What Gets Rewarded, Gets Repeated

We are quick to admit that what gets measured, gets done.  But what about the things that are hard to measure?

It's easy to measure sales goals, delivery windows, profit margins, call resolutions, and account balances.  Measure them regularly and they'll get done.

It's not as easy to measure things that matter even more.  Like niceness, commitment, risk-taking, vision, and passion.  And when things aren't easy to measure, we tend to not measure them.  And when we don't measure them, they don't get the attention they deserve.

So what can you do if the measurement is tough?  Just go for recognition instead.  When see someone being nice, thank them.  When you see someone working with passion, recognize them.  When someone takes a risk, reward them.

Because if you don't, they'll just focus on what's being measured.

Think of it this way- what gets measured, gets done.  But what gets rewarded, gets repeated.

Are You Proud of Today?

Earlier this week I tweeted (@JeffreyBWeaver) this question:

How would your day be different if you asked yourself "Am I proud of everything I did today?" at the end?

It's a question I've started asking myself a lot lately.  See, I found that, too often, I'd look back on a day and feel like I accomplished nothing.  I have this long list of things I'm always meaning to get around to but never do "because I'm too busy" or "there's not enough time" or "I'm tired" or whatever else I tell myself on the couch after work.

And so I started to look at everything I was doing in a day.  A lot of it felt like wasted time- meetings that didn't need me, being too far into a trivial detial, watching TV, etc.  Some of it felt productive, but wasn't.  Others were time wasters that I justified with "I deserve it, I worked hard today."  But the bottom line was those things were taking the place of productive things because they were easier.

And I'm not proud of that.

So I started asking myself that question- am I proud of what I'm doing?  Today, right now, all the time; can I- will I- be proud of this later?  Not will anyone else.  Will I be proud of me?

It's making me change a lot.  Because when I'm forced to make decisions thinking about how I'll feel about them later, not now, I make better decisions.  It's simple (not easy), but in this wold we live in that is happening faster than ever and so much focus is placed on here and now, not later, it's something we miss.

So stop missing it.  Stop making decisions now without thinking about later.  And the easy way is to just ask yourself, "will I be proud of this choice?" 

Will I be proud I hit the snooze button? Or proud that I got straight out of bed?

Will I be proud I watched 4 hours of TV before bed?  Or proud that I finished that book?

Will I be proud I pushed half my to-dos off to tomorrow?  Or proud that I cleared the list today?

Remember what Zig Ziglar said- "We all get 24 hours in a day."  Are you proud of how your using yours?

Tough question.

The Summer of Excellence

Labels matter.  They give us clarity and common understanding.  They set expectations.  Such is the case with the summer program one of my co-worker's kids is in right now. 

It's called the Summer of Excellence.

Cheesy.  A little, yes.  But it also gives a sense of purpose to a time normally associated with goofing off and slacking. 

Zig Ziglar tells us we hit what we aim at.  Aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time. 

So here's the question; are you aiming at a Summer of Excellence, or a Summer of Mediocrity?

Silencing the Fan

If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm a pretty big Apple fan.  Not just because they make great, cutting edge products, but because they are such a role model in the realm of user experience.  And as someone who designs a lot of work that is used by others, it's a good lesson to constantly be learning.

Their latest MacBook Pro offering is another great example of redesigning a product from the ground up with the user front of mind. You can check it out here to see what I'm talking about.  There's a lot to love about the notebook, but one thing in particular struck me- the fan.

On this latest laptop, Apple created new fan that uses an asymmetrical blade pattern. This causes the sound of the fan to vary its pitch (instead of the consistent hum others make) which means your ear won't lock onto the pattern and you'll basically never hear it. No one was previously making this type of fan which means Apple had to design it and then find a supplier who would mold it and build it just for them.  It's a lot of work for only one version- the most expensive version- of their notebooks.

So why do it?  Why go to all the trouble and expense?  Because for Apple, they want to remove every possible distraction from your experience.  They know that if you're editing a movie, you want to hear the soundtrack; not the fan.  If you're sitting quietly reading an important report, you want to concentrate; not hear the fan.  They are obsessively focused on taking out of the equation anything that would get between you and what you really want- your content.

As a presenter, we have the same responsibility to our audience.  And so we too must take the time to get the details right and eliminate the distractions that get between our audience and the thing they really want- our message.

Because if the slide has spelling mistakes, it's distracting.  If the page numbers don't line up, it's distracting.  If the animation doesn't work, it's distracting.  If you're searching for your handouts, it's distracting.

So take the time to get it right.  Get passionate about removing the details that would distract your audience.  And think about your delivery from the audience's perspective, not your own.  Be relentless in your pursuit of experience.  And ultimately, figure out what it takes to silence the fan.