Staying Friends With People Who Kick You In The Head

I’ve learned so many lessons from my kickboxing coaches I can dedicate a whole book to them: but let’s start with one that I directly applied to my work.

I recently faced criticism about my work in my new job. My reaction was to go on the offensive - I wanted to blame my boss for not explaining things clearly, my colleagues for scolding me, my HR manager for claiming the work environment was “supportive”.

Then I remembered what our coach says at the end of every training session - that we are all friends. He reminds us that kickboxing is a combat sport, that things can get heated up, and that we may hurt each other in the process. But in the end, we are all friends.

Remembering this was almost like a hidden reflex - and it immediately made me feel calmer. I realized the critique wasn’t to make me feel bad or insult me, but instead, to point out issues I could fix, improving the work of our department. Just as training partners don’t kick you in the head because they want to hurt you, but to make you improve your defense, so too colleagues point out things you could improve for your benefit.

Of course, just as there are those who want to show their dominance over you in training, so too there are coworkers who want to put you down, and you should be aware of this. But I’ve found the majority of people want to help.

So next time you face criticism, think whether its aim is to genuinely hurt you… or to help you get better! Because at the office, as well as the gym, we are all friends at the end.

Shelf Shocks

1. Building a Second Brain: A Proven Method to Organise Your Digital Life and Unlock Your Creative Potential by Tiago Forte 

If you are like me, you have an endless list of notes on your phone, on your email, in your notebook, on post-it notes, on the side of your dog… Wouldn’t it be nice if you had a system for organizing all of that information?

This is what Tiago Forte offers in his book on organizing your digital life. He will show you why your current methods of information management may be unoptimized and how you can begin to structure your knowledge in a more clear and efficient way.

2. The Startup of You: Adapt, Take Risks, Grow Your Network, and Transform Your Career by Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha

On 5th May, LinkedIn celebrated its 20th birthday. For the occasion, I started Linkedin founder Reid Hoffman's book The Startup of You. Its main concept is that you should treat your career like a start-up: be quick to adapt, meet the right partners, pursue new opportunities, never stop learning and pivoting.

Hoffman shares inspiring and educational stories of how companies and entrepreneurs have applied these concepts in practice and how this has improved their careers and businesses. The book is packed with good ideas and will help you find new and creative ways to improve your career.

3. Obviously Awesome: How to Nail Product Positioning so Customers Get It, Buy It, Love It by April Dunford

Find your brand’s “secret sauce” with this manual from April Dunford. She is an expert with a 25-year career as VP of marketing in several successful startups. She shares practical examples and anecdotes to help you understand how your brand’s positioning attracts the right customers and protects you from competitors.

The “meat” of the book is the 10-step positioning process, which will help you understand your product and audience and find the best way to crystalize your positioning for best results.

Helpful Articles

1. 2023 Creator Economy Benchmark Research 

Consider yourself a content creator? Aspire to become one full-time in the future? Then you should be aware of what the data shows about the realities of this style of work.

The Tilt have surveyed over 1000 creators to compile this epic report, asking big questions like what they do all day and how they make their money.

The report includes revealing data on how creators monetize their work and what is their biggest objective, then tops it off with the 5 top tips for making the switch to a full-time creator.

2. How To Think In Funnels (And Achieve The Best Possible Outcomes)

We are all familiar with the marketing funnel, but the concept can also be applied to your personal goals.

Applying the AIDA (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) model to your goals will help you break them down into smaller steps. The great thing about funnels is they help you focus on numbers and measure conversion rates as you move down. This allows you to test and measure more effectively.

Funnels also normalise having “leakage” down the funnel - as in, some ideas will fail, and this is okay. Focus on what goes down, not what leaks out.

3. Social Media Manager Mental Health Survey Results 2023

HeyOrca surveyed professionals in the social media industry on their mental health. Their research shares how many of them have dealt with burnout (good news: fewer than in last year), what attributed to their struggles and what they did to improve.

The article offers some amazing guidance for dealing with mental health struggles, such as taking walks before & after work to create separation from the workspace and “Listening to birds singing on YouTube while working”.

Fun Links

1. Meco app - Newsletter Reader

Do you love newsletters? So do I!

The problem with subscribing to a million newsletters is they tend to overwhelm your inbox, and you end up missing important emails in the deluge. If only there was a solution…

Meco is an app that synchs with your Gmail and filters out newsletters to a separate, focused inbox. This allows you to carry on using your email for regular tasks, while having all your precious newsletters stored safely in the app. Try it!

2. Mage Space - Fast AI Image Generator

Do you need a quick AI image generator? Like really quick?

Advanced tools like Mindjourney offer endless possibilities, but they require you to spend time setting them up. Mage space removes that hassle by allowing you to generate an image from a prompt.

The tool’s simplicity makes it stand out, even though the images it generates on its free tier may not always be the best quality.

3. The Deep Sea

Do you know what horrors lie 10,000 meters below the sea’s surface? Neal Agarwal’s impressive website is an interactive encyclopedia on the deep sea, packed with fun information on aquatic life. It will put the ocean in perspective and make you appreciate how much of life’s awesomeness (and terror) is hidden underwater.

If you’d like to see one of my favourite deep-sea creatures, I present you the Telescope fish!

You've reached the end of my newsletter. Hooray! If you have any comments or would like to share what you enjoyed the most, feel free to get in touch! See you in two weeks!