People Matter ∴ Do Good

Lead a vivid life that does good

Month: July 2016

Choosing to be colourful

31 July 2016 /

Our world is not black & white So why have black & white opinionsAs a kid growing up we had a black and white TV in my parents room, and a colour TV in the lounge. As you can imagine the difference when switching between the two was stunning.

Equally as stunning is the difference in us when we are being black and white, compared to when we are colourful.

Black and white people say I’m either terrible at something or brilliant. Colourful is the middle possibility, I’m just fine.

Black and white people get locked in to one political view or vote based on what they want. Colourful seeks out what’s best for everyone.

Black and white people only read and learn to support and strengthen their existing view. Colourful causes them to read and learn at the edges.

Black and white leaders do what they’ve always done and believe they have the answers. Colourful leaders challenge others to push boundaries.

Colourful isn’t about abandoning everything you believe, rather it is about allowing it to be challenged.

Our world is not black & white. So why have black & white opinions?

∴

Think back at last week … did you become more black and white, or did you become more colourful?

Make it your goal this week to become more colourful.

Are you trying to spread what you don’t have?

21 July 2016 /

To spread happiness, you’ve got to have some happiness to spread.You take your favourite jar of goodness out of the fridge. You open it. And it’s all but empty. Mildly frustrated you scrape and scrape the bottom of the container. And in the end, barely cover your toast.

To spread something, you’ve got to have it to spread.

To spread happiness, you’ve got to have happiness.

To spread excellence,

Generosity,

Ideas,

Courage,

Faith,

Hope,

Or even love.

You first need to have some to spread.

And the more you have, the more you can give.

∴

We can’t spread these things if we are fully empty.

If you find yourself scraping the bottom of the barrel, maybe it’s time you take a break, refresh, or just get near people who have it.

Replenish, so that you can provide all that goodness, that people around you are longing for.

How do you use your social media voice?

14 July 2016 /

How do you use your social media voiceA few months ago I ranted about a poor customer experience I was having. It attracted a fair amount of attention (and weirdly ‘likes’) and the company took ownership and resolved.

More than any time in history you have a voice to hundreds, if not thousands of people.

You have the ability to contribute.

To share what matters most.

To influence.

To encourage.

Sadly, most of the time we use our social media voice to say “here look at me”. Which is all good, but if it’s all we do we are missing an opportunity.

An opportunity to be authentic and encouraging and generous.

A unique opportunity to speak life into others.

∴

The post that I wrote about customer service was one of the more liked and commented posts I have had in a while. I would like to think it was because of the parts I wrote about becoming a grumpy old man, but sadly I suspect it wasn’t. I’m not sure it was generous or encouraging. Nor did it really speak life.

I blog because I decided I would use my voice and story and words to speak life into others, but you don’t need to blog to speak life into people.

It can be as simple as encouraging someone.

Why not do that today!

How to build momentum

7 July 2016 /

Momentum equals mass x velocity P MV

One of the things my son and I do for weekend kicks is launching ourselves down our street, which has a reasonably steep hill, on skateboards. There’s something about gaining momentum that is fun and exhilarating. And as the formula P = MV rightly points out, the bigger you are the faster you go.

As a social entrepreneur I also love momentum. I love growth. I’m not scared of BIG, and I not so secretly desire to use the organisations I am involved in, to have a global impact. I want them to take over the world and do good.

I also want the organisations you are involved in to succeed. And grow. And gain momentum. That’s where the formula comes in.

Momentum (P) = Mass (M) x Velocity (V)

Momentum in an organisation requires Mass & Velocity.

Mass

Mass equals people. Without people there is no momentum.

It would be easy to think, that the more people you have the more momentum you have, but that’s only partly true. Mass is about density. And density when it comes to organisations is about quality.

100,000 likes might increase awareness, but it won’t bring long-term momentum on its own. What organisations need are dedicated, high quality people, who do great work and bring mass.

Mass is about getting as many great, activated people as possible.

Velocity

Velocity is different from speed. Speed is how fast something is moving, whereas velocity how fast it moves in a direction. Velocity is heading somewhere.

If you have 100 people moving incredibly quickly in different directions, then they are pulling against each other. You have speed, but not velocity.

In an organisation, everyone needs to be moving fast AND in the same direction.

Without velocity you have no momentum.

So…

Momentum (P) = loads of dedicated people (M) heading in the same direction (V)

[Science lesson over]

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Now consider the organisations you are involved in. Do they have momentum?

More importantly.

Are you doing your best to bring Mass (dedicated involvement) & Velocity (heading in the same direction)?

We can all be apart of something big that has incredible momentum.

We just cant do it without climbing on board, and then launching ourselves down the hill.

When to settle for good enough

1 July 2016 /

Often good enough is pefrectly fineOne of the first computer games I ever developed in my teens was a very simplistic helicopter game, where you would hunt out submarines and bomb them. It was simplistic for two reasons, the first of which I was learning to code, and the second because all games were clunky back then, which is what you would expect from home computers that you plugged into your TV screen.

As a young guy I was good at coding, and this knowledge allowed me to learn new skills coding in Visual Basic as I got a real job. However when I compare myself to our IT team I’m a good amateur at best.

I have in the past really enjoyed coding (I like creating new things), and right up to last year I’ve dreamed of teaching myself the latest technologies.

Then I realised, in a moment of brilliance, that it’s a ridiculous idea. To be the leader I need to be, I don’t need to be a better coder.

Good enough is fine.

Good enough is perfect for me.

And realising I’m good enough at something, is incredibly liberating.

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Obviously I’m not saying you shouldn’t get better at things. I never want to stop being a better leader of leaders.

Choosing what will really make you the person you want to be is essential for letting go of what’s not.

Getting to a point where you can say ‘I’m good enough at this’, not only allows others to be better than you, but frees you from some dream which may be more of a subconscious burden than you realise.

What are somethings you’ve always wanted to be better at?

Maybe, good enough is fine.

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