Cultivating Serendipity đŻ- The art of listening đ- Behave like a UFC fighter đ„- A stoic life with Ryan Holiday đĄ- Mission Blablacar đ
Cultivating Serendipity đŻ- The art of listening đ- Behave like a UFC fighter đ„- A stoic life with Ryan Holiday đĄ- Mission Blablacar đ
« Rien nâest plus puissant quâune idĂ©e dont le temps est venu » Victor Hugo.
Hi there đ,
Episode #46. I hope you are optimistic for 2022. I am. Not just because I am an entrepreneur but because I have this intention and hope that after 2 years, the pandemic will go đ. I wish I was wrong when I told a journalist back in Spring 2020 (going out of lockdown #1) that the crisis might last much longer⊠he treated me as pessimistic. I am not đ
Buckle up and get ready for your weekly dose of inspiration đ
#1 Cultivating serendipity đŻ
My key takeaways from an article you can access here đ La lettre de Umanz : les 4 filtres de sĂ©rendipitĂ© đ«đ· (The 4 filters of serendipity) was published by my friend Patrick Kervern on January 14, 2022.
Pasteur said « la chance favorise les esprits préparés » (Luck favors prepared souls").
Great question from Fred Smith, a former CEO at FedEx, « who is the most interesting person you met over the past 90 days? ». âHow can you get back in touch with her/him?â.
âCeux qui ne lisent pas de livres n'ont qu'une seule vie, les pauvres : la leur.â (Those who do not read book only have one life. Poor them. Just theirs) once said Umberto Eco.
Questions are more important than answers to find serendipity.
Ask yourself:
« What questions did I ask today » rather than « what did I learn today ».
Be proactive vs. technology like Mark Andressen:
« There will be 2 categories of people: those who will order computers what to do and those will be told what to do ⊠by computers ».
#2 The art of listening đ
My key takeaways from an article you can access here đ The art of becoming a better listener (Tactical advice for the startup setting) This piece was published by First Round Review in January 2022.
You can find tons of training to become a better public speaker, what about becoming a better listener?
It requires asking open-ended questions, staying neutral, and centering the discussion on someone else.
Vengoechea wrote a book âListen like you mean itâ after consulting for companies like Twitter or Pinterest to help them build a better product.
« When you actually deeply listen to someone, you get to know them much better, which is going to allow you to work with them better. You're going to get greater alignment more quicklyâ.
If and when you focus on fine-tuning your speech or flow, you may make the error of considering your counterparts as an audience, not collaborators.
Hurry Slowly « So many startups are playing a game of hurry up and wait â sprinting to get somewhere only to later realize it wasnât even the right destination. »
The path to success is to listen to your customers and to your colleagues.
Humility + Curiosity + Empathy > listening mindset. Forget your own assumptions, opinions, and expectations.
Being humble is an attitude where you are trying to learn, you are like a student.
Listening is not passive > âListening is not simply about staying quiet, nodding along, and just being a vessel for what the other person has to say. Itâs an active processâ.
As a leader, you have to invite people and welcome receiving information whether good or bad news.
As a manager, beware of picking the right listening mode. Problem solver or interviewer for example. « Open up space. Thereâs power in asking âWould you like me to listen or brainstorm solutions with you? ». Sometimes it is just about creating space.
âThe number one question I get from folks whoâve read my book isnât about how to be a better listener, but how about how they can be heard and deal with folks who wonât listen to them,â says Vengoechea.
To get heard: âThe best thing that you can do to get your message across is to be super clear and use simple language: I need help with X, Iâm unhappy with Y, I'm struggling with Z.â
Read the full article to discover specific tips for every department of a company to become better at listening: Product, Design, Sales, recruitment.
#3 Learning from a UFC fighter đ„
Patrick Kervernâs takeaways from an article you can access here đ A conversation with Michael Bisping, a UFC Hall of fame fighter & former middleweight champion. This piece was published by Thought Economics on December 16, 2021.
2 great takeaways worth sharing from an interview with UFC fighter Michael Bisping:
1-Do not get angry
When youâre angry, youâre in a frantic state of mind, you are not the best version of yourself. When youâre fighting the very best martial artists on the planet, you cannot react out of emotion. You have to be cool, calm, collected, and in the moment. You need to think clearly about how to counter an attack, not reacting to an attack out of emotion or anger.
2-You are a warrior in preparation
Itâs about doing everything in the lead-up to the fight to make sure you win. You have to get your weight cut right, you have to make sure youâve fought the right sparring partners, you need to make sacrifices, youâll have to invest money, youâll spend a lot of time away from your family, youâll be in the gym, youâll be flying around, living out of your car, sleeping on the floor. Thatâs where the warrior mindset turns on â itâs when you prepare so can do whatever it takes to win that fight.
#4 A stoic life with Ryan Holiday
My takeaways from a podcast conversation you can access here đ Ryan Holiday: A Stoic life. This podcast from The Knowledge Project (#128) was published by Farnam Street on January 11, 2022.
The dichotomy of control > do not waste time on things you do not control.
« We donât control what happens but we control how we respond ».
Balanced people rarely become exceptional. Outstanding people like basketball legend Michael Jordan had an unlimited need to be adored and publicly recognized⊠without being ever satisfied with what he had.
#5 Blablacar > The book
My takeaways from the 1st chapter of the book Mission Blablacar (Ed. Eyrolles). This book written by Frederic Mazzella was published last January 11, 2022. Hopefully, those few thoughts I am sharing (in French đ«đ·) will give you the motivation to buy and read this book.
Quelques pĂ©pites jalonnent ce livre qui retrace lâhistoire de Blablacar mais pas seulement:
« Rien nâest plus puissant quâune idĂ©e dont le temps est venu » Victor Hugo.
Les bonnes idĂ©es ne peuvent pas ĂȘtre volĂ©es, elles volent dâelles mĂȘmes.
Une bonne idĂ©e câest juste une Ă©tincelle, il faut aussi du bois (produit ou service en face dâun besoin) et de l'oxygĂšne, de lâair (le travail). « Et il faut souffler fort et longtemps pour que le feu prenne ».
Il y'a 2 phases dans la vie dâun produit: l'amĂ©lioration de l'expĂ©rience utilisateur puis la croissance pour passer Ă l'Ă©chelle.
Analogie du VendĂ©e Globe. Le marchĂ© câest le vent. Le cap câest la vision. Le client câest le public qui vient voir du sport, de lâaction, qui va gagner la course?
Bien choisir les mĂ©triques sur lesquelles aligner tout le monde. Permet dâatteindre la mĂȘme direction Ă (plus) grande vitesse.
Einstein « si un bureau encombré évoque un esprit encombré alors que penser d'un Ž bureau vide ».
Le bureau encombrĂ© de Fred Mazzella ânourrit sa rĂ©flexion et favorise sa crĂ©ativitĂ©â.Â
Merci Fred et coucou Florian Mirairou pour ce nouveau témoignage de la scÚne startup made in France +1. Bienvenu au club des startuppers x auteurs Mr Mazzella!
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