Recently, I was doing some 360º feedback on myself, and I asked my COO at StoryLearning:
“What could I do better?”
His reply:
“Focus on things that excite you. Good things tend to happen when you’re working on things that excite you.”
Of course, this is code for:
“You’re a giant PITA when you’re not motivated.”
Unmotivated? Moi???
But of course.
And it happens on a very predictable cycle – every 2-3 years, in fact.
See, there are broadly three types of year:
A year where you learn
A year where you execute
A year where you stagnate
The years when you learn are the best:
• You’re excited
• You learn things you didn’t know existed
• Ideas come from nowhere
• The energy spreads to the team
• Customers feel the energy and buy a LOT more
After you learn new stuff, it usually takes time to execute, and that’s the following year:
Heads down.
Work.
Build.
When my COO says: “Good things tend to happen when you’re working on things that excite you.”…
That’s the period he’s talking about.
Energy everywhere.
Sparks flying.
Growth up and to the right.
So how does it all go wrong?
Not repeating the cycle.
You’ve learnt stuff, implemented it, and grown the business…
You decide you don’t need to learn any more…
You’re a certified genius…
But with all the sticking power of a New Year’s Resolutions… it doesn’t last.
Before you know it, you’re in the quagmire again:
• A lack of energy
• A lack of momentum
• Doubts creep in
• Customers sense this
• The business falters
• You feel more anxiety
Oh wait – did the world move on while you were revelling in your success?
Have you set the business back 1-2 years by floundering?
Oops.
You stop learning at your peril.
And the easiest way to avoid this is to always be learning.
But it’s not just learning.
It’s learning with challenge and provocation.
Being pushed to see your blind spots and step outside your comfort zone.
This cannot be passive. And you cannot do it alone.
Hence a rule that I’ve developed for myself over almost 12 years of this stuff:
Never go more than 12 months without a coach or a mentor.
If you have a propensity to work alone, in a silo, by yourself or with a business partner, all the more important.
I’ve sought mentorship for StoryLearning in different places over the years:
• business coaches
• an experienced friend who I travel and spend proper time with
• an actual mentor
• even a very good consultant who can dig under the hood of their business
the
But sure enough…
When the experience of running your business starts to feel akin to a serious dose of caffeine withdrawal…
It’s almost certainly because you’ve stopped learning.
Namaste,
Olly
