👊 How to Crush 2023, 3 Rules for Building Trust, and an Awesome Time Mgmt Book

PROGRESSION: December 2022

What a year. At the end of 2021, I picked a fight with a woman who was angry that SOMEONE (me) could celebrate a great year while anyone in the world may have suffered. (Note: Her twitter handle was HollyJollyMess so I should have known better.)

 Many things went right in 2021 and I took that moment to celebrate. (Here’s the full post: No, You Don’t Have to Be Miserable. Here’s How to Make 2022 Your Year.)

I stand by what I wrote. And while I set out in January to make 2022 an equally dope year, the first half was a kick in the gut. Struggling loved ones, financial losses, self doubt, career uncertainty. Nothing went as expected. And it was really hard.   

In the post I linked to above, published on Dec 28, 2021, I invited readers to ponder the question: Is it possible 2022 could be the best year of my life?   

As I reflect on the last year, I do think 2022 may have been one of the best years. Certainly not the easiest year. And definitely not always the most fun year. But one of the best? Absolutely. 

As we look to the new year, I invite you to reflect on all that 2022 brought you, the good, the bad, and all the learnings in between.  

Books, Articles, etc.

The Score Takes Care of Itself: My Philosophy of Leadership by Founders (Podcast)

Bill Walsh took over as head coach for the San Francisco 49ers in 1979 after the team had gone 2-14. He immediately implemented his Standard of Performance and led the team to a… wait for it… 2-14 record. The following year they went 6-10. And the year after that they won the Super Bowl. He went on to win 3 Super Bowls with the team and is regarded as one of the best NFL coaches ever. 

I highly recommend Walsh’s book, The Score Takes Care of Itself. A few weeks ago I discovered the Founders podcast and listened to an hour-long summary of Walsh’s book. I recommend the whole episode, but the first few minutes, which I transcribed here, particularly resonated. 

In Walsh’s words:

“Superb, reliable results take time. The little improvements that lead to impressive achievements come not from a week’s work or a month’s practice but from a series of months and years until your organization knows what you are teaching inside and out…The big plays in business or professional football don't just suddenly occur out of thin air. They result from very hard work and painstaking attention over the years to all of the details related to your leadership…Today’s effort becomes tomorrow’s results.

Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman (Book)

A fairly dull title for what turned out to be the best time management book I’ve read. Most of the literature on time management is task-based, urging us to figure out the perfect schedule or productivity method for cranking through as many items on a to-do list as we possibly can. But even when those methods work, they somehow still leave us feeling stressed and overwhelmed.

The author wrote Four Thousand Weeks, “To see if we can’t discover, or recover, some ways of thinking about time that do justice to our real situation: to the outrageous brevity and shimmering possibilities of our four thousand weeks.”

If you’re looking for a book on tactics for spending time more effectively, look elsewhere. But if you want to reassess your assumptions about time and self-reflect on how best to spend your precious time, look no further. 

Observations

Reflections and Actions (my Annual Review to help you recap 2022 and crush 2023)

Self reflection and goal setting are critical tools for any leader seeking to create meaningful growth. This year I decided to formalize my year end introspection and goal setting by creating a Reflections and Actions doc. This was designed specifically for my coaching clients but I've decided to make it available for all.

It's a five step process to help you review your personal growth in 2022, assess where you're at currently, and equip you to set meaningful goals and create an action plan for 2023.

If you'd like a copy of Reflections and Actions, simply reply to this email and let me know.   

Leadership Development Tool: Building Trust Within Your Organization

Researcher and author Paul J. Zak has done numerous studies around the importance of trust and how to go about building it at companies. He found that when compared with employees at companies that score low on trust, people at high-trust companies indicate they experience: 

• 74% less stress

• 106% more energy at work

• 50% higher productivity

• 76% more engagement

• 40% less burnout 

This doc shares the three rules of building trust as revealed by Zak in his research.

Gratitudes

I’ve found power in regularly expressing gratitude so I’ll continue the habit. I’m grateful for my youngest child. She’s three, almost four. She makes goofy faces. She says off-the-wall phrases. She makes me laugh. She sits on my lap and gives me hugs and says, “I love you daddy.” When my older kids would hit a certain milestone such as starting school or potty training, I’d get asked if seeing them grow up so quickly made me sad. As an overwhelmed father I was quick to say, not in the least. But as I see my youngest reach these milestones, I do feel a tinge of sadness. Sometimes I wish I could stop time and hold her in my arms the way I can now. I love you, Nae Nae. I’m grateful for you. 

If you've read anything worth sharing I'd love to hear about it. And do let me know if there's anything I can do to help you.  

Nathan

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