Being CEO

Idea for team building activity

Chris Labs

You gotta be creative and take that many dollars of budget and make it feel like a trillion dollars of budget. Sam Parr organized a visit to Costco with the employees from The Hustle. In teams of 2 or 4, they were given a 200$ budget and they had 30mins to go into costco and buy the coolest stuff for the office and food for lunch. Everyone was then voting on who had picked the best goods. My First Million, Ep. 299, minute 1:01:10 Continue reading Idea for team building activity

Learnings

You should let your employees modulate their own space the way they want

Chris Labs

In 2010, a study was conducted to see why environment was the best for the employees. Which environment would lead to the most productivity and happiness. They tested 4 layouts: One was stripped down: bare desk, swivel chair, pencil, paper, nothing else. The second layout was softened with pot plants and almost abstract floral images. Workers enjoyed this layout (2nd) more than the minimalist one and got more and better work done there. The third and fourth layouts were superficially similar, yet produced dramatically different outcomes. In each, workers were invited to use the same plants and pictures to decorate … Continue reading You should let your employees modulate their own space the way they want

Learnings

Are you doing this to simply do the best you can do, or are you doing this to do it the best it can be done?

Chris Labs

HIghly productive people don’t accept the limitations of their natural approach as the final word on their success. When they hit a ceiling of achievement, they look for new models and systems, better ways to do things to push them through. […] A different result requires doing something different. Too many people reach a level where their performance is “good enough” and then stop working on getting better. -The One Thing, p.179 Continue reading Are you doing this to simply do the best you can do, or are you doing this to do it the best it can be done?

Being CEO

Watch out: Are you on a Maker’s Schedule or on a Manager’s Schedule? What about your employees?

Chris Labs

“Maker” time requires large blocks of the clock to write code, develop ideas, generate leads, recruit people, produce products, or execute on projects and plans. This time tends to be viewed in half-day increments. “Manager time”, on the other hand, gets divided into hours. This time typically has one moving from meeting to meeting, and because those who oversee or direct tend to have power and authority, “they are in a position to make everyone resonate at their frequency.” This can create a huge conflict if those needing maker time are pulled into meetings at odd hours, destroying the very … Continue reading Watch out: Are you on a Maker’s Schedule or on a Manager’s Schedule? What about your employees?

Learnings

Virality is not born, it is made: Even everyday items can become viral

Chris Labs

It’s a common belief to think that exciting products have a better chance of becoming viral, it might be true. But it’s not a necessity. Back in the days, Blendtec was just starting and they did not have a big marketing budget. At the time, and still to this day, Blenders are not a very exciting topic. But what Blendtec did is put everyday items in the blender and blend them. Marble balls, golf balls, an iPhone, a Samurai sword, etc. They filmed the experiments and posted them on Youtube. In the first week the videos racked up 6 million … Continue reading Virality is not born, it is made: Even everyday items can become viral

Learnings

When sending stuff (to test or review) to people you should always send 2 of them

Chris Labs

…a few years ago, one company did something slightly different. It sent me two copies of the same book. Now, unless I’m mistaken, there’s no reason for me to read the second copy, once I’ve read the first. But these publishers had a different goal in mind. […] but they also mentioned that they sent a second copy so that I could pass it along to a colleague who might be interested. That’s how word of mouth helps with targeting. Rather than sending books to everyone, the publishers got me, and others, to do the targeting for them. Just like … Continue reading When sending stuff (to test or review) to people you should always send 2 of them