You can get ‘hours’ from anyone. Or, you can lead like Jeff Bezos.
As a business leader, you know that you can get ‘hours’ from anyone.
But how do you find the folks whose values are aligned with yours, folks who can help you create and ship meaningful progress?
The short answer: Start by reading their writing. Because by reading someone’s writing, you can almost absorb the entire mindset of that person.
But, hey, don’t take my word for it. Just ask Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.
For all senior executive meetings at Amazon, Jeff requires everyone to write down their ideas, plans, suggestions, etc. in a narratively structured memo.
Then, before any discussion begins, everyone sits for 30 minutes in total silence, carefully reading other people’s memos.
“Full sentences are harder to write, [Bezos] says. They have verbs. The paragraphs have topic sentences. There is no way to write a six-page, narratively structured memo and not have clear thinking.” (Via http://bit.ly/2h9UOIE.)
Takeaway: To discover folks whose values are aligned with yours, and who can help you create and ship meaningful progress, start by reading their writing.
Going forward, you can keep doing business as usual by getting ‘hours’ from pretty much anyone. Or, you can lead like Jeff Bezos.
I’m not telling you what to do; I’m telling you to decide. That’s a subtle but crucial difference, no? ?
// Image via cnbc.com //