by Jenny Blake
Land X new clients
Planning readiness in new direction
Platform reaches a certain size
Instinct/Intuition
Gut feeling
Gave the last gig my all
Maxed out; health symptoms flaring up
Willing to go all in toward new direction
In Others’ Hands
Gatekeeper industry approval or offer
Accepted to application-only program
When my partner earns X, or completes Y
Full or partial agreement from family
Visit http://bit.ly/2bDTcpQ for a printable version of this checklist.
RESOURCES FOR COMPANIES
One-Hour Pivot Lunch-and-Learn Workshop
I have created a one-hour Pivot workshop that anyone on your team can lead in addition to, or in place of, a kickoff keynote with your organization. You will have everything you need to facilitate the workshop at your fingertips, with a dashboard to track group participation and follow-up. This workshop is a great tool for office book clubs, leadership development, and team building.
Six-Month, Six-Workshop Pivot Follow-Up Series
The Pivot workshop can be run as a stand-alone team-building exercise, or you can pair it with a curated monthly follow-up series of additional leader-led workshops that reinforce each of the Pivot core concepts, such as expansive thinking, problem solving, riding out dips, and experimenting frequently to drive innovation. These six workshops help sustain the initial workshop takeaways, and allow teams to continue having powerful individual and group conversations in the months that follow.
Manager Training: How to Career Coach
Pivot Career Coach Training is an interactive workshop that empowers managers to better engage and retain top talent by learning how to hold exploratory career conversations. Using the simple structure of the Pivot Method, managers will walk away with coaching tools for working with direct reports to reveal resonant next steps and areas for development, and for helping employees pivot within their role, team, or broader organization. Managers will learn how to ask powerful questions, effectively structure sessions, and align individual career aspirations with team and company goals.
Career Conversation Toolkit
In keeping with the workshop-in-a-box format, the Career Conversation Toolkit has everything you need to roll out career conversations quickly, easily, and regularly within your organization. You and your managers will get instant access to template e-mails with session overviews and scheduling instructions for your team, and worksheets for individuals to fill out before and after career conversations with their manager.
Interested in Bringing Any of These Programs to Your Organization?
Learn more at PivotMethod.com/workshops.
PIVOT 201: RECOMMENDED READING
Pivot stands on the shoulders of giants. Below are books for each stage that have been instrumental in my life, business, and career. These books provide in-depth coverage of areas where I just scratched the surface. I encourage you to dig deeper into anything that grabbed you. For the full reading list, visit PivotMethod.com/toolkit.
Introduction
A Whole New Mind by Daniel H. Pink
Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
The Second Machine Age by Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee
The Antidote by Oliver Burkeman
The Start-Up of You by Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha
Plant
The Power of Full Engagement by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz
Finding Your Own North Star by Martha Beck
The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks
Body of Work by Pamela Slim
Choose Yourself by James Altucher
Scan
So Good They Can’t Ignore You by Cal Newport
The First 20 Hours by Josh Kaufman
Tribes by Seth Godin
Stand Out by Dorie Clark
Essentialism by Greg McKeown
Pilot
The Lean Startup by Eric Ries
Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy
Business Model You by Tim Clark, with Alexander Osterwalder and Yves Pigneur
Making Ideas Happen by Scott Belsky
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
Launch
Smartcuts by Shane Snow
The Dip by Seth Godin
Outrageous Openness by Tosha Silver
The Intuitive Way by Penney Peirce
Playing Big by Tara Mohr
Lead
Conscious Business by Fred Kofman
The Work Revolution by Julie Clow
How Google Works by Eric Schmidt and Jonathan Rosenberg
The Alliance by Reid Hoffman, Ben Casnocha, and Chris Yeh
The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier
NOTES
INTRODUCTION
Pivot Is the New Normal
People are no longer working: Tyler Cowen, “A Dearth of Investment in Young Workers,” New York Times, September 7, 2013, www.nytimes.com/2013/09/08/business/a-dearth-of-investment-in-young-workers.html.
average tenure drops to three years: Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employee Tenure in 2014,” September 18, 2014, www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/tenure.pdf.
either “not engaged”: Barry Schwartz, “Rethinking Work,” New York Times, August 28, 2015, www.nytimes.com/2015/08/30/opinion/sunday/rethinking-work.html.
project-based economy: Adam Davidson, “What Hollywood Can Teach Us About the Future of Work,” New York Times Magazine, May 15, 2015.
defines a business pivot: Eric Ries, The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses (New York: Crown Business, 2011).
program still cited as one of the benefits: (a) Fortune, “25 Best Global Companies to Work For,” Fortune.com, November 14, 2012, http://fortune.com/2012/11/14/25-best-global-companies-to-work-for/.
(b) Lance Whitney, “Google Named 2nd Best Company to Work For in the World.” CNET, November 14, 2014. http://www.cnet.com/news/google-named-2nd-best-company-to-work-for-in-the-world/.
High Net Growth
A study by Daniel Kahneman and Angus Deaton: Daniel Kahneman and Angus Deaton, “High Income Improves Evaluation of Life but Not Emotional Well-being,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 107(38): 16489–93.
(in today’s dollars): Saving.org, “Inflation Calculator,” http://www.saving.org/inflation/.
Maintaining a growth mindset: Carol Dweck, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success (New York: Ballantine Books, 2007), 7.
boredom itself can induce stress: Alina Tugend, “The Contrarians on Stress: It Can Be Good for You,” New York Times, October 2013, www.nytimes.com/2014/10/04/your-money/the-contrarians-on-stress-it-can-be-good-for-you-.html.
In her 1997 study: Amy Wrzesniewski, Clark McCauley, Paul Rozin, and Barry Schwartz, “Jobs, Careers, and Callings: People’s Relations to Their Work,” Journal of Research in Personality 31:21–33.
“thrive and grow”: Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder (New York: Random House, 2012).
STAGE ONE: PLANT
According to Tom Rath: Tom Rath, StrengthsFinder 2.0 (Washington, D.C.: Gallup Press, 2007), ii–iii.
Chapter 1: Calibrate Your Compass
creatively named values: Jenny Blake, Life After College (Philadelphia: Running Press, 2011).
You can even write this out: Bill Connolly, The Success Disconnect: Why the Smartest People Choose Meaning over Money (New York: Self-published, 2015).
Willpower is a limited resource: Kelly McGonigal, The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do to Get More of It (New Yor
k: Avery, 2011).
Peace of mind is the dividend we collect: Jim Blake, The Bliss Engine (Nashville: Two Steps Publishing, 2013).
In a Harvard Business Review article: Roger L. Martin, “Rethinking the Decision Factory,” Harvard Business Review, October 2013, hbr.org/2013/10/rethinking-the-decision-factory.
“Virtually no one has a gut-level sense of just how tiring it is to decide”: John Tierney, “Do You Suffer from Decision Fatigue?” New York Times, August 17, 2011.
There is a reason Steve Jobs: Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs (New York: Simon & Schuster, 2011).
ten to twelve minutes a day: Dan Hurley, “Breathing In vs. Spacing Out,” New York Times, January 14, 2014, www.nytimes.com/2014/01/19/magazine/breathing-in-vs-spacing-out.html.
Chapter 2: Put a Pin in It
quite ineffective at predicting: Daniel Gilbert, Stumbling on Happiness (New York: Vintage, 2007).
Chapter 3: Fuel Your Engine
their viral manifesto video, “This Is Your Life”: Holstee, “The Holstee Manifesto,” Holstee.com, last modified 2014, https://www.holstee.com/pages/manifesto.
unique “Zone of Genius”: Gay Hendricks, The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level (New York: HarperOne, 2010), 33–34.
He describes each one as follows: Ibid., 29–34.
such as Myers-Briggs: The Myers & Briggs Foundation, www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/; for a free test, visit www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/jtypes2.asp.
such as . . . StrengthsFinder: Tom Rath, StrengthsFinder 2.0 (Washington, D.C.: Gallup Press, 2007). Assessment code comes with book purchase.
such as . . . the Enneagram: Don Richard Riso and Ross Hudson, The Wisdom of the Enneagram: The Complete Guide to Psychological and Spiritual Growth for the Nine Personality Types (New York: Bantam, 1999).
Chapter 4: Fund Your Runway
average unemployment duration: Michele Lerner, “How Big Should Your Emergency Fund Be?” Bankrate.com, March 6, 2012, www.bankrate.com/finance/savings/how-big-should-emergency-fund-be.aspx.
burn rate is defined as: Investopedia, “Definition of Burn Rate,” www.investopedia.com/terms/b/burnrate.asp.
According to Sendhil Mullainathan: Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir, Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much (New York: Times Books, 2013), 13.
STAGE TWO: SCAN
Chapter 5: Bolster Your Bench
One study revealed that the word: Melissa Dahl, “Networking Is Literally Disgusting,” New York Magazine, September 3, 2014, nymag.com/scienceofus/2014/09/networking-is-literally-disgusting.html.
“the Church of Oprah”: Mark Oppenheimer, “The Church of Oprah Winfrey and a Theology of Suffering,” New York Times, May 27, 2011, www.nytimes.com/2011/05/28/us/28beliefs.html.
In a study of a thousand: “How to Live the Freelance Life,” Freelancers Union.org, 2014, fu-web-storage-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/content/filer_public/8f/d7/8fd7d4ce-f714-486e-b2d5-80e190b0ce70/fu_surveyinfographics_workandlife_v3.pdf.
Chapter 6: Bridge the Gaps
I hope that: Neil Gaiman, “My New Year Wish,” NeilGaiman.com, December 31, 2011, journal.neilgaiman.com/2011/12/my-new-year-wish.html.
The dip: Seth Godin, The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick) (New York: Portfolio/Penguin, 2007).
Building new skills: Jason Shen, “Why Practice Actually Makes Perfect: How to Rewire Your Brain for Better Performance,” Buffer App Blog, May 28, 2013, blog.bufferapp.com/why-practice-actually-makes-perfect-how-to-rewire-your-brain-for-better-performance.
Albert Einstein called this: Maria Popova, “How Einstein Thought: Why ‘Combinatory Play’ Is the Secret of Genius,” BrainPickings.org, August 14, 2013, www.brainpickings.org/2013/08/14/how-einstein-thought-combinatorial-creativity/.
“Forget being a comedian”: Frank Rich, “In Conversation: Chris Rock,” New York Magazine, December 1, 2014.
“Yes, and” technique: Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, and Matt Walsh, The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual (New York: Comedy Council of Nicea, 2013).
“The secret is to take yourself”: Tripp Lanier, The New Man Podcast with Tripp Lanier, “The Rise of Superman—Steven Kotler,” June 17, 2014, www.thenewmanpodcast.com/2014/06/tnm-158-steven-kotler-the-rise-of-superman/.
Brown shared her approach: Jonathan Fields, Good Life Project, “Brené Brown: On Gratitude, Vulnerability and Courage,” podcast audio: 51:59, November 25, 2014, www.goodlifeproject.com/brene-brown-radio/.
called empathy interviews: Institute of Design at Stanford University, “Method: Interview for Empathy,” dschool.stanford.edu/wp-content/themes/dschool/method-cards/interview-for-empathy.pdf, and “Use Our Methods,” dschool.stanford.edu/use-our-methods/.
This is the Downing effect: Janet E. Davidson and C. L. Downing, “Contemporary Models of Intelligence,” in Handbook of Intelligence, ed. Robert J. Sternberg (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000).
In his 1951 book: Alan W. Watts, The Wisdom of Insecurity: A Message for an Age of Anxiety (New York: Vintage, 1951), 32.
complement technology, rather than compete: Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew McAfee, The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies (New York: W. W. Norton, 2014), 153–54, 189–200.
Leverage refers to: Ibid.
it is futile to ask: Geoff Colvin, Humans Are Underrated: What High Achievers Know That Brilliant Machines Never Will (New York: Portfolio/Penguin, 2015), 42, 44; Oliver Burkeman, “Are Machines Making Humans Obsolete?” Guardian, September 18, 2015.
Chapter 7: Make Yourself Discoverable
“Well-being is enhanced”: Brian R. Little, Me, Myself, and Us: The Science of Personality and the Art of Well-Being (New York: PublicAffairs, 2014), 196.
suggests aiming for “1,000 True Fans”: Kevin Kelly, “1,000 True Fans,” KK.org, March 4, 2008, kk.org/thetechnium/1000-true-fans/.
“data is the new oil”: Michael Palmer, “Data Is the New Oil,” ANA Marketing Maestros, November 3, 2006, ana.blogs.com/maestros/2006/11/data_is_the_new.html.
STAGE THREE: PILOT
“Making assumptions and then taking them personally”: Don Miguel Ruiz with Janet Mills, The Voice of Knowledge: A Practical Guide to Inner Peace (San Rafael, CA: Amber-Allen Publishing, 2004).
Chapter 8: Get Scrappy
the concept of the MVP: Eric Ries, The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses (New York: Crown Business, 2011), 93.
the principle of “optionality”: Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder (New York: Random House, 2012), 158.
Theodor Geisel was a cartoonist: Donald E. Pease, Theodor SEUSS Geisel (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010).
Chapter 9: Pause, Review, Repeat
Seinfeld said, “It just seems”: Rob Brunner, “Jerry Seinfeld,” FastCompany.com, May 12, 2014, www.fastcompany.com/3029462/most-creative-people-2014/jerry-seinfeld.
In an interview with David Letterman: Paley Center for Media, “Jerry Seinfeld and David Letterman (Full Program),” June 9, 2014, YouTube video, 1:05:13, published on July 11, 2014.
appearance on national TV: Fox Business, “Recent College Grad Plans to Retire by Age 40,” FoxBusiness.com, video, 4:06, March 10, 2015, video.foxbusiness.com/v/4103938151001/recent-college-grad-plans-to-retire-by-40.
STAGE FOUR: LAUNCH
Chapter 10: Build First, Courage Second
“the rapture of being alive”: Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth (New York: Anchor, 1991), 4.
the Project Management Triangle: Michael W. Newell and Marina N. Grashina, The Project Management Question and Answer Book (New York: AMACOM, 2003).
“The Gambler”: Song, written by Don Schlitz, recorded by Kenny Rogers (1978).
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br /> Career Roomba Syndrome: Brad Zomick, “Career Roomba Syndrome: How to Cure Your Lack of Passion and Find Direction in Your Career Path,” ThoughtCatalog.com, May 15, 2015, thoughtcatalog.com/brad-zomick/2015/05/career-roomba-syndrome-how-to-cure-your-lack-of-passion-and-find-direction-in-your-career-path/.
our addiction to new ideas: Scott Belsky, Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming the Obstacles Between Vision and Reality (New York: Portfolio/Penguin, 2012), 71.
average life span of human cells: Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanford Medicine, “Research,” stemcell.stanford.edu/research/; Nicholas Wade, “Your Body Is Younger Than You Think,” New York Times, August 2, 2005, www.nytimes.com/2005/08/02/science/your-body-is-younger-than-you-think.html.
Our bodies cycle through circadian rhythms: National Institute of General Medical Sciences, “Circadian Rhythms Fact Sheet,” last modified October 1, 2015, www.nigms.nih.gov/Education/Pages/Factsheet_CircadianRhythms.aspx.
the average attention span: Statistic Brain Research Institute, “Attention Span Statistics,” last modified April 2, 2105, www.statisticbrain.com/attention-span-statistics/.
Chapter 11: Flip Failure
regret minimization framework: Zach Bulygo, “12 Business Lessons You Can Learn from Amazon Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos,” KISSmetrics Blog, January 19, 2013, blog.kissmetrics.com/lessons-from-jeff-bezos/.
Post-it Notes: “Post-it note,” Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-it_note.
STAGE FIVE: LEAD
Chapter 12: Are You Listening?
You have done all this work: Eric Schmidt and Jonathan Rosenberg, How Google Works (New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2014).
In an Inc. survey: Inc. staff, “How the Top CEOs Really Think (Infographic),” Inc. magazine, September 2014, www.inc.com/magazine/201409/inc.500-2014-inc-500-ceo-survey-results.html.
One Gallup study revealed: Lauren Weber, “What Do Workers Want from the Boss?” Wall Street Journal, April 2, 2015, blogs.wsj.com/atwork/2015/04/02/what-do-workers-want-from-the-boss/?mod=e2tw.