Showing posts with label risk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label risk. Show all posts

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Elevator Etiquette 101



Hold on guys, one bumpy ride awaits us. Tie your shoes, respect the personal bubble and try not to spill your red slushy on any white shirts.

Riding in an elevator is similar to that feeling you get riding over a hill too fast. Except the music, I think we can all agree upon that. Elevators are essentially known for three things: unforgettably forgettable toneless music, cliché jokes, fictitious blackout and bully scenes*.

*e.g. Die Hard, James Bond, Taken, The Office, Terminator

What if you got on 1 out of the 900,000 elevators in the US and it blacked out right when you reached your floor? About 3,000 people a year suffer this fate. Wouldn’t you like to know a little about your fellow passengers? With all the deodorant, hidden camera pranks, make-out, music and button happy (think Elf) jokes based on the interior existence of an elevator, we’ve conditioned ourselves to getting on, intently studying our footwear, and getting off.

An average elevator ride is 30-seconds. If you’re lucky you could get a 2-minute ride to make a new friend and establish a new relationship. As author Scott Stratton of UnMarketing says, “If you believe businesses are built on relationships, then make that your business.”

What will you do with those 30 seconds? Well, turn the clock back first. Once you start rushing toward the open elevator, whose jaws of death are closing, you’re reduced to that nightmarish slow-motion torture. It’s closing; you’re already running late and wait, what’s that? A random act of kindness: Allowing you to board, a hand slaps against one of the barricades, blocking its progress.

Scenario 1: You mumble thanks, slap your hand against the number board panel and depending on your palm size…again, think Elf.

Scenario 2: You make eye contact, thank them and find that chitchatting about the weather is a welcome distraction.

This is more than an elevator pitch. It is more than “30 seconds could save 30% on your car insurance” and yes, that math seems faulty. How are you going to spend your elevator ride? Are you going to pitch your personality or are you going to stand in the corner should it all go pitch black?

What do thirty seconds look like on an average day? In 30 seconds you can…

-Boot up your iMac

-Watch 5 Vines

-Floss 7 teeth*
*Unless, for example, you’re a hockey player and have dedicated many of your teeth to the passion of your sport.

-Cook half a meal of *Minute Rice
*Worx is not responsible if you consume partially cooked food.

-Update a Twitter *Post
*With 100 characters to spare. Average typing speed is 38-40wpm.

-Read 125-150 *Words.

Or you can make an elevator connection. You can start a relationship, and you can rest easy knowing that if you should be one of the 3,000 stranded in an elevator, it will not be with a complete stranger.

Friday, August 2, 2013

Feeling a little uncomfortable


I have a business motto that I live by: If it doesn't scare me (at least a little), it's not a good idea. Sounds scary, doesn't it? I agree. But here's the thing, if we always did things that we were comfortable doing, we would live the same life forever.

There are two kinds of fear: 

  1. The feeling when you know something just isn't right, that what you're being faced with is a bad move or decision - follow your gut on this one.
  2. OR the feeling where you know something great is right around the corner, but you're too afraid to take the step towards it - this is the one that gets most of us.

Think back to when you were a child. Everything was unknown! That first time you let go on the merry-go-round, the first time you had a sleep over away from home and the time you took your first bite of what is now your favorite food... although they are all low risk, back then they were huge!

Business is the same way (although some days I wish it were as easy as playing on the playground again). Instead of hiding from fear, embrace it! By taking a risk you open the door to so many possibilities - things that could change your life.

If that risk doesn't work out the way it's supposed to, know that it's ok! Failed attempts are not a sign of weakness but a sign that you've learned an important skill or lesson that will allow you excel at the right time in your life.

The next time an opportunity presents itself and it gives you that unsettling feeling, think about which type of fear it is. Are you going to change your destiny?

Live comfortably by being uncomfortable.


poster by Charly Clements on behance.net