I’m in the middle of a coaching call with an agency owner, and we’ve gotten down to the root of a problem that’s been plaguing him for a while. He now sees clearly what needs to be done, but it’s not going to be easy…he falls silent as he contemplates his choices. “I’m not sure I know how to do that…” He said. Now, in my consulting days, I would have jumped on that statement. I would have built out a 10-point plan with accountabilities and measurements to ensure that we would get to a successful outcome. But I’ve learned better… It’s not about the ‘how to,’ it’s about the ‘want to.’ When I hear, “I don’t know how” I have come to realize that the client is dodging me (and … [Read more...]
About Brad Farris
When you’re in a tail spin – let go!
Do you ever have a day that makes you want to give up? Everything you did was harder than it needed to be. Every conversation seemed to involve conflict. Even simple things didn’t go right. Looking back at the end of the day, maybe it would have been better if you’d just taken a day off. Sure, you’d have more to do on Monday, but at least you wouldn’t have all these messes to clean up! You might be onto something. When pilots are learning to fly a small plane, one of the first things they learn to do is let go of the controls. You see, planes are build so that, left to their own devices, they want to fly straight and level. So when a beginner pilot gets into trouble, … [Read more...]
Making better decisions through the power of subtraction
Humans are pretty bad at decision-making. No, really, left to our own devices, we’re biased, take shortcuts, overestimate our abilities, and gloss over complexity, resulting in wrong decisions roughly half the time. Worse yet, we’re terrible at evaluating our own ideas. We want to be “right,” and we do an amazing job selecting data to prove that our decisions are spot on. So, as a leader whose primary job is to make decisions – not just decisions that impact you, but your whole organization – how can we get better at making decisions? One tool that has been helpful for me is the principle of SUBTRACTION. Don’t try to get better; eliminate all the parts that make you … [Read more...]
What DON’T you want?
One of the exercises that I often assign to clients is to create their “ideal week.” By sitting down and thinking carefully about what you need to get done in a week/month and then blocking off time to get those things done, at a time when you have the optimal energy to complete them, you can massively increase your productivity. Creating that ideal week also helps you find those things that you don’t want to do and eliminate them from your calendar! Imagine your worst possible day/week. What are the things that make your work a drag? Think about times you wanted to quit, or crawl under your desk and take a nap, what was happening on those days? For me, it would … [Read more...]
Team Feedback – It’s a Fundamental Part of a Leader’s Confidence
How to Get Feedback from Your Team Feedback is an essential part of leadership. Giving feedback is essential to develop individuals and teams, and to boost their performance. However, many leaders (especially those with little leadership experience) tend to forget the importance of receiving feedback. I’ve seen this a lot with my clients. As you build and scale a creative agency, the pressure is on to ensure your people are doing their best work for your clients. That pressure often leads to a one-way street of feedback. In the short term, this serves the purpose intended: your team develops and does its best work for you. But without feedback from your team, how do you know you are … [Read more...]
Procrastination is a signal. 🚦
During one of my one-to-one coaching calls last week, a client said something that I've heard many times before: I've been so busy lately that I've been putting off writing proposals and now I have like 5 - 6 people who I promised proposals to -- but I just don't want to do it. So, let me get this straight. We're working together to grow your business, right? Yes. And you've been putting a lot of effort into lead generation so that you can gain new clients, right? Yes. And now you've got folks who want to work with you...but you don't want to write the proposal? Yes, that's it. What does that mean? There was a time (in the past) when I would have told her to "put on her big girl … [Read more...]
How you can buy happiness.
Our last conversation talked about how success doesn’t make you happy, but it might increase your income! If you find yourself with more disposable income, what can you do with money to improve happiness? Thankfully, we have academics who have researched this question, and their findings were surprising (to me). This study used lower-income and more well-off respondents (including some millionaires) from a global sample. They studied a wide range of ways you could use the money to increase happiness. You could buy “things” (a nicer house or car), experiences (vacation, concert tickets, etc.), or time-saving services (cleaning help, meal services, etc.) Buy time The results showed … [Read more...]
The Practical Guide to Building Confidence as a Leader
How to Be a More Confident Leader When you own a creative agency, never underestimate the importance of self-confidence in leadership. Your business success is founded on building your confidence as a leader. You see, self-confidence is the keystone that allows your leadership to flourish. When you feel confident, the confidence levels of your team will improve. I recently read an article by Francisco Dao in Inc.com, in which he eloquently explains why confidence is the number one of leadership qualities: ‘Self-confidence is the fundamental basis from which leadership grows. Trying to teach leadership without first building confidence is like building a house on a foundation of … [Read more...]
What makes you happy?
“Unhappy is he who depends on success to be happy.” ~ Alex Dias Ribeiro, a former Formula 1 race-car driver. In my 30’s I worked HARD. I got up early and headed to the office before 7 (to beat the traffic). I worked with intensity. I crushed my to-do list. I managed all the things. After I got home, everyone got dinner, baths, and then once the kids were in bed, I’d immediately crack the laptop open and battle my way to inbox zero. Those habits got rewarded! I got promoted, received bonuses and raises—trips to executive retreats and continuing ed courses at prestigious universities. It was FUN! I was succeeding and happy. Until I wasn’t When the merry-go-round stopped, I … [Read more...]
Having FUN with business development
You can accomplish your goals in a very relaxed, slow, and fun way. ~ Steve Chandler Our last conversation talked about how amping up the pressure and intensity might not be the best way to find opportunities. I suggested that there might be a way to try to slow down, listen and take time. For many of you, this sounds like foolishness! “Where do I have the time to slow business development down? You know that this is the time of year to get deals DONE!” When you are selling high-value, customized services (which is exactly what the agency business is), you need to understand your clients' challenges, the value you can create by solving them, and build trust to deliver the … [Read more...]
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