Changes & Mondays

Doublesided post.. Changes to this blog and Dealing with Change..

First a little bit of housekeeping. For the past few weeks I’ve been working more closely with our partners at ExchangeDefender as a result of shutting down the partner program to new blood and really trying to work on making our partners more successful. I’ve heard some really horrific stories about business mismanagement, economy, crappy employees – you name it – and the most disheartening part of it all is that the stories are nothing new. It’s the same thing I’ve heard (or some that I’ve experienced myself) thousands of times dealing with entrepreneurial fatigue, fear of the unknown changes, uncertainty, etc.

Everyone I speak to thanks me, writes me thank you notes and stories about how much something I said helped. Truth is none of it is some earth shattering genius of mine, just a matter of experience mixed with a little bit of sounding the problem out showcasing just how obvious the solution is.

It’s inspired me to start delivering more content through Vladville. This blog still has more traffic and eyeballs than everything else I or ExchangeDefender or even Shockey Monkey do.

Look for 3 weekly updates on Vladville.. everything from business, planning, marketing, management, change/conflict management and some emerging technology opinions as well. Please excuse some visual/layout mess in the meantime while I update this beast.

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Depressed?

So true story here:

Throughout the typical day I have more than a few occasions where I feel like something I/we are doing just sucks. Either it’s not meeting my expectations or it’s actually bad. Every time I feel that way I start to fantasize about something I’d rather be doing than dealing with a problem – except the only thing I can do with a real measurable positive outcome is not to avoid the problem but work on it. So I just brush off the whiny attitude and get on with it.

Now, some problems are bigger than just being a petty bitch. I understand that.

Truth is, it’s usually not the really big problems that break us down but a collection of winy little inconveniences that pile on and make it seem like a dark cloud is hovering over us. As they pile, multiply and surface one day after another it just feels like we cannot catch a break.

Take a moment, write down all the problems that are in your head right now. How many of them are petty things that you really could just brush off? How many of them do you have a solid strategy of working around?

The more stuff you let bother you for longer the worse off you’re going to be. It’s far worse to have imaginary problems that are demotivating and beating you down.. than to have real problems that you’re actively working on solving. It may be a nuance, it may just be lying to yourself.. but you can either whine or you can win.

Having said that… here is a short list of shit not to do.

Get drunk. Yeah, it’s a temporary fix and depending on how skilled you are will just bring out more problems. If a problem is big enough to require an investment ($ for booze) then it better be f’n permanent.

Eat unhealthy. There is really no problem big enough (well, bulimia I guess) that cannot be fixed by eating a whole large pizza by yourself. Problems tend to fall into perspective when you’ve stuffed yourself so much you can barely get off the couch. The problem with this is the same as with booze, it’s a temporary distraction from what is really annoying you.

Stay up all night. Nothing compounds problems more like a lack of focus and energy. Staying up all night will double down on this. While it may be great for long-term problems that are directly proportional to the time invested (writing a long paper, f’n government paperwork) for almost everything else it’s a great idea.

TV, DVD, Movies. All temporary, all distractions, none leading to a solution. Get your ass out there an exercise. Get some fresh air, release some endorphins, beat yourself up a little and see how quickly things fall into perspective. If that’s not on the agenda and you absolutely must interact with the TV.. well, that’s why p0rn exists.

Most importantly, don’t pretend you don’t have a problem. Some of the most spectacular failures and blowups I’ve seen among the people in my life have been related to the stress of living a fake life. I’ve seen people whose marriages couldn’t be better snap in half, companies go under and things absolutely ruined. Even if you’re a complete and total scumbag there is a chance that you have people in your life that are willing to talk to you or help you.

Remember, when you have a bad day.. and a few more bad days.. and a few other things go wrong in your life.. things are really not as bad as they may appear to you. Find a friend with an ear (most of us got 2) and talk it out.

Like I said, it’s usually not as bad as it seems. Whatever the problem, don’t expect the worst case scenario.. play for the most likely scenario and just hope for a little bit of luck. And always check that you’re not just surrounded by assholes because nothing will sink you faster than that. As I mentioned on Facebook today:

Whoever is running the factory that’s cranking out stupid people… can you take a day off? The line is wrapping around the building.

Have a good week folks… and happy Monday!