How We Invest in Creating Magic | #30DaysofLearning
I was listening to an audiobook a few months back and a line jumped out at me that made me stop what I was doing and take a moment to reflect. The author said, “Magic happens in 30 days”. Huh… It occurred to me then and there that based on this simple statement, we could create a movement within our company that our team could create magic in just 30 days!
Moving from then to today, I often think about other quotes and ways at which we can improve our works and others around us.
As one of my favorite authors, Robin Sharma wrote, “As you move outside of your comfort zone, what was once the unknown and frightening becomes your new normal.”
Another nugget from Robin states that “The leader who learns the most wins.”
These are two quotes that have stuck with me over time and ones that I reflect upon when I’m working through my own challenges on a daily basis. How as a leader can I both experiment and allow those on the team to move outside of their comfort zone?
Complacency Breeds Failure
Thinking further, I’ve noticed in my career some of my colleagues have an innate passion to continually push themselves and learn new things. You know the people. Always coming up with amazing solutions, seeing the world from a different angle, and executing at a high level. They weren’t world-class when they began their career – it is a learned attribute!
I’ve also realized that at times many others have been complacent and reduced themselves to the “9 to 5”. Even while looking at myself, there are times when I am stagnated and just going through the motions of life and not pushing myself to the next level or not exploring enough by diving into topics that I know very little about and emerging myself in a world where I have to either sink or swim.
It’s therefore with this backdrop of a world where we should all be constantly exploring new and exciting things that I wanted to push myself and our team at Lab651 over the next 30 days. One of our core values at Lab651 is “Always Learning” and I fully believe that you will be mentally happier and future proof your career on your way to mastering your craft. While I’ve been speaking to this over the years, it’s time to start putting our money where our mouth is. If this is really something that we want as part of our DNA, then let’s get the team on board and build the ability for each and every one of us in the company to push ourselves to always be learning.
Putting Words into Action
It’s with great pleasure that we launched our “30 Days of Learning” initiative at Lab651! One in which each employee is paid to learn, share internally each week and blog or video what they have learned to share with the world on ANY topic of their choice. No directive that it needs to benefit Lab651 or even be tangentially related to what we do.
Literally, whatever you find a passion in, you can spend company time learning and then sharing and teaching others what you have learned.
For me this was podcasting! It’s a win-win and such a simple idea and one that I wish I would have uncovered and better understood years ago.
I’m excited to say that we have 10 employees participating in this initiative today and honestly, as I’ve shared with the team, it is one in which I don’t see us ever needing to stop. Why stop after 30 days? Let’s do it for 365 days! If this is core to the DNA of Lab651 and if our employees are learning and growing in whatever subject that is a passion of theirs, then our customers, colleagues, and the business itself will grow stronger. Invest in your team and they will reward you 1,000 times over with their genius, creativity, and perseverance.
Join Us!
So, I invite you to take the journey with us. Already as part of the Lab651 #30DaysofLearning, We have a wide range of topics the team is and will be continuing to share on our blog and YouTube channel. I encourage you to track us as we “level up” our collective knowledge at Lab651 and challenge you to consider within your own organization or even personally, what can YOU learn in the next 30 days that YOU will enjoy and make YOU fulfilled? I believe if you really spend the time thinking about it, you’ll find hundreds of things that you are passionate about, and with just a little time each day, you’ll change your life and make that magic happen in 30 days.
As a final thought. Take this quote to heart:
“Investing in yourself is the best investment you will ever make. it will not only improve your life, it will improve the lives of all those around you.” – Robin Sharma