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The Newsletter | Edition 024
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In our Off-White Papers, we provide practical guidance on how to respond to our rapidly-changing world. This weekly newsletter explores those topics in real-time, with information and action steps on how to make progress now.
IN TODAY'S NEWSLETTER...
- Focus beyond your imperfections from Jillian Rosen-Filz
- Don't jump to conclusions from Jenny Cavaioli
- Why paring down gives more in return from Joey Camire
And this time, our illustrations from Katie Sadow.
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THE WORST RESOLUTIONFrom Jillian Rosen-Filz
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TL;DR
The Atlantic points out a less enticing part of the New Year’s Resolutions our culture glorifies. This time of year, while exciting and always full of promise at the start, is also a moment in which we’re glaringly focused on our inadequacies and imperfections, often, to our detriment.
WHY IT MATTERSI think I can safely speak for all of us when I say that we're ready to turn over a new leaf, to set goals and make plans. But isn’t there something problematic about a culture that commodifies our imperfections? For business leaders embarking on their own 2021 resolutions, resets, or rebrands for themselves, their work, or office culture, it’s time to refocus on moving forward.
ONE THING YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW
Take ample time to envision change for your business, responding to new needs and behaviors.
THOUGHTSThere’s merit in self-improvement, but the practice becomes performative, and so less impactful, when we can’t accept our imperfections. Resolutions are about moving forward, not looking back.
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FOCUS ON THE APPLICATION,
NOT THE ABSTRACTFrom Jenny Cavaioli
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TL;DRA high-school sophomore took matters into his own hands, frustrated that the curriculum he was learning was teaching students how to perfectly construct solutions rather than enabling them to understand the human needs those solutions would fix. Taking matters into his own hands, like many of the entrepreneurial minds he sought inspiration from, Luke Harris looked to his own curiosity and ingenuity and thought beyond existing models to develop a new solution to an old problem—a gap in education and application.
WHY IT MATTERSJumping to design perfect solutions isn’t just how things are done in schools, it’s rampant in organizations. As we start in on this new year, the not-so-new practice of human-centered design may be more important than ever. Looking back, 2020 put pressure on systems, structures, and people in ways we never anticipated. Looking forward in 2021, we need to put people’s needs at the core of making and doing, rather than optimizing solutions that worked in the past. For leaders of teams or projects, empower your team to collaborate with the research team or to be trained on research methods to get the kernel of truth underlying the challenge. And then ensure that kernel is carried through the end-to-end process.
ONE THING YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW
Approach those experiencing the problem you want to solve and get to know their journeys before digging into the points of friction.
THOUGHTSIt’s easy to jump to the solution, but putting time and energy towards deeply understanding what needs to be solved and why will make your "how" much stronger and more sustainable. Once that need is defined, make sure it’s shared with all teams and individuals working on a project. Too often, research, strategy, design, and development are done in isolation when they could all benefit from a shared “why."
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DELETE YOUR SAVED GAMEFrom Joey Camire
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TL;DROne of the most crucial aspects of embracing a reset is not simply identifying the behaviors, habits, or systems you want to create—it’s the process of identifying and eliminating the “default behaviors” that are unconsciously getting in your way.
WHY IT MATTERSHere’s the thing—whether it’s Atomic Habits, Tiny Habits, or some other habit book, Medium Habits?—those pre-disposed towards action and productivity tend to think through the lens of creation. Let’s face it, if you’re reading this, there is a good chance you might be described as “Type-A.” And while that orientation towards action is one we deeply empathize with—*cough* Progress Report *cough* inspiration for action—one of the most important aspects of resetting yourself for a new year and new behaviors is eliminating old ones.
It’s important to recognize that the things you eliminate can be behaviors—“stop apologizing for things that aren’t your fault”—but can also be thoughts. The article cited above is based on a groundbreaking OCD treatment for eliminating thought processes that are hindering your life. The practice, and convenient ‘re’ structure of relabel, reattribute, refocus, and revalue, can help you eliminate thoughts like feeling guilty when you sign-off for the evening, or like you failed when outcomes don’t match expectations.
You deserve a reset after 2020, and that means pulling a Marie Kondo on your behaviors like they’re old jeans. For leaders, this practice will help to declutter your headspace and make way for new vision, clear goals, and fresh ideas, for you, your team, and your business. Ones that will actually serve you in this new year.
ONE THING YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW
If you plan to add a new behavior to your daily practice, cut one that’s holding you back first.
THOUGHTSInstead of pretending “new year, new me” is an achievable ideal, try paring down existing habits for a more accessible path that will ultimately make you feel, and perform, better. This “default behavior” list has some good thought starters for your workday, like prioritizing your important tasks straightaway, rather than “clearing the decks.” It’s this kind of housekeeping on the simple things, with outsized impact, that will improve your state of mind, and keep you on track to achieve those bigger goals.
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