Who is your mentor? Who do you learn from? Who are the people you turn to when you need to solve a problem; whether it be a biz idea or a personal challenge? Do you invest in yourself regularly?
More and more people have shared they hire me because I offer something different. Their meetings and conferences need to play a little more; to include some fun and playful approaches to employee happiness, the employee experience, and the customer experience. That PowerPoint charts of data no one cares about and scientific t
heory that makes you want to puke needs to be balanced with experiential learning. We might use clay to design/improve a product or hold a ”discussion” to create better experiences without ever uttering a single word – but laugh uncontrollably.
As I work to grow One Less Meal, Inc operators of The Double D Diner: The World’s Only Virtual Diner Fighting Hunger I too have turned less to people with traditional business expertise and more to people one might not expect has a hold on business. This year I have turned to a clown.
Jef Johson is not a traditional clown. He thinks clowning is something much deeper than funny gags and big shoes. (His words) At a workshop I attended earlier this year he made me realize I had been asleep at certain points in my life when messages were being thrown in my face like pies. (My words)
So recently I found myself trying to figure out where to go next; what I want to be when I grow up; what is the next iteration of my work. My usual clan of mentors, colleagues and professional groups were providing nothing. I decided to get some consultation from my favorite clown. Jef was in town from Mexico and I booked some time.
2 hours later; lots of clarity; some great ideas; and of course a completely different focus of growing One Less Meal and how it works into my speaking/consulting work with organizations looking to tackle employee happiness and those employee/customer experiences.
Scared? A little.
Excited! A lot!
So I’ll take you back to those questions: Who is your mentor? Who do you learn from? Who are the people you turn to when you need to solve a problem; whether it be a biz idea or a personal challenge? Do you invest in yourself regularly?
But I’ll add one more:
Is it time to turn to someone you think can least likely help you and open your mind to unexpected things?
