Michael Hyatt's Blog, page 57

We’re Taking Labor Day Off [Announcement]

We’re Taking Labor Day Off

We’re taking Labor Day off. It is a holiday here in the U.S.

According to Wikipedia, Labor Day celebrates the economic and social contribution of workers. The first Labor Day was observed on September 5, 1882. It ultimately became a federal holiday in 1894.

Labor Day is celebrated by most Americans as the symbolic end of the summer. In fact, when I was a boy, school didn’t start until after the holiday. Those were the days!

Enjoy the time with your family and friends.

Why I Broke Up with Slack—And Went Back

The 3 Changes that Made It Work for Me and My Team Again

My team and I have been using Slack as our primary communication platform since June 2014. As we grew, email became unmanageable and other solutions like Basecamp weren’t a fit. After a full-immersion trial, we were sold!

But then we unsold ourselves. It took three years. But, just as email didn’t scale with our growth, neither did Slack.

Why Slack Didn’t Work for Us

We ran into three main limitations with the app, and I’ve heard the same from other users:

Slack made it difficult to track conversations. Slack wasn’t built with threads (topics) as an integral part of the model, so conversations wander from one topic to the next and often back to a previous topic.

Slack made it difficult to find what you’re looking for. I spend an inordinate amount of time trying to find stuff in Slack. The search is robust enough, but, because of a lack of threads, it is very difficult to piece together a conversation. Topics A, B, C, and D might interlace as items are brought up and discussed in the relevant channel. All that needs to get mentally untangled to follow the conversation on just topic A after the fact.

Slack is built on the wrong communication model. Slack works synchronously, like texting or instant messaging. If you’re not careful, you’re always on. That means constant interruption, and time for deep work vanishes. We also have team members in three time zones so the real-time conversation tends to stretch out the day and steal our margin.

These three problems were compounded as the team grew. When there were ten or twelve of us, Slack was manageable. At thirty and growing, we needed something better.

The Switch to Twist

After reading several positive reviews of Twist, I decided it was time for another full-immersion trial. Twist was created by the team that developed ToDoist. It felt very beta when we switched, but the developers were responsive and helpful.

Most of the team was excited about the test. Twist seemed to address our core problems with Slack.

For instance, threaded conversations were baked into the design from the start. Instead of messages going unmediated into channels, as in Slack, in Twist messages fit inside threads that live inside channels. That extra layer of organization keeps the conversations untangled and makes it easy to review them later on.

But it wasn’t enough.

After ten days of using Twist, we decided to go back to Slack.

The vision for Twist was right, but the implementation fell short. The threads, for example, were less visible than they should have been—which defeated the purpose. Also, the notifications were a mess. I found the labels confusing and constantly felt like I was missing something important.

Worst of all, it wasn’t fun to use. Our team culture is core to our business. One of the hidden benefits of Slack that Twist couldn’t deliver was the way it facilitated fun, social interaction with an all-virtual team. Slack did more to shape our culture than we initially realized. Using Twist, I actually felt less connected to my team—and most of them said the same thing.

As disappointing as they were, however, I wouldn’t trade those ten days with Twist. They were invaluable.

Making Slack Work for Us Again

The more we worked with Twist the more we realized how we could improve our experience with Slack. In fact, I’d say we had to go on this journey with Twist to figure out what we really needed from Slack.

It became apparent we could make Slack work for us by making three primary changes. If you’ve struggled with the three main problems I mentioned earlier, I bet these changes could help you as well.

1. Clarify Project Structure

Based on the way we work, we have the following organizational entities:

Teams or Brands
Projects
Sub-projects

Then, of course, we have conversations about these. As our team grew, the complexity of these conversations evolved faster than our channel structure. To return to Slack, we reorganized all of our channels with these three tiers in mind.

How? I’ll use one of our brands, Free to Focus™, to illustrate:

#f2f. We use a three letter channel designation that refers to a top-level brand or team. By itself, this never appears as a channel name. It always has a project designation that follows.

#f2f-general. We created a general channel for every brand or team. If there’s no specific project, the team posts messages in this channel.

#f2f-activation-workshops. For specific projects, we use a channel with a brief description within the top-level brand.

Then, inside the project channels, we use Slack’s aftermarket thread feature to indicate sub-projects. Because threads are easy to miss in Slack, we begin the initial post in a thread with a subject in bold. Sticking with the Free to Focus™ example, inside the #f2f-activation-workshops channel a thread might start as Workshop notebooks. All the conversation about that sub-project now happens in that thread.

The benefit of this approach is that we don’t have to click on the channel to see or access projects. It results in more channels, but so far has kept us organized and efficient.

2. Protect the Structure with Clear Rules

Clarifying project structure only helps if you can keep it clear. For us, that meant establishing new ground rules on channel structure:

Only a few of us are empowered to add a top-level channel (e.g., #f2f).
Anyone else can add a project channel to an existing top-level brand. These channels should be preceded with the appropriate three-letter designator (e.g., #f2f-activation-workshops).
Inside a channel, we default to threaded replies. When we’re about to post, we first check to see if there’s an existing thread. If not, we start a new thread with a topic set off in bold.

3. Set Expectations on Availability

One thing I loved about Twist was how it articulated its philosophy of asynchronous communication. We all need time for deep work. But synchronous communication interrupts our focus. I get this in principle. But it’s a distinction without a difference in practice.

Twist is no more asynchronous than Slack. It all comes down to how you use it. Every member of the team is responsible for managing their own margin and focus time. And that looks different depending on the department or project schedule.

We communicate our availability directly to our teammates as needed, and also use Slack’s status update feature to let others know when we’re out for lunch, going Off Stage, or digging in for some deep work.

There was a lot to love with Twist. It just didn’t work for us as we had hoped. But the test was worth it because it gave us a point of comparison for Slack, created a new sense of what was possible with Slack, and taught us how to better use Slack.

Sometimes an initial solution won’t fix our problems. But it might point us to a better solution if we’re open.

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Sometimes an initial solution won’t fix our problems. But it might point us to a better solution.

—MICHAEL HYATT

Question: What changes have you made recently (at work or home) to better accommodate your current needs? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

4 Benefits of Meditating Every Day

My Team Took the Challenge, and Loved It

In June, some of the Michael Hyatt & Company team signed up for our first month-long mindfulness challenge. Folks meditated every day and reported back in a special Slack channel on what worked and didn’t work for them, and whether or not they found it worthwhile.

You might wonder why we would do this as an organization and if it was a success.

Why We Did It

We undertook the challenge for two reasons. First, Enneagram expert Ian Cron ran a personal development seminar for our entire company at the end of May. He introduced the practice to us, briefly demonstrated it, and suggested we try it out on a larger scale to see if we find it useful.

His challenge became our challenge.

Second, there is a growing body of scientific literature that suggests regular meditation can do great things for people. Here are four likely benefits of meditation, according to researchers:

It reduces anxiety. Meditation tends to reduce the inner chatter that contributes to our anxiety. Even short periods of meditation have delivered lasting benefits for people with anxiety disorders, and would likely benefit those of us who just suffer from regular jitters.

It boosts your focus and attention. Both of these things are in short supply on the job these days and in danger of fragmentation from multitasking and social media. Fortunately, researchers have found that “mindfulness training” likely improves “attention-related behavioral responses” by boosting our ability to focus.

It grows your gray matter. Researchers had expected to find maybe a slight uptick in gray matter in select areas of our brains among folks who regularly meditate. Instead, they are finding “significantly larger gray matter volumes” all over the place.

It helps with pain management. In fact, after just four days of meditation, one study found the unpleasantness and intensity of pain were reduced by 57 and 40 percent, respectively.

This list represents only a few of the observed benefits of meditation according to science. Psychology Today has compiled a much longer list here.

What It Did for My Team

We don’t have any metrics yet, but in the rubber-meets-the road-test most of my teammates who took the challenge are still meditating regularly. We asked if any of those folks who took the challenge would like to share their experience. Here’s some of their feedback:

Our Copywriter Anna McKenzie said that by meditating regularly she “started to understand how noisy my mind actually was, and how I had been allowing cycles (and spirals) of unproductive thoughts to foster anxiety.” Anna said that after she got used to it, she saw that “silent meditation sets me up to listen to God, get clear, and become more self-aware. It offers relief from my internal monologue so I can reset my perspective.”

Executive Support Director Suzie Barbour was skeptical at first. She thought meditation was “silly and just not for me.” But she “decided to give it a try.” She said it was hard with two toddlers running around, but she kept at it and now finds herself “really craving the peace that even a few minutes of mindfulness bring.”

Our Human Resources Manager Danielle Rodgers said the best thing about meditation was that it reminded her of the “wonderful art of remembering to breathe.” Well after the challenge has passed, Danielle often takes “time to breathe deep breaths in the morning after my devotions and prayer time while the house is still quiet, even if only for a moment or two, and the results are priceless.”

If You Want to Do It

The meditation that most of my team tried for a month was a kind of mindfulness meditation. If you want to try that or any other kind of meditation for a month, here is a good place to get started.

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Meditation tends to reduce the inner chatter that contributes to our great anxiety.

—MICHAEL HYATT

Question: Do you have a meditation practice? What benefits have you received? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

One Simple Trick to Bring Out the Best in People

How Leading with Positive Expectations Can Work for You

Winston Lord is a former ambassador to China who once wrote speeches for Henry Kissinger. Looking back, he said he couldn’t “recommend that to anybody.” Why? “You’d have to go through about 20 drafts and many insults before you got to the final speech.”

In one outrageous but true example, Lord took Kissinger a draft of a speech. Kissinger called him into his office the next day. “Is this the best you can do?” he asked. “Henry, I thought so,” Lord answered, “but I’ll try again.”

Next draft—same response. Back to drawing board again … and again … and again. The back-and-forth went on until the ninth draft, when Lord’s patience finally snapped.

“I really got exasperated,” he recalled years later. “I said, ‘Henry, I’ve beaten my brains out. This is the ninth draft. I know it’s the best I can do: I can’t possibly improve one more word.’

“He then looked at me and said, ‘In that case, now I’ll read it.’”

The Trouble with Low Expectations

Imagine if we’d done something like that when I was the CEO of Thomas Nelson! Most of our authors would have bolted and gone to publishers that actually read the first manuscript and worked with the writers to make it better.

Kissinger may be a brilliant man, but his expectations of his own people were far from where they should have been.

And his approach is ultimately counterproductive. When people know they’re going to have to jump through a circus full of flaming hoops no matter what they produce, after a while they’re not going to try to make the first version great.

What can leaders do instead?

Lead With the Positive

Positive expectations can help us at the office, in relationships, and in so many other areas of life.

Here is what St. Paul has to say about positive expectations in one of his letters to the Thessalonians: “And we have confidence in the Lord concerning you, both that you do and will do the things we command you.”

Paul, like all effective leaders, understood that when we communicate positive expectations, people generally want to do what we expect. If we express confidence in them, they don’t want to let us down.

4 Ways to Leverage Positive Expectations

Thankfully, you can cultivate positive expectations—even if they don’t come naturally to you. I have four ways to make that happen. Implement these suggestions and you’ll be surprised how people respond.

Believe the best about people. This may take a leap of faith, but it’s one that usually pays off. Don’t look for every flaw in people. Look for strengths, even hidden ones, that you can help build up.

See them as bigger than they are. People usually think they’re less than they are. So you have to over-dial it just to get them to see what they are capable of. They sell themselves short. You need to see them as good, long-term investments instead.

Make your thinking visible. Spell out your expectations when necessary. Tell them you expect them to do the best they can. When they fall short, you can draw them back to this vision of their best self.

Assume others will do it better than you could. You may be very good at some things, but you’re not great at everything. Don’t let your competence in a few areas lead to the sort of arrogance that lets you dismisses the best efforts of others. They can do amazing things, with a little positive reinforcement.

We usually get what we expect from others, whether we communicate those expectations directly or indirectly. If we want to bring out the best in others, we must intentionally communicate the kind of expectations that will put them in the frame of mind to succeed.

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Don’t look for flaws in people. Look for strengths that you can help build up.

—MICHAEL HYATT

Question: What expectations do you have for those you encounter throughout the day? How does it affect your relationships? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

When Delegation Becomes Abdication

3 Reasons Your Leadership Doesn’t Get the Results You Want

Tell me you’ve had this experience. You assign a task but then forget about it. I sure have. As a leader, I am not a micromanager. That’s good news for my team. But I have to be intentional that delegation doesn’t drift into abdication.

It’s not always disastrous when this happens. If we’ve hired well, our teams bridge the gap and nobody is worse off. But sometimes when assignments fall through the cracks, we create serious problems for ourselves.

I know better, but this happened to me recently.

Backyard Money Pit

I hired a company to completely landscape my backyard. It was a big job, and the contractor projected significant costs and three months to complete.

Both estimates were well off the mark. The job ended up taking almost fifteen months. The contractor didn’t bill more than he had bid, but I had to hire two other contractors to fix parts of the job he goofed and wouldn’t fix. It kills me saying it, but just the salvage job cost an additional $7,000.

Who’s to Blame? Me.

When the job was finally finished, I was angry and wanted to blame the contractor. I thought about writing a negative review on Yelp, complaining to the Better Business Bureau, or even suing him.

But then I took a deep breath and asked myself a question I often use when coaching other leaders: “What was it about my leadership that led to this outcome?”

I asked that question because I believe that many of the negative things that happen in our businesses, and throughout our lives, are the result of faulty leadership. That certainly was the case here.

Ultimately, landscaping my yard was still my job. I had only hired somebody to do it. The great delays and added expense suggested I must not have done something important.

And the thing I didn’t do was provide leadership. I ought to have stayed on top of the landscaping job. When it approached and then blew past the three-month deadline and was clearly not close to being done, I should have had questions for the contractor and prodded him to get the job back on track.

Because I didn’t do any of that until it was very clear that things had gone badly wrong, I let delegation turn to abdication and then paid the price for it.

The 3 Ingredients of Abdication

Maybe you recognize the pattern from similar situations you’ve had. If so, you also probably recognize three key ingredients that commonly contribute to abdication:

1. We’re Unclear on What We Want

Clarity is important for leadership, but some of us try to skip this step because it takes focus and time. We get only a vague, general idea in our heads, if that, and proceed from there. Trouble follows.

2. We Don’t Effectively Communicate Expectations

The second ingredient usually flows from the first. Because we’re unclear on what we want, we can’t effectively communicate our expectations to others. We don’t just task them with filling in some details, we expect them to make up for what is lacking in our vision.

Or sometimes we are clear in our heads and we just do a bad job translating those expectations to those who are supposed to make it happen. We could quickly correct the miscommunication of clear ideas but for ingredient three.

3. A Lack of Visibility and Engagement

After we give them orders, we physically or mentally vacate. We don’t check on their progress because we don’t want to nag or, frankly, to be bothered.

Now, delegation is supposed to free leaders to focus on other priorities. But that only works when we’ve properly set up the task. Instead, what sometimes happens is that we leave it up to others to make important decisions absent clear instructions and hope it all goes well. Then, when everything goes wrong, we wonder what in the world happened!

Well, what happened was that we didn’t actually lead.

Back to Basics

Fortunately, it’s simple enough to correct the problem of abdication. Effective leaders must first get clarity about what we want. Then we need to communicate a desired outcome that is vivid and clear from the beginning, answering any questions team members—employees, contractors, or volunteers—might have.

Oversight is key part of leadership as well, especially for those of us who don’t like to dictate every little detail. We don’t need to look over their shoulders every minute. We do need to make sure, from time to time, that our people are making good progress on the larger tasks we set out for them.

One helpful delegation hack I recommend is learning and communicating the five levels of delegation.

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When things go wrong, ask yourself, “What was it about my leadership that led to this outcome?”

—MICHAEL HYATT

Question: Have you ever allowed a delegated project to slip into neglect? How did you handle it? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

Let Me Be Your Coach in 2018

Join Me in Nashville for the Best Year Ever Live! Event

Earlier this year we did something exciting. I’d hosted a conference for Platform University before. But January 2017 was the first time we’d ever hosted a live version of my popular 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever goal-achievement course.

It was a blast! But there was a problem. It was well into fall when we decided to do the event. And we didn’t announce it until registration opened for the course in December. You can probably guess the problem.

I can’t tell you how many times I heard from people saying they wanted to come but couldn’t make their schedule work on such short notice. I get it. My schedule is normally planned out a year in advance, and moving anything big is a challenge.

So this year I’m opening registration right now for a limited time so anyone who wants to experience Best Year Ever Live! in 2018 has all the runway they need. This is a live, in-person event. Seats are limited to the first 500 people who sign up.

Click Here for Details

Last year was phenomenal. We had attendees from several countries, and the energy in the room was unforgettable. I walked everyone through the five steps necessary to set and achieve significant goals. I also explained the exercises, fielded questions, and interviewed two course alumni to let them share their story from the stage.

Ray Edwards shared how he paid off over $400,000 in consumer debt while driving his business over the million dollar mark for the first time. And Sundi Jo Graham was able not only to dramatically improve her health, she also made major progress with her nonprofit, Esther’s House, a program designed to help young women in crisis turn their lives around.

What about you? At the end of 2018, what would it take for you to look back and say, “That was my best year ever, personally and professionally”? The answer starts with Best Year Ever Live!

Here are just a few things you’ll discover at Best Year Ever Live!, based on the latest goal-setting research:

What makes you 40 percent more likely to achieve your goals, and how to make sure you keep your advantage.
Why so-called “SMART goals” are not enough—and the key ingredients that make the difference between success and failure.
The proper “zone” for setting your goals so you don’t lose interest (Comfort Zone) or fail miserably (Delusional Zone).
The difference between achievement goals and habit goals, and why you need them both.
Why it takes a lot more than twenty-one days to develop a new habit—and three ways to optimize new habit creation.
Why both going public with your goals and keeping them to yourself will short-circuit your results, and how to take a third alternative to quit-proof your goals.

More than 25,000 people have already been through 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever, and have experienced tremendous results. Best Year Ever Live! is the best way I know to step outside the whirlwind and immerse yourself in this proven goal-achievement system. Connect in-person with fellow high-achievers who are determined to make 2018 a transformational year.

Act now and your registration includes:

Evening festivities and networking at my book launch party on January 2, including VIP book signing as well as a complimentary copy of my newest book, Your Best Year Ever: A 5 Step Plan for Achieving Your Most Important Goals.
Instructional workshop sessions from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., January 3–4, where I’ll walk attendees through the new and improved version of 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever.
Printed Best Year Ever workbook, Q&A time with me, and scheduled breaks for networking.
Year-round access to the newest VIP version of the 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever online course.
Early bird pricing that will save you hundreds of dollars.

What would it mean for you and your family if you could finally turn your dreams and aspirations into concrete achievements? Not only would it propel you to a completely new level of experience, confidence, and accomplishment, but it would likely have a domino effect on your life for years to come.

I’ve seen it thousands of times with Best Year Ever alumni, and this could be your chance to join them.

This early bird opportunity won’t last, and neither will our tickets. We expect to completely sell out on or before August 25 at midnight Pacific.

Register now to reserve your spot!

How Introverts and Extroverts Can Get Along

3 Things We Both Need to Know to Make It Work

Sometimes I think that introverts and extroverts are from different planets, and I am not alone in picturing it that way.

Quiet Revolution co-founder Susan Cain calls the distance from introversion to extroversion the “single most important aspect of personality.” One leading scientist calls it the “north and south of temperament.”

In her book Quiet, Cain explains that the introvert-extrovert dynamic “influences our choice of friends and mates, and how we make conversation, resolve differences, and show love. It affects the careers we choose and whether or not we succeed at them.”

The Odd Couple

For instance, an introvert and an extrovert can find themselves married to one another or working in the same offices. And if they are not conscious of their differences, watch out.

I am speaking from personal experience here. I have been married to my wife Gail for almost 40 years. She is an extrovert. I am an introvert. In the early years of our marriage, this was a source of constant friction.

Frankly, it’s a miracle we got through it alive and with our marriage still intact.

Not What You Expected

When people think of introverts and extroverts, there are plenty of misconceptions. Many people wrongly assume that I am an extrovert because I became the CEO of a large company and do a lot of public speaking.

But things are not always what they seem. Many leaders I know are introverts. They’ve learned to “turn it on” when they need to, yet are far more comfortable away from the crowds and the lights.

Different Batteries

The real difference between introverts and extroverts is in what energizes us. Ask yourself, “Where do I get my energy: by being alone or by being with others?” Conversely, you could ask, “What drains me?”

Introverts like me are energized by being alone. People drain us. Extroverts like Gail are energized by others. Being alone drains them. There are exceptions. I also enjoy being with people sometimes and she enjoys some time alone. But this is not our dominant mode of renewal.

A Guide to the Differences

To explain the difference in how introverts and extroverts interact with the world, I’ll show you how Gail and I see things differently in 3 broad social areas of life.

1. Circle of Friends

I am content to spend time with a small, tight-knit circle of friends. I am not really interested in meeting anyone else. I have enough friends, thank you very much.

Gail, on the other hand, views strangers as “friends-she-hasn’t-yet-met.” She loves meeting new people. The more the merrier.

2. Rest and Relaxation

My idea of a great vacation is being somewhere alone—just the two of us. I want to spend the time reading or taking quiet walks.

Gail wants to meet the locals and go on sight-seeing adventures. The more activities, the better.

3. Regular Social Functions

I want to leave immediately after church. Being with all those people is exhausting!

Gail can’t wait to get to coffee hour. And she takes the hour part seriously. If she is not the last one to leave, she feels cheated.

Different Strokes

You may ask yourself, “Which perspective is right?” But that’s not the right way of thinking about it. The truth is that you need both. Our marriage is so much richer because we are able to draw from two perspectives.

My introversion ensures that we go deep and make time to nourish our souls. Her extroversion ensures that we don’t get stuck there, focused exclusively on ourselves. We reach out to others—and that’s a good thing.

The key to getting along with your opposite personality type in marriage, at the office, or in other social situations is in learning to appreciate one another.

If you’re living or working with an introvert, give him space to be alone and don’t guilt trip him for not being more social.

And if your spouse or colleague is an extrovert, allow her the freedom to socialize without getting annoyed when she isn’t ready to leave at the same time you are.

See if you can learn something and even enjoy yourself while you’re spending time with this creature from another planet.

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The key to getting along is in learning to appreciate one another.

—MICHAEL HYATT

Question: What is your primary orientation? What about your spouse or colleague? If they are different, how do you cope with them? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

We Just Made the Inc. 5000… Because of You

3 Reasons Why Your Growth Fueled Ours

I’m excited to announce that Michael Hyatt & Company was just named to the Inc. 5000, which ranks America’s fastest-growing private companies. The accomplishment not only makes me feel proud of our work, it makes me feel grateful for you: our readers and customers.

To compile the list, Inc. magazine tracks three-years’ worth of growth. Over those three years, Michael Hyatt & Company grew 330 percent. We’re ranked 1,235 out of 5,000 who made the list. There are about 26 million businesses in America, so that’s quite an achievement. And we owe it to you.

The Struggle is Real

Based on years of interaction with my audience, I know you’re a well-educated, high achiever who wants to exceed the status quo in every area of life. And that’s important. Because when people like you reach your full potential,

businesses have leaders people strive to emulate;
our country is full of happy marriages;
kids have their moms and dads at night; and
you have the health and vitality necessary to fuel your dreams.

One intentional choice at a time, you make the world around you better.

But it isn’t easy, is it? Sometimes we feel like bad amateur plate spinners, just trying to keep it all going. As my daughters say, the struggle is real.

As a successful entrepreneur or leader, you feel as if life is coming at you faster than you can manage it. Time is short, your to-do list is long, and the important things never seem make the list, at least not as often as you want.

I understand those dynamics and have worked to create frameworks and tools to help high achievers cut through the distractions, stay productive, and make more margin in their lives for what matters most. And you’re the reason I do it.

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One intentional choice at a time, you make the world around you better.

—MICHAEL HYATT

We Grow When You Do

As I see it, we’re growing because you are—in at least three ways.

Winning at work. I first started blogging and podcasting to share my insights about productivity. Over the years, I’ve learned and refined my discoveries into frameworks and tools like Free to Focus and the Full Focus Planner. Your investment in resources like these has propelled our business forward—and hopefully your life as well.

Workplace engagement is down the world over, but I see an overwhelming number of our readers, customers, and coaching clients who are thriving in their work. Of course, by itself, that’s not enough.

Succeeding at life. Life is interconnected. If you win at work but fail in the life’s other domains, you won’t be able to maintain that success. Eventually the bill comes due, and it’ll cost you your relationships, your health, and more.

You know that and strive for not only balance but forward momentum in all areas of life. Books like Living Forward and our 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever course (soon to be book!) have helped well over a hundred thousand people so far not only reach their goals, but also build healthy marriages, preserve margin, and invest in significant relationships and personal vitality.

Leading with confidence. When you’re winning at work and succeeding at life, you can lead from a place of confidence—and that only grows the more you step into it. And as I explain here, you learn you have the capabilities, resources, and strategies to overcome challenges and reach your objectives.

What I love most about this part of our business is that it’s an upward spiral. I see it all the time in our audience. As they get traction, their confidence tends to build and grow. What once seemed impossible becomes relatively easy. And then it’s time for bigger, more significant goals.

There’s one more part to this success story I want to mention because it exemplifies what I’ve said so far in another way.

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

I put a huge value on my team. There’s a reason Michael Hyatt & Company landed on the Inc. 5000 list. I couldn’t have served you to the level I have without the creativity, energy, and enthusiasm of my team.

I can’t tell you how much joy it gives me to see them winning at work, succeeding at life, and leading with confidence.

I’ve written before about the dangers of retirement. I can’t say it’s a temptation for me. Every day I come to work I get the chance to help leaders like you do what you do best, and work side-by-side with some of my favorite people in the world.

Thank you!

Question: How can we better help you win at work, succeed at life, and lead with confidence? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

Want to Earn a Living Creating? Here’s Your Mountain

4 Truths You Need to Know to Get to the Top

At this point in my career, I’ve sold a lot of books. But I was hardly an overnight success. First came work in publishing and agenting. I learned how book sales worked—and didn’t work—well before I published a word of my own.

I want to use my experience here to puncture a thought bubble I encounter when talking with would-be writers and other creatives. I call it the Romantic View of Creativity. It’s not only dead wrong; if you fall for it, it will sabotage your success.

Wrong but Romantic

There are four main false assumptions in the Romantic View of Creativity (which parallels the Myth of the Starving Artist). Here they are:

The creative life is easy, if not effortless. It beats “real work,” in other words.
People will seek you out. Your creative fires will just burn that bright.
People will love you for your art. They will be happy to have such a rare individual in their midst.
You’ll easily make a living at this. And you might even get rich!

I am not exaggerating here. I have encountered creatives and other entrepreneurs who believe one, two, or all of these things. When these assumptions prove false, they often get discouraged and stuck. Some throw in the towel and quit before they’ve accomplished anything significant.

It’s a real shame—and also unnecessary.

What Creatives Need to Hear

The opposite of the four points above is closer to the truth. This will not be easy, and there are no guarantees of success. But you shouldn’t let that stop you, because there is good news here as well. Here are four truths you need to climb the mountain.

1. Real Creativity Involves Significant Work

Anders Ericsson is a psychologist at Florida State University who did the research behind the “10,000 Hour Rule,” as it was slightly misreported in the popular press.

In his book Peak, Ericsson urged readers to forget the 10,000 figure and focus on the now well-documented fact that mastery in almost any field or art form is the result of practicing a specific task for a long time, often thousands of hours.

Whether you want to be a great author, musician, painter, or comedian, it takes practice. You can’t just show up and expect most people to appreciate your unrefined talent. You must put in the hard work to intentionally practice and invest in your craft.

With respect to writing books—a field I know quite well—doing the work requires you to:

Come up with a great idea
Develop a proposal
Find an agent
Shop the proposal
Secure a publishing contract
Write the book
Rewrite the book
Submit it to outside editors
Process their edits
Finalize the manuscript

It’s not easy. This all requires significant effort. Successful writers have to be incredibly disciplined to pull it off. And you’re only just getting started at this point.

2. Real Creativity Requires Significant Promotion

Many years ago, an author told me, “Look, my job is to write the books. Your job is to promote them.” He was simply out of touch with reality.

Successful publishing requires that the author both write the book and assist in its promotion. I understand why many authors are uncomfortable promoting their own work, but this inclination is misguided. If you have invested the hours creating the work and really believe in it, why wouldn’t you want to get the work out to as many people as possible?

It is more important than ever to have a platform. When evaluating potential projects, the first question we asked when I was Thomas Nelson’s CEO was about the book’s content. The second question was about the author’s reach. It was rare for us to offer a contract to a new author who didn’t have a built-in audience that might buy the book.

3. Real Creativity Invites Criticism

From a distance, fame looks very attractive. Famous people are endlessly praised and adored, right? Wrong. Any time your head rises above the crowd, someone is liable to take a shot at you.

It’s easy to lose perspective when folks hurl those criticisms. I can receive one hundred positive comments, yet one negative barb will throw me for a loop. I suddenly think that everyone hates me, and I am ready to quit.

So take it from a fellow criticism sufferer that what you need is not an absence of criticism but perspective. It helps to sort the criticisms as they come in into three different camps: friends, critics, and trolls.

Friends love you and are willing to share with you the truth, even if it hurts a little bit.
Critics don’t have anything personal against you; they simply disagree with you.
Trolls are spoiling for a fight. They attack you because something is wrong with their heart. My best advice is to ignore them. If you engage them, it only strengthens their resolve.

4. Real Creativity Can Be Profitable, with Deliberate Action

For some reason, artists (and even some entrepreneurs) often have an uneasy relationship with money. They undervalue their work. They sell from their heels. This prevents them from taking the steps to make it pay enough to survive and prosper.

This makes little sense. Even the Bible implies that we should not feel guilty about charging for our work. As the Apostle Paul says, “A laborer is worthy of his hire.” If it’s any good, creative work is real labor.

When you put a price on something, you create value. Art that is offered freely without charge is often disregarded. In other words, if you, as the artist, don’t think it is worth anything, why should I? This is why I don’t think giving your work away for free is good for you or for the recipient. In fact, here’s a post on why you should do it for the money.

If you truly believe in your work, charge for it and find a way to raise your rates as your skills improve.

Don’t Be Scared

I hope that none of these truths scare off creatives who want to make a living from their talents. As truths go, these are not even that hard to swallow.

What I’m saying is don’t fall for the Romantic View of Creativity. It’s going to take practice, promotion, a thicker skin, and an eye for the bottom line. Some of these things may come easier to you than others but they ought to all be possible, if you set out to master them and keep at it.

You may not be good at these disciplines to start with, but think of it this way: How long did it take you to color in the lines, draw that bow string without squeaking, or craft the perfect opening sentence? Keep at it and you may be surprised what you achieve.

“

If you truly believe in your work, charge for it. Art that is offered freely is often disregarded.

—MICHAEL HYATT

Question: Which of these assumptions about creative work do you need to reconsider? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

What to Do When You Are Forced to Wait

5 Strategies When Patience Doesn't Come Easy

I am good at a few things. But waiting is not one of them. Whether it’s being put on hold when I call a business, sitting in the waiting room of my dentist’s office, or standing in the airport security line, I am impatient.

Thinking about this, I was reminded of a time when my granddaughter, Libby, landed in the emergency room. She had been showing strange symptoms for a couple of years. Finally, after Libby got violently sick, my daughter, Mindy, took her to the emergency room.

The hospital was unusually busy, so they sat for more than four hours before getting in to see a doctor. He ordered some tests, but you know how that goes: more waiting. The ordeal seemed like it would never end.

At various points our lives, we’re all waiting for something important. Perhaps you are waiting for:

Word that you landed that job you want
News about a possible raise or promotion
Mr. or Ms. Right to show up
Your pregnancy test results
The judge’s decision on your court case
A response to an important email
Approval for a loan
The answer to a prayer
The pain to stop

While I’m still not very good at waiting, I have gotten better. Here are five strategies I am currently using:

Embrace it. I don’t believe anything happens by chance. To say it another way, everything happens for a reason. If I am waiting, there is something for me to learn. Waiting might actually be a gift.

Ask the right questions. I’ve blogged about this recently. An unhelpful question would be “Why can’t they hurry up?” or even “Why is this taking so long?” A better question is “What can I learn while I am waiting?” or “How will this kind of waiting make me stronger?”

Redeem the time. There are lots of things you can do while you are waiting if you are prepared. This is why I rarely go anywhere without my iPad. Worst case, I can read a book on my iPhone.

Encourage someone else. One of the best things you can do when you are waiting is get the attention off yourself. I have to keep reminding myself, “It’s not all about me.” Encouraging someone else while I am waiting doesn’t solve my own problem, of course. But it makes me feel like I am at least doing something—and making a positive contribution.

Trust God. This is the difficult but important part. God has not forgotten about you or me. He not only knows exactly what we need; he knows when we need it. His timing is perfect. I like how Jesus showed up in the story about Lazarus. It looked like he was two days late. His friend had died. But he arrived right on time—for what he wanted to do.

Back to Libby. The good news is that she’s been well now for several years. In fact, she just started seventh grade!

When it comes to patience, I need more schooling as well. Suffice it to say, I have a lot more to learn. This is not easy for me. But I certainly get plenty of opportunities.

Question: What’s your best strategy for coping while you wait? You can leave a comment by clicking here.