received an email alerting me to a recent endorsement.  Fantastic!  Except, I haven’t worked with this person in over 15 years.

Then there are the endorsements from friends and family who have no idea what the skill even is.

Other times, I’ve had connections endorse for a skill that, while I am proficient, would not have known I had (of course the VP of HR has seen my programming prowess!).

The idea is relatively simple.  The goal of the endorsement is to make it easy for people to recognize you for your skills and expertise without having to write out a lengthy recommendation.  What initially seemed like a good idea for a business networking site has really turned out to be a waste of time, annoying, called a popularity contest, and not a value add.

When people start gaming the system (you endorse me and I’ll endorse you) and it becomes more about inflating artificial numbers than the actual skills you’re highlighting in the first place, the tool becomes useless.

Let’s find other ways to show off our work and help us stand out… but this one isn’t it.

People Like Us Do Stuff Like This

YourTurnChallenge

Just a week ago, we were total strangers.  Today, we share a common bond, a tribe of leaders supporting and pushing each other, all because of a simple challenge, and saying yes.

Background Story

Few authors resonate with me as much as Seth Godin.  He implores you to become a linchpin, also known as someone who is indispensable.  As noted on Amazon, these people figure out what to do when there’s no rule book.  They delight and challenge their customers and peers.  They love their work, pour their best selves into it, and turn each day into a kind of art.  He has a daily blog with over 1 million subscribers.

In his most recent book, Seth talks about overcoming your fears and learning to ship on a consistent basis.  In a chat room accompanying the audio Q&A session for the book (password: MyTurn),  the moderator, Winnie Kao (Godin’s Special Projects Lead) gave us a brief insight on what it’s like to work for Seth.  He told her that ‘every day you don’t put up a blog post, you’ve failed.’  It’s all about delivering content, not waiting until it’s absolutely perfect, not acquiescing to the voice in your head saying it’s not good enough, and getting into the habit of shipping.

The Challenge

One day, Winnie stopped shipping.  A couple of weeks later, in her quest to get unstuck and back on track, she initiated and lead a relatively simple challenge.  Write a blog post daily for 7 days.  The twist?  Asking the Godin tribe to join her.  As it turns out, many people are in the same situation as Winnie.

The Tribe Comes Together

Based off the Q&A session, I had already started blogging daily for 2 weeks before the challenge began.  This was an opportunity to not only ship daily but meet like-minded people.  As Godin observes, “People Like Us Do Stuff Like This.”  Like many great ideas in hindsight, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of it earlier.

Regardless, I knew immediately I had to get involved.  Not just participate, but lead.  After all, isn’t that the point?  To stop waiting for someone else to do it.

I reached out to Winnie and asked if I could assist or help in any way.  The idea made so much sense and would be a great way to help many people learn to ship daily.  As it turns out, I wasn’t alone.  Andy, Joyce, Denys, Steve, and Fraser had similar ideas.

Together, we bonded over the project and found we had a lot in common.  We chatted daily while moderating and approving posts.  Reading and promoting posts on Twitter.  Providing encouragement and technical assistance.  Building a community, a tribe.  It’s been a fun and incredible ride.  As of mid-day Sunday (day 7), we have over 4 thousand posts!  Come check out our work here!

While every project has a beginning, middle, and end, I wanted to ensure we could sustain our momentum past this challenge.  After some collaboration, Andy took the lead and created a facebook group where we could continue the conversation.  Come join us even if you didn’t do the challenge!  I have no doubt our connection will continue to strengthen.  There has already been offers amongst members to provide assistance on side projects and make introductions to their own networks.

This challenge has inspired hundreds of people to create new habits.  Brought like-minded people together.  And finally, showed that it is possible to get past your internal fears and ship consistently, even if it’s not perfect.  People like us do stuff like this.

The Will To Prepare

bobby knight quote

One of my favorite quotes, first discovered in Mark Cuban’s book How to Win at the Sport of Business, is from Coach Bobby Knight (former men’s basketball coach at Indiana University and Texas Tech, most wins of any coach at the time he retired):

The key is not the will to win.  Everybody has that.  It is the will to prepare to win that is important.

Many want to win.  Few take the time to do it.

In his early years, Mark Cuban sold software.  He took a different software manual home every night and read it.

Why?  Because no one else did.  When people asked him questions, he knew his stuff and could give assessments and comparisons on everything he sold.  This helped him build rapport with clients and ultimately led to more sales and consulting work.

Do you spend the time preparing?  Before you visit or speak with a client, do you know your desired outcome?  What actions do you plan to take to deliver these results?  What will be the client’s reaction and how will you respond?  Do you truly understand the client’s needs and how your goals align with theirs?  Does the client really feel like you care?

The difference between winning and losing can be very small.  What would it mean to your business to have won an additional 5% or 10% deals this year?

Do the work that nobody else does.  Put in the time and you will reap the rewards.

 

Don’t Forget To Look Both Ways!

look_both_ways

Our parents ingrained this message in our heads while growing up:  Don’t forget to look both ways when crossing the street!

Let’s remember to use this lesson in our business lives.

We’re eager to get ahead.  We spend a lot of time looking forward.  How do we move up the corporate ladder?  Can I have a mentor who will guide me towards the right path?  Who’s helping me?

Once we succeed and get a promotion or new opportunity, it doesn’t stop there.  We’re then focused on how we get to the next rung.

But what about those below us?  Are you looking backwards in their direction and giving back?  All of a sudden, you are the person they are looking up to for help, regardless if you realize it or not.

This past week, I was a guest speaker for an Emerging Leader program, speaking to 100 global leaders about Business Leadership.  These folks were a special group, nominated by their business units, and then hand-picked due to high performance and potential.  Topics included Strategy & Planning, Results Accountability, and Financial Management, as well as answering many questions about leadership and personal experiences.

When requests for speakers went out, most people averted their virtual eyes and tried to look busy, reminiscent of high school where you prayed the teacher didn’t call on you.  Public speaking is intimidating enough let alone having to put together an accompanying slide deck.

I immediately raised my hand and volunteered.  What a fantastic opportunity to share what I’ve learned and been taught by others along the way.  Sure, there was some work involved putting it together, but the payoff was immense and beyond any expectations I had.  The participants were eager to learn, asked a ton of great questions, and many connected with me afterwards.  In fact, one person specifically requested if I would be her mentor (to which I happily and humbly accepted).

You have more to give back than you realize.  Reach out to a group or reach out to one person.  Make yourself available.

Looking back is as rewarding as looking forward.  Remember to look both ways!

Don’t Be A Sore Loser

chessI’m a sore loser.  Strike that.  I hate to lose.

Growing up, I often played my brother in sports games on the Nintendo or Sega.  As older brothers often do, he consistently crushed me.  My reaction wasn’t pleasant.  If the game was close and he delivered the knockout blow, I’d deliver my own – by slamming the reset button and forcing him to start over.  To this day I’m surprised he kept playing with me knowing my tendencies.

Fast forward to current day.  I decided to pick up chess.  Playing against the computer… (some things don’t change) I got soundly beaten.

Except this time is different.  I’ve been reading a few books.  Studying tactics and reviewing instructive videos.  Lo and behold, I can now hold my own with the computer and even win some of the time.  Now my goal is to continue to increase the competition level and eventually play against a real human.

Becoming better at anything takes time and practice.  In this day of immediate gratification, it’s easy to forget that you need to put in the work.  Gary Vaynerchuk said it well:  It’s this notion that is so prevalent right now, which is that you can just come out of nowhere and build your brand through various tactics.

There is no substitute for putting in the hours.  Unless you want to try hitting the reset button, but I don’t think you’ll make a lot of friends that way.