Contribution | Lorne Rubis

Positive Pride and Hunger to be Needed

Key Point: The hunger to be needed and positive pride are very good emotions, and powerful motivators. On the other hand, insecurity can drive heuristic pride and that’s problematic because arrogance and egotism overshadows. The following is from a thought provoking op-ed by the Dalai Lama, published in the Nov. 4 New York Times:

“Many are confused and frightened to see anger and frustration sweeping like wildfire across societies that enjoy historic safety and prosperity. But their refusal to be content with physical and material security actually reveals something beautiful: a universal human hunger to be needed. Let us work together to build a society that feeds this hunger… A small hint comes from interesting research about how people thrive. In one shocking experiment, researchers found that senior citizens who didn’t feel useful to others were nearly three times as likely to die prematurely as those who did feel useful. This speaks to a broader human truth: We all need to be needed… Being ‘needed’ does not entail selfish pride or unhealthy attachment to the worldly esteem of others. Rather, it consists of a natural human hunger to serve our fellow men and women.”

Pride is an emotion that I believe is related to our hunger to be needed and is positive when it motivates us to work hard and achieve. It can also be negative if it’s is based on insecurity and unbridled egotism. Jessica Tracy, a psychology professor at the University of British Columbia, looks at both sides of pride in her book, titled — Take Pride: Why the Deadly Sin Holds the Secret to Human Success. She notes the following: “What we found is that pride is a positive. It is what motivates us to work hard and achieve. I like to think of it as the carrot, this thing that we want to feel in our sense of self. We feel it when we’re doing or working or putting in the effort to become the person that we want to be… It’s a long story to say it’s the awareness that there’s a sense of pride I’m not getting in my life that I want to get, that’s what causes people to change their behavior and perform better.”

I am in the process of leaving one executive role for another. Those of you who read my blog know how much I have loved being the Chief People Officer of our company. Being asked to do something else has put me in front of the mirror. That has been both unsettling and uncomfortable at times. Questions like, “why am I really resisting?” and “what am I really fearful of?” made me squirm a little and wrestle with the dark side of confronting insecurity and hubristic pride. Hmm. On the other hand, confronting those questions is when I came to learn more about myself. I have a healthy hunger to give, be needed and an authentic pride to do great work. If I keep that at the forefront, the world will unfold as it should. How fortunate I am to be fully alive and feel that way. If I start to respond to unfounded fear and insecurity and it becomes about “me,” I will lose my way.

Character Moves:

Allow yourself to accept that the hunger to be needed is a wonderful human attribute. The following Buddhist teaching is so simple and powerful: “If one lights a fire for others, it will also brighten one’s own way.”

The pride of doing something well helps us create the best sense of self. It’s what we’ve heard from our wise elders forever: “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.” No one needs to validate us when we do good work. We know it. That is authentic, positive pride. Apply that prideful work to the benefit of others, and looking in the mirror will invite a well-earned smile.

Needed Pride in The Triangle,

Lorne

One Millennial View: If you’re not taking any pride in what you’re doing, then what’s the point? How sad would that be? Sounds like a pretty miserable existence. I think we can all see how “negative pride” could transform into arrogance, cockiness or other ugly traits, so… You know… Just, don’t cross that line. That’s where self-accountability comes in.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis.

Deep Machine Learning… Wow!

Accountability Contribution Transformation

Key Point: Those of you that regularly read my blog know that I write a lot about “repotting ourselves” through personal disruption and reinvention. I also point out how digital disruption is impacting literally all organizations surrounding our personal eco-systems. However, sometimes I read or watch something that just makes stop in my tracks and think, “Holy S#!&, Lorne do you REALLY know what’s going on out there? In his recent article on backchannel.com, Steven Levy writes about Google remaking itself as a “Machine Learning First” company. It made me pause. 25,000 top-notch Google engineers worldwide are dedicated to this. Facebook is doing the same. What does this mean to you and me? Please read a few quotes from the article to get the drift:

“Though machine learning has long been part of Google’s technology — and Google has been a leader in hiring experts in the field — the company circa 2016 is obsessedwith it. In an earnings call late last year, CEO Sundar Pichai, laid out the corporate mindset: ‘Machine learning is a core, transformative way by which we’re rethinking how we’re doing everything. We are thoughtfully applying it across all our products, be it search, ads, YouTube, or Play. And we’re in early days, but you will see us — in a systematic way — apply machine learning in all these areas.’”
“Obviously, if Google is to build machine learning in all its products, it needs engineers who have mastery of those techniques, which represents a sharp fork from traditional coding. As Peter Domingos, author of the popular ML manifesto The Master Algorithm, writes, ‘Machine learning is something new under the sun: a technology that builds itself.’ Writing such systems involves identifying the right data, choosing the right algorithmic approach, and making sure you build the right conditions for success. And then (this is hard for coders) trusting the systems to do the work.”
“’The more people who think about solving problems in this way, the better we’ll be,’ says a leader in the firm’s ML effort, Jeff Dean, who is to software at Google as Tom Brady is to quarterbacking in the NFL. Today, he estimates that of Google’s 25,000 engineers, only a “few thousand” are proficient in machine learning. Maybe 10 percent. He’d like that to be closer to a hundred percent. ‘It would be great to have every engineer have at least some amount of knowledge of machine learning,’ he says.”
“Google’s bear-hug-level embrace of machine learning does not simply represent a shift in programming technique. It’s a serious commitment to techniques that will bestow hitherto unattainable powers to computers. The leading edge of this are ‘deep learning’ algorithms built around sophisticated neural nets inspired by brain architecture. The Google Brain is a deep learning effort, and DeepMind, the AI company Google bought for a reported $500 million in January 2014, also concentrates on that end of the spectrum. It was DeepMind that created the AlphaGo system that beat a champion of Go, shattering expectations of intelligent machine performance and sending ripples of concern among those fearful of smart machines and killer robots.”
“The competition to hire recent graduates in the field is fierce, and Google tries hard to maintain its early lead; for years, the joke in academia was that Google hires top students even when it doesn’t need them, just to deny them to the competition. (The joke misses the point that Google does need them.) ‘My students, no matter who, always get an offer from Google.’ says Domingos. And things are getting tougher: Just last week, Google announced it will open a brand new machine-learning research lab in Zurich, with a whole lot of workstations to fill.”

Character Moves:

Look… You and I may never be ML (machine learning) engineers, but we better know what the implications are for our organizations and ourselves. It’s like, geez, “I’m just learning about the impact of all things digital, the Internet of everything, full mobility, new Gen Data science, block chain and now this advanced ML?” Yup! (for ATBers who read this blog and want to be part of Pinnacle 3, you will aspire to learn copious amounts about block chain, AI and cognitive ML).

Within five years, there are credible predictions that 45 percent of what we do will be replaced by Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning. How will it impact you? How are you going to participate? Know this: When companies like Google apply 25,000 engineers at 100 percent focus, hang onto your hat. What hat is that going to be?

Deep ML in The Triangle,

Lorne

One Millennial View: Man, sometimes I wish I paid better attention in math class. I waved bye-bye to engineering skills circa 7^th grade, but all joking aside, it certainly makes you think about your relevance. We’ve all likely seen Tesla cars driving themselves. There will always be a role for us humans, and I don’t think we’re facing a Terminator situation anytime soon, but staying relevant is obviously something we should be frequently asking ourselves. Basic understanding of concepts like ML keeps us ahead of the game, because rest assured, a machine can likely learn something a lot quicker and cheaper than you can. Even Millennials have to be wary about getting left behind by rapid technological advancements like ML.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

The Fearless Dragon Lady

Abundance Contribution Personal leadership

Key Point: There is so much that can be accomplished when you combine a vivid dream with the ability to spit grit, and have the courage to commit. The flip side of that coin includes being able to take a risk, have the agility to pivot, the chops to face inevitable failure, and resiliency to move on.

Imagine being a 19-year-old Indo-Canadian woman with a dream to build a beer empire. And to make sure you have enough start up capital, you have to sell your car. Really? That is exactly what Manjit Minhas did. I had the privilege of having a personal conversation with her in front of 100 or so eager listeners this past Saturday. She just celebrated her 36th birthday, and is the ultimate example of what it means to be an entrepreneur.

Manjit and her partner/brother Ravinder now own one of the biggest breweries in North America. The Minhas Micro Brewery in Calgary makes unique and specialty beers such as the Lazy Mutt Alberta Wheat Beer and Gluten Free beer. The Minhas Micro Distillery, which opened in 2012, distills and bottles premium spirits and liqueurs such as Platinum 10 times distilled Vodka, Blumers Moonshine, Maya Horchata and Chinook Rye Whisky. In 2015, Manjit’s liquor companies (and they have other successful businesses) had revenues in excess of $200 million.

In early 2015, the CBC selected Manjit to star on the highly popular TV reality show, Dragons’ Den, and she is now one of the most followed and recognized business leaders in Canada. If I published all of the accomplishments of this married mother of two, it would fill this whole blog post. Please Google her for more, but you get the point.

When you listen deeply to Manjit, you understand her incredible tenacity. She was a field hockey star in school and her love of sports drives her fearless grit. She has overcome one obstacle after another. There were many times when the business looked like it might fail. She talks about being totally discounted and overlooked in a man’s world. It was tough enough to be a young woman barely above the legal drinking age in Canada let alone being a visible minority. She admits having a lot of nights that included tears of frustration, but they also fueled relentless determination.

So what does Manjit’s story mean to you and me? Few of us will ever become beer royalty or TV stars. However, every one of us can have a dream with a plan to move towards it. Each of us can choose to take a risk, knowing some failure will be inevitable. And the grit to get up time after time to keep going in the direction of that dream, however big or small, is available to all of us. Here is what I do absolutely know. To move forward, we all have to “jump.” Nothing happens unless we do. Manjit’s version of “selling the car” awaits us all. How long do you want to wait before you do?

Character Moves:

For heaven’s sake… Jump! It doesn’t mean being reckless, but it does involve courage. We can all get up if the landing isn’t fatal, and it rarely is .

Manjit’s other insight: “Stand out.” Dare yourself to become great. Know darn well that you’re going to have to pivot. Do not make up stories about why you can’t or shouldn’t. Ask yourself this question: “What would you be doing today if you knew for sure you couldn’t fail?” Answer. Then go do it. Be your own fearless Dragon. Thank you, Manjit. Thank you for standing out for all of us. Continue to show us the way!

Dragons in the Triangle,

– Lorne

One Millennial View: A “thank you” is definitely in order. Millennials like me need these stories on a regular basis… We talk a lot about “comfort,” and knowing that we should avoid getting stuck. But, all too often, it’s just “talk.” Stories like Manjit’s are like a Groupon for skydiving, we just have to stop talking about it, sign up, and jump.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

Order the Combo! It’s a Better Deal

Accountability Contribution Productivity

Key Point: Embrace your very hectic and busy life by considering the following two ideas. I’m suggesting you order them up as a “combo deal” for your life going forward: Deep work and essentialism.

The formula for “Deep Work” is: High quality work produced = (time spent) x (intensity of focus). Essentialism, as I refer to it is this context, is about taking control of choices and intentionally deciding where to focus energy. It involves learning to filter through all of life’s options and select only those that are truly essential. When we have the combo of understanding and applying BOTH concepts, you and I will get more of the results we most want in life. I see so many people who allow their life to be controlled by the many distractions around them. And FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) adds to the conundrum. I actually worry about people’s emotional well-being because the shiny baubles of unlimited opportunity populate people’s dreams and yet they allow much of their time to be dictated by default rather than intention. Time passes and little of what they have dreamed about has occurred. Their life has been dictated by the rationalization of default, (“I will think about doing it later”), and the rut of a routine that’s often meaningless to what’s really important. (“It’s so less stressful when I just do what’s in front of me”).

Adam Grant became the youngest professor to receive tenure at Wharton and within five years, became the school’s youngest full professor. Grant is also a New York Times bestselling author and prolific researcher who performs at a very high level. In his book, Deep Work, Georgetown professor and author Cal Newport notes that Grant decided early in his career that productivity was a scientific problem that could be solved, and one of the fundamental components of his solution is doing “deep work.” Grant batches hard but important, intellectual work into long, uninterrupted stretches. According to Newport, rather than continuously work on research throughout the year, Grant reserves the fall semester for his teaching responsibilities, and the effort that he puts into his classes and students has resulted in him being Wharton’s top-rated professor for four straight years. The spring semester and summer are then dedicated to research. When he’s working in his office, he’ll sometimes spend a few days working in total isolation. During these stretches, Grant will set up an email auto-reply telling people he’s not answering messages for a few days.

In his exceptional work, Essentialism, author Greg McKeown draws on the experience and insight from working with truly exceptional leaders who have achieved the disciplined pursuit of less. Essentialism according to McKeown, is not about how to get more things done; it’s about how to get the right things done. The way of the Essentialist means living by design, not by default. It involves distinguishing the vital few from the trivial, recognizing that if we don’t prioritize our lives, someone else will. Sometimes what we DO NOT do is just as important as what we do! And we know that some efforts just produce exponentially better results than others. As leadership Sherpa John Maxwell has stated, “You cannot overestimate the unimportance of practically everything.”

Character Moves:

Honestly answer the following: What are the BIG things in life you DEEPLY want to do? If you can’t write this down in less than a few minutes, you haven’t defined it. Are you able and disciplined enough to batch deep work when you want and need to focus on your essential things?

To discern what is truly essential, you need space to think, time to look and listen. However, you also need to give yourself permission to play, have the wisdom to refuel, and the discipline to apply the above highly selective criteria to the choices you make. Remember that there is something self-propelling and powerful about visibly seeing progress toward a goal. You’re worth it!!

Eating the Combo in The Triangle,

Lorne

One Millennial View: I think some Millennials are often told that it’s ok not to be “hungry” yet. We live as if it’s 4 p.m., we’d like a “combo meal” later, but we’re not ready to eat till 8 p.m. and we haven’t really looked at the menu yet. We’re encouraged to try appetizers. But, sooner or later, our waiter is coming to take our order and if we don’t know what big things we want, they might just move on to another table. I guess it’s never too early to develop an appetite.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

Do You Shadow Box?

Accountability Contribution

Key Point: Shadow boxing is great exercise for both individuals and organizations. I was with a group of leaders discussing the impact of market disruption, when Dr. Luke Williams, author of the book Disrupt, and professor at NYU, exclaimed: “You’ve got to shadow box with intention… Feel what it’s like to try and knock yourself out!” Huh? So we talked more about it and the essence of our conversation was that great organizations (and I believe great individuals) work on continuous reinvention through the process of purposeful “shadow boxing.” Let’s examine this idea further.

As you likely know, shadow boxing is when a boxer or fighter moves around throwing punches at the air. It’s a popular exercise to sharpen fighting techniques, improve conditioning, and mentally prepare for a fight. The psychology behind shadow boxing is to strengthen one’s advantages and visualize the sweetness of victory through rich imagery.

There is also a thoughtful perspective about shadow boxing from an individual or personal perspective. The exceptional spiritualist, Richard Rohr, has the following view:

“One never gets to the second half of life without major shadow boxing. The important thing is to learn from your shadow side. Some call this pattern the discovery of the ‘golden shadow’ because it carries so much enlightenment for the soul. The general pattern is that heroes learn and grow from encountering their shadow, whereas villains never do. Invariably, the movies and novels that are most memorable show real ‘character development’ and growing through shadow work. This inspires us all because it calls us all. As Carl Jung put it so well, ‘Where you stumble and fall, there you find pure gold.’” This was adapted from Falling Upward: A Spirituality for the Two Halves of Life.

The likelihood of being clocked by a sucker punch, (like when at a Donald Trump rally), is high when organizations and individuals become complacent and incremental; comfortably stewing in self proclaimed victory. This is why organizations and individuals need to shadow box. Why not continuously practice strengthening advantages and visualizing victory?

Character Moves:

Regularly and with specific intentionally (not just annually!!), discover what’s in your organization’s and personal shadow. “Shadow box” and pan for gold by finding the places where there is a pattern of stumbling or falling. Use the learning for institutional and character development. Continuously reimagine, reinvent, and disrupt.

Shadow Boxing in The Triangle,

Lorne

One Millennial View: PHEW! This concept is a fight I can get behind! I was worried it would encourage actual “shadow boxing” in a normal gym, which in my experience is about the most attention starved, space consuming, “look at this maniac” activity that I’ve observed. There are boxing gyms/classes for a reason if you really need to throw haymakers at the air. Just one Millennial’s opinion, of course.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis

The Last 15 Minutes of Anything!

Accountability Contribution Courage

Key Point: I think there is great value in preparing for work and life in the context of playing a sport or being involved in another competitive activity. Participating in these moments teaches us so much about ourselves and positions us for the many challenges we confront in daily life. Learning how to finish is something we can learn and practice in play.

When Alex Ferguson took over as the manager of Manchester United, a world famous English football team, they stunk. It hadn’t won a league title in nearly 20 years and faced the real possibility of being relegated to a lower division. 26 seasons later, under Ferguson’s leadership, United won 38 domestic and international trophies, giving him nearly twice as many as any other English club manager. United became one of the most valuable franchises in all of sports. Harvard Professor, Anita Elberse, studied Ferguson’s “formulae” and published a superb article in the Harvard Business Review. I recently re-read it because I was trying to recall Ferguson’s philosophy on finishing. Here’s what he told Elberse:

“I am a gambler – a risk taker – and you can see that in how we played in the late stages of matches. If we were down at halftime, the message was simple: Don’t panic. Just concentrate on getting the task done. If we were still down – say, 1–2 – with 15 minutes to go, I was ready to take more risks. I was perfectly happy to lose 1–3 if it meant we’d given ourselves a good chance to draw or to win. So in those last 15 minutes, we’d go for it. We’d put in an extra attacking player and worry less about defense. We knew that if we ended up winning 3–2, it would be a fantastic feeling. And if we lost 1–3, we’d been losing anyway.

Being positive and adventurous and taking risks – that was our style. We were there to win the game. Our supporters understood that, and they got behind it. It was a wonderful feeling, you know, to see us go for it in those last 15 minutes. A bombardment in the box, bodies everywhere, players putting up a real fight. Of course, you can lose on the counterattack, but the joy of winning when you thought you were beaten is fantastic.

I think all my teams had perseverance – they never gave in. So I didn’t really need to worry about getting that message across. It’s a fantastic characteristic to have, and it is amazing to see what can happen in the dying seconds of a match.”

I just returned from the Labor Day long weekend where I had an opportunity to watch some of the best cyclists in the world compete in the Tour of Alberta. Of course, these riders are physically gifted. However in cycling, like life, so much success has to do with a mindset of grit and perseverance. The very best riders know exactly when to attack. They leave nothing left in the tank.

Character Moves:

Are you a finisher? In anything you do that matters, do you have a mindset like Sir Alex Ferguson’s teams, or the great cyclists? Do you put up a real fight? Like Ferguson notes: “You can lose on the counter attack but the joy of winning when you thought you were beaten, is fantastic.”

Almost everything in work or life has a “last 15 minutes.” It is always surprising what can happen in those closing moments. Push yourself in the “last 15 minutes.” Of course you may lose, but you know what you did to leave it all on the field.

Practice finishing with greatness. Even cleaning up after yourself when a meeting ends is a symbol of completion. Watch how many people leave without even paying attention. End your evening with a wrap up of what you did well that day. If you’re going for a fun run or ride, end with a strong close. Finishing up strong on the little things leads to having the same mindset when the big, significant events come our way.

Last 15 in The Triangle,

Lorne

One Millennial View: Seeing that I’m in the office around 5 a.m., I’m not the best when it comes to making my bed first thing in the morning. My morning routine is very quick. It’s rushed, I wake up and I’m out-the-door ASAP. It normally involves me putting on shoes with the assistance of a cell phone flashlight, to put it in perspective. Is that the best way to start the day? Probably not. I do believe in that whole “make your bed first thing because it means you’ve already accomplished something” theory… It makes sense. In this case, we’ll refer to that as the “first 15 minutes.” But you and I both know that when I do get to the office, my messy bed doesn’t really affect anything I do that day. However, my “last 15 minutes” in everything I do for the rest of the day, certainly does.

– Garrett

Edited and published by Garrett Rubis