Advice for Working from Home

I’ve been able to work from home for almost nine years.

The last ~4 have included kids in the house every day.

If you’re starting this week as a remote work employee and looking for a few tips to make the transition a little smoother (esp. if you have kids), this video is for you.

We’ll talk about how to…
1. Set clear expectations up front

2. Understand from the get-go that it won’t go perfectly

3. Appreciate the fact that you’ll have the opportunity for more quality family time

What questions do you have about working from home? I’d love to share my experience!

Looking to connect? Find me on LinkedIn!

#WFH #workfromhome #remoteoffice #coronavirus #covid19

What We Measure Matters

Tracking progress toward a goal is more or less a given as part of the success formula. We log total miles run leading up to race day. We monitor progress toward quarterly sales quotas. We “track” things to be able to stay motivated and focused.

But what if we mistakenly track the wrong thing?

One (extra) takeaway I had from reading Atomic Habits recently was the notion that we optimize for what we measure. In other words, whatever metric we deem important, we’ll start modeling our behavior to hit that metric.

In the sales world, a metric based solely on volume could lead us to cut deals with customers just to pump our total unit sales. But that creates a situation where we risk sacrificing gross profit and could (potentially) create a negative GP result.

However, having a goal that is mixed between volume, new customer acquisition and total GP can help create “good behavior” that keeps focus on the big picture as a sales rep while simultaneously maintaining the organization’s long-term health.

Or in our personal lives, we can let status symbols like a car or a house be our metric of success. This can lead us to work longer hours and feel like climbing the corporate ladder is the only way to win. But this creates a situation where we risk accidentally leaving our family or personal health in the rear view mirror.

If we instead make our metric of success ‘keeping a budget’ or ‘living within our means’, the need to overwork and burn out can be reduced. Status symbols and monthly budgets both revolve around our finances, but one keeps us focused on the big picture while simultaneously keeping our finances in order.

As we go about setting our top-level goals, we have to be careful which metrics we choose to track our progress. Making sure they don’t derail other important areas is key to maintaining long-term success.

What metrics do you currently use to measure your goals? Have you adjusted them over time to make them more effective?

Stay tuned for my next post where we dive in to how this lesson changed what metrics I’m using for myself in 2019 v what I used last year.

Recommended Read: Atomic Habits

Multiple books have contributed to my discovery of what it means to find a sense of personal freedom in our lives, and I just finished up another great one: Atomic Habits by James Clear. So many points in this book resonated with me (you should read it), but below are five points and reminders that stuck with me in this particular season.

1. Tracking Habits v Tracking Time
I’ve been a fan and proponent of tracking my time for a while, but what I never really considered was that a deeper analysis of a time tracker would actually uncover personal habits (duh). In my mind, I was simply looking for things that sucked away time I could be spending elsewhere. But by understanding my normal tendencies, I can better implement the habit-creation methods outlined in the book to start new habits (and avoid old ones).

2. We tend to create habits based on outcomes, not identity
In my opinion, introspection is a huge part of being able to achieve personal growth. Assessing where I’ve come from allows me to course correct for the future. But James points out the fact that we often pick our growth goals in the wrong order. We start with the outcome in mind (ex: run a marathon) and then create a plan (ie. buy a training program). But what we fail to consider is if we even identify (or want to identify) ourselves as being a “runner”. Effective goal selection and habit creation has to start with an understanding of our own identity – either who we are or who we are striving to become. As I talk about in my TEDx talk, we have to weigh and rank our values to know how we ought to be spending our time.

3. Decisive Moments
I’ve never had a good phrase to describe this phenomenon, but I’m now going to start using this one. James calls a decisive moment those seemingly small actions that can compound throughout the day for better or for worse.

An immediate example of “for worse” that came to mind for my own life was that, over the last couple months, I got in the bad habit of turning off my 5:30am alarm and just crawling back in bed. On days when I did this, I missed my entire window to execute my morning routine. When that happened, the rest of the day had a different feel. It changed my mood and overall satisfaction by the time I get back in bed that night because I hadn’t accomplished those things that mattered to me earlier in the day.

As a result, I’m now trying to implement a new, simple habit that cues my body to stay out of bed and jump into my desired routine. We’ll see how this goes…

4. The importance of environment
One study referenced talks about the fact that it’s nearly impossible to avoid an ingrained habit if the cue still exists; we see this in addicts who relapse after leaving rehab because they return to the same environment. On the other hand, another study concluded that “disciplined” people are only more disciplined because they spend less time in tempting situations. They’ve designed an environment where they can succeed. James says, “Whatever habits are normal in your culture are among the most attractive behaviors you’ll find”.

When we think about that quote in the context of our work environments, the implications on company culture are massive. The same can be said for our family lives and relationships. Who we surround ourselves with has major implications on who we become.

5. To maintain habits, you have to fall in love with boredom
I really appreciated this perspective. I now see that it’s normal to be able to admit that I’m “bored” with a routine after a while. Simply put, “No habit will stay interesting forever”. However, I have to keep in mind that if that routine is serving a bigger a purpose, I need to push through and continue to do it. If it’s important to me, I have to slog through the slow times to keep advancing toward my ideal identity. Becoming great at something takes time and commitment. Peak results won’t come instantly. As Gary V always advocates, you’ve got to love the process.

In short, I highly recommend this book. It’s practical and applicable and has a ton more to offer than just these five takeaways of mine. Have you read it? What did you think?

The Southwest Effect

The Southwest Effect is a term that I made up. It refers to those instances when a group is divided between those in the know and those who are totally lost due solely to lack of experience.

I made up this name because I’ve witnessed the same situation multiple times while boarding planes on Southwest Airlines: first-time Southwest flyers show up to the gate and have no idea what’s going on because their process is so different.

In this video, we’ll talk about being on either side of this proverbial fence and how that can apply to the rest of our lives outside the terminal.

Content or Complacent?

I’ve found it can be a fine line to walk between finding contentment or becoming complacent after getting to the end of a project. What’s the difference between the two and how do they impact my future behavior? That’s what we’ll discuss in today’s video!

Wants v Needs

I often-times find myself interchanging my use of “I need that” and “I want that”, but I’ve recently come to realize the potential pitfall in that strategy. While needing and wanting are definitely different things, we’ll discuss how we can use one to keep the other in check and keep our goals and priorities on track.

Hot Streaks

Recent research has shown that hot streaks are a real thing —— those seasons in our life where we keep producing win after win after win. What does that mean for the rest of us? We’ll discuss in this video.

Check out the full article here.

Becoming A Track Star

I’ve found that keeping track of four or five key tasks each month helps me focus on the things I consider most important. In this video, we’ll discuss 3 takeaways I’ve had from using this method!

You can download the Monthly Goal tracker I use in this video on my resources page.