Entrepreneur, Professional Learner, & Proud Failure. Writes about sales, marketing, and entrepreneurship from the eyes of a learning and development nerd. Lead teams, manage people, scale a business, and learn better through the biweekly irreverent newsletter, the TL;DR.
A bi-weekly roundup of 1-1 human connection February 3 - February 16 Building Team Trust Happens One-on-OneIn the world of fast-paced work, efficiency reigns supreme. We schedule every minute, fill calendars with meetings, and chase deadlines with laser focus. Yet, amidst the organized chaos, something crucial often gets lost: genuine, unstructured time for human connection. This is where the humble 1-on-1, often relegated to “that thing we usually cancel,” takes on a whole new meaning. Think of these 1-1s as an opportunity to shift gears – move away from the daily grind and engage in a heart-to-heart engine tune-up, ensuring everyone's running smoothly. It's a safe space to ditch the PowerPoint slides and delve into the human element of teamwork. Regular 1-1s become rearview mirrors for our blind spots, allowing us to spot communication breakdowns and course-correct before reaching a dead end. But why prioritize unstructured time in the age of hyper-productivity? Here's why:
Of course, making the most of unstructured time in 1-1s requires intentionality. Here are some tips:
Just like a car needs regular pit stops, teams need 1-1s to refuel trust, understanding, and creativity, ultimately powering them through the journey together. So, go ahead, schedule those 1-1s, ditch the agenda, and embrace the power of human connection. Sometimes the most productive conversations happen when we simply show up, listen deeply, and allow ourselves to truly connect. A TL;DR from the CROI love doing walk-and-talk 1-1s: it really frees you. -Roman Noodles, Chief Ruff Officer TL;DRs From Around the Miro-verseOne of my favorite platforms for doing work is Miro. It is a visual whiteboard that makes planning, workshops, and documentation far more visually engaging than a Google Doc or *ack* a Confluence Site. Here's a few Miro boards that spark joy:
ROCK TUMBLING UPDATEAfter almost two months, these large amethysts have finally exited the Rock Lobster tumbling barrel. While I was initially excited in the last rock tumbling update about green mossy agates, these amethyst honkers really stole my heart. They're big. They're purple. They're purported to ward off...getting wasted? Allegedly in Ancient Greece, amethyst helped ward off intoxication. Drinking vessels and cups had a lot of amethyst encrusted on them. Greeks drank a lot of wine, also purple. There's assorted Greek myths about horny drunk gods chasing maidens, as you do. Even the name was sober-curious: the rock got the name from the Greek “amethystos”, meaning “not drunken." For you February babies, this birthstone of yours may be why you're so good at drinking games. Yiamas! (translation: Cheers!), Dan from Learn to Scale Opt-out from the newsletter | Unsubscribe from all emails | Update your Preferences | www.learntoscale.us, Boston, MA 02119 PS. Learn more about how to mine and use amethyst in your home |
CEO & Founder of Learn to Scale
Entrepreneur, Professional Learner, & Proud Failure. Writes about sales, marketing, and entrepreneurship from the eyes of a learning and development nerd. Lead teams, manage people, scale a business, and learn better through the biweekly irreverent newsletter, the TL;DR.
A bi-weekly roundup of feelings more common than you thought April 27 - May 10 Is This Why You Open Your Laptop with a Sigh? This week alone, four different people described the same feeling and each one thought they were the only ones who felt that way. FOUR! Each one led their business in some way and had responsibilities and long-term goals. I was able to identify the signs of what they were feeling because I too have the same feelings: It's the feeling that upon opening the laptop, or...
A bi-weekly roundup of the ways we downplay culture April 13 - April 26 Is Culture a Luxury? Scene: TechCrunch Early Stage conference. Hundreds of startup enthusiasts, investors, service providers, and students milling about a converted warehouse. Espresso bars scattered around serving handmade lavender lattes. Large standing tables on the main floor where nerds are furiously tapping away at email, ignoring the conference around them. In the parking lot, mostly men in sport jackets and...
A bi-weekly roundup of cultural building blocks March 30 - April 12 The Mundane Building Blocks of a Great Corporate Culture In the last TL;DR newsletter, I shared some very brief commentary and a link to an exhaustive new blog post around resetting team culture. Instead of being uncharacteristically brief this time, I wanted to unpack a big "why should you care" reason for crafting a leadership mandate. TL;DR You can't directly change a team culture. I had a client recently share the results...