insights
Strategies for
Navigating Success
Flying home from a weekend of racing classic wooden boats in Maine, filled with great memories and a warm heart, it’s hard not to compare the sportsmanship, camaraderie, and Corinthian spirit I just experienced to my usual one-design racing in “plastic” boats (as they are known to some!). The culture of the different types of racing can be markedly different.
Organizational and community culture is a special thing. How does your culture create efficiencies, customer loyalty, employee satisfaction, and a strong brand value?
For my birthday, I was given the gift of growth. It was wrapped in near misses and tied with a ribbon of humility. Ouch. Wow.
Remember being told, "There are no stupid questions?" The outlandish questions are usually what lead to the most revolutionary ideas.
Recently, there was something that was intimidating me. A coach asked me, "When did you do something well despite being intimidated?" All of a sudden, I remembered standing on a dock facing a boat full of crew that had no idea who I was.
Understanding your own filters and biases let's you see and hear people more clearly. For me, it means I have more joy experiencing life with them, and LOTS of laughter. A gift I didn't expect from tying to walk through life more openly.
The path of self-awareness leads to self-empathy, purpose, and a sense of fulfillment. True fulfillment leads to living a life of purpose, reaching one's full potential, and experiencing what Joseph Campbell refers to as the "rapture of being alive."
Team racing, what I call “speed chess on the water,” is a mentally challenging sport. The beauty of team racing regattas lies in the ability of sailors to constantly learn and improve, ultimately creating a challenging and fulfilling experience for all involved. A recent three-day regatta demonstrated how humility and vulnerability are the key to success: allowing you to embrace mistakes and learn from them.
Giving negative feedback and bad news is hard. And psychologically, we are amazingly good at rationalizing why we shouldn't cause someone else harm when we are actually trying to avoid causing ourselves pain. Understanding this helps us be both honest and kind.
Part of successfully preparing for a difficult conversation, in addition to understanding why you need to have the difficult conversation, is to understand what type of conversation you need to have.
When the going gets tough, do you get uncomfortable? Difficult conversations can pay off in a big way - not only to improve #performance and generate higher #profits but also help strengthen relationships. What's your motivation for learning how to navigate through challenging situations? Let's explore this together!