Likes & Launch
Month
A good friend of mine forwarded this email from Tara Mohr a few months ago. It’s been sitting in my inbox and has repeatedly served as a good source of information (men, you’ll likely gleam some wisdom here too so read on). Now, time to share!
I coach brilliant women, lots of them. Dedicated, talented, brilliant women.
Most of the time, they don’t know their brilliance. They are certain
they “aren’t ready” to take on that next bigger role. They are more
attuned to the ways they aren’t qualified than to the ways that they
are. They are waiting for someone to validate, promote or discover
them. Sound familiar?
It’s time to step up, brilliant women. Here are ten principles for
owning your brilliance and bringing it to the world:
1. Make a pact. No one else is going to build the life you want
for you. No one else will even be able to completely understand it.
The most amazing souls will show up to cheer you on along the way, but
this is your game. Make a pact to be in it with yourself for the long
haul, as your own supportive friend at every step along the way.
2. Imagine it. What does a knock-the-ball-out-of-the-park life
look like for you? What is the career that seems so incredible you
think it’s almost criminal to have it? What is the dream you don’t
allow yourself to even consider because it seems too unrealistic,
frivolous, or insane? Start envisioning it. That’s the beginning of
having it.
3. Gasp. Start doing things that make you gasp and get the
adrenalin flowing. Ask yourself, “What’s the gasp-level action here?”
Your fears and a tough inner critic will chatter in your head. That’s
normal, and just fine. When you hear that repetitive, irrational, mean
inner critic, name it for what it is, and remember, it’s just a
fearful liar, trying to protect you from any real or seeming risks. Go
for the gasps and learn how false your inner critic’s narrative really
is, and how conquerable your fears.
4. Get a thick skin. If you take risks, sometimes you’ll get a
standing ovation, and sometimes, people will throw tomatoes. Can you
think of any leader or innovator whom you admire who doesn’t have
enthusiastic fans and harsh critics? Get used to wins and losses,
praise and pans, getting a call back and being ignored. Work on
letting go of needing to be liked and needing to be universally known
as “a nice person.”
5. Be an arrogant idiot. Of course I know you won’t, because you
never could. But please, just be a little more of an arrogant idiot.
You know those guys around the office who share their opinions without
thinking, who rally everyone around their big, (often unformed) ideas?
Be more like them. Even if just a bit. You can afford to move a few
inches in that direction.
6. Question the voice that says “I’m not ready yet.” I know, I
know. Because you are so brilliant and have such high standards, you
see every way that you could be more qualified. You notice every part
of your idea that is not perfected yet. While you are waiting to be
ready, gathering more experience, sitting on your ideas, our friends
referenced in rule five are being anointed industry visionaries,
getting raises, and seeing their ideas come to life in the world. They
are no more ready than you, and perhaps less. Jump in the sandbox now,
and start playing full out. Find out just how ready you are.
7. Don’t wait for your Oscar. Don’t wait to be praised, anointed,
or validated. Don’t wait for someone to give you permission to lead.
Don’t wait for someone to invite you to share your voice. No one is
going to discover you. (Well, actually, they will, but paradoxically,
only after you’ve started boldly and consistently stepping into
leadership, sharing your voice, and doing things that scare the hell
out of you.)
8. Filter advice. Most brilliant women are humble and open to
guidance. We want to gather feedback and advice. Fine, but recognize
that some people won’t understand what you are up to (often because
you are saying something new and ahead of your time). Some people will
find you to be not their cup of tea. Some will feel threatened. Some
people will want to do with your idea only what is interesting or
helpful to them. So interpret feedback carefully. Test advice and
evaluate the results, rather than following it wholesale.
9. Recover and restore. If you start doing the things that make
you gasp, doing what you don’t quite feel ready to do, and being more
of an arrogant idiot, you are going to be stretching out of our
comfort zone–a lot. Regularly do things that feel safe, cozy, and
restorative. Vent to friends when you need to. Acknowledge the steps
you’ve taken. Watch your tank to see how much risk-taking juice you
have available to you. When it’s running low, stop, recover and
restore.
10. Let other women know they are brilliant. Let them know what kind
of brilliance you see, and why it’s so special. Call them into greater
leadership and action. Let them know that they are ready. Watch out
for that subtle, probably unconscious thought, “because I had to
struggle and suffer on my way up…they should have to too.” Watch out
for thinking this will “take” too much time - when the truth is it
always has huge, often unexpected returns.
Clear a path by walking it, boldly.
Tara Mohr is a writer, coach and creator of the Wise Living blog which offers tools for living a more authentic, joyful life. Click here to receive her free unconventional goals guide, “Turning Your Goals Upside Down and Inside Out (To Get What You Really Want).”
I thought today was an interesting day. After weeks of doing the juggling act of pitching investors, pitching potential customers, negotiating deal terms, filling out paperwork, dealing with people that are still trying to get that “little bit extra” — you close your round and you get funded.
…
Great post! The day after you get funding, just like the day after you launch, is the exact time you need to work 3X harder. Funding is not an end goal - it’s the catalyst to build a growing, successful business.
The birth of the ‘Alive Web’ — Tech News and Analysis
Reason #2,309,409 the internet is the best industry to be working in. So excited for what’s next!
AYN RAND
Now go, build your fire.
Say hello to the alive web! — Tech News and Analysis
Great look my Om Malik on the future of the web.
You won’t do it at the right time.
You’ll be late.
You’ll be early.
You’ll get re-routed.
You’ll get delayed.
You’ll change your mind.
You’ll change your heart.
It’s not going to turn out the way you thought it would.
It will be better.
By Rachel Ressner
Many people cherish vacation as an opportunity to relax and disconnect. Then there are those who would sooner jet to the Sahara Desert than forfeit access to their favorite social media while far from home.
Brand activists fall into the latter group. They seize every…
“Any generation of smart people will be drawn to where the money is, and right now it’s the ad generation,” says Steve Perlman, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur
Minyanville (via jonathanmarcus)
I’ve done some Groupon bashing of my own, but on this point I think it’s worth defending them a bit. First of all, many merchants have begun to see daily deal campaigns as a new line of credit - you get a whole bunch of cash and you don’t have to pay it back (in the form of cost of goods sold or services rendered) until people come redeem their vouchers. So Groupon’s decision to hold the money for 60 days means they avoid doing deals with desperate companies who would use the Groupon cash to make payroll, as those companies are at risk of going bankrupt before all vouchers have been redeemed.
Secondly, sitting on a float like this is something companies like Amazon do as well. When you buy a book, you pay Amazon as soon as the item ships. Amazon doesn’t have to pay their transaction costs for 30-45 days, so they can take the extra cash and invest it. You could argue that there is a big difference between 60 days and 30 days, but the concept is the same.
(via caterpillarcowboy)
Great remarks. Had a similar conversation yesterday about trade terms. While working at American Express I learned a lot about Trade Terms. Net60 is not uncommon for businesses. It’s why the Plum Card was built with either an early pay discount or Net60 terms. American Express did their diligence to create a product that reflected the way businesses operated.
Secondly, much agreed, there has been a lot of Groupon bashing this week but I think they have a plan. I think much in the way that Amazon wasn’t about selling books, Groupon is not about selling daily deals. It’s about the power of the network of merchants and consumers. I’m excited to see where the company heads in the next few years. They have a lot of smart, experienced people thinking about their business.
[Full disclosure, two of the Groupon cofounders sit on gtrot’s board. Proximity doesn’t provide me any more insight. Opinions expressed here are all my own.]
