I drive a Ford Expedition Max. It’s one of the largest passenger vehicles on the road today. I love it for road-tripping with my family. I love it every time I pile large quantities of humans inside. I love how much stuff I can stuff inside it. I love it when I’m pulling trailers. (And I love the tush warmer on a chilly day.)
But there are trade-offs to driving a big vehicle. Like parking in underground parking garages. And I park in an underground parking garage every day at my office in downtown Milwaukee.
The Warning Signs
My parking adventure begins the moment before I pull into the parking garage. The top of my truck smacks the max height indicator dangling over the vehicle, warning me that the rig is too big for this place. This happens every single day. And when other people see me smack that thang, it freaks them out. #SmackItUpFlipIt
The adventure gets really interesting once I find a prospective parking space. As I begin to maneuver the Expedition into a slim parking stall, the driver assistance warning system blinks and beeps like a bomb on MacGyver. Or an advanced round of Simon, the digital memory game. Inevitably, the blinks and beeps grow more intense throughout the parking process, until I receive the maximum warning, begging me not to proceed.
But I proceed anyway.
The Systems
The systems built into the parking structure entrance and into my vehicle tell me that I don’t belong in this place. They warn me of dangers and limitations. They tell me to stop. Every day. But I don’t stop.
Because they don’t know what I know.
First, I talked with the parking garage staff. I learned where the height is and is not an issue for me. So I know where my real parking opportunities are.
Second, I don’t rely on the systematic warnings from my vehicle to tell me where I will and won’t fit. I look in my mirrors as I negotiate the space. I check my front and rear cameras for feedback. I rely on my own experience. And I believe in my ability to maneuver my own ride.
As a result, I have successfully found a parking space every day I have pulled into the garage for the past 6 months. Despite the daily Tom Petty warnings that say ‘Don’t come around here no more.’
Don’t Let Them Stop You
Throughout your life and career, you will encounter people, policies, and signs that are trying to stop you. Ignore the signs. Ignore the gatekeepers. Ignore the naysayers. Only you know what you are capable of. Believe in your abilities. Believe in your skills. Know that you have the will to achieve your goals. And if there is a real impediment to your progress, believe that you are intelligent enough to discover it for yourself.
Key Takeaway
Don’t worry about cutting it close. Or slow progress. Or barely passing through. The drama only adds to your story. Most people stop when they are warned to stop. Those who experience the greatest success keep going. They see yellow lights, not red. They discover what is really possible. They build and create. They pioneer and achieve. And they enjoy their success even more because they didn’t let anything stop them. Be that kind of person.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
My wife Dawn and I were recently reflecting on our wedding. A wedding is usually a great day for the bride and groom. (Except in Panic At The Disco songs.) But the guest experience can vary widely. That being typed, a surprising number of the roughly 200 guests at our wedding told us how much they enjoyed the event. In fact, 20 years later we still hear this.
We hosted a pretty typical experience. The wedding was in the afternoon. In a church. A reception with dinner and dancing followed. Just like the invitation said.
The party was not particularly fancy. We did all the decorating ourselves, with help from our families. There was no photo booth. In fact, we had disposable cameras on each table. Because it was 2002. And Blockbuster was still a thing.
Our Big Day
But we did have a DJ. The kid boasted that he was one of the best DJs in Marathon County. Plus, we sprang for wine, beer and soda pop. Which might have helped the overall experience, because research shows that people enjoy alcohol, sugar, and free stuff.
The Simple Explanation
But as we reflected on the fun weekend 20 years ago, Dawn came up with a simple explanation as to why the event was so enjoyable. She said,
‘It was like everyone was yessing.’
I immediately agreed. Dawn put a unique, but highly accurate descriptor on the event. People yessed to traveling to the fairly remote Wausau, Wisconsin. They yessed to supporting us. They yessed to spending time together. They yessed to a celebration. They yessed to staying up late. They yessed to dancing, drinking, laughing and all the things that make a good time roll.
Here’s To Yessing
As we enjoy this holiday week of Hanukah, Christmas, and other end-of-year activities, I hope you are yessing. Yessing to the fun, and hope and joy of this time of year. I hope you are yessing to gathering and spending time together. I hope you are yessing to traditions and creating new memories and deepening your relationships with others.
Yessing is leaning in. It is deciding to play, dance, and sing. It is not about watching others, or saying this isn’t my thang. The greatest fun and best times are a result of yessing. And the more people you have yessing the merrier the moment.
The Impact on Culture
My Yessing Weapons
Yessing is a key to creating a great organizational culture. When we all say yes to the processes, traditions and rituals they help strengthen and deepen culture. When we decide to do and be what the family, business, team or event needs we increase the power and magnetism of the entire group.
The first rule of improv is to say Yes to whatever is thrown your way. Life is like improv. When someone throws something good your way, yes it. Make it stronger and better and more enjoyable for everyone. Yessing creates positive peer pressure that makes life, work, and play better. And it certainly makes wedding weekends fun and memorable.
This year, my friends Jessica and Josh Hunt (2nd from right) hosted a 1920s murder mystery party. And we all yessed the flapper out of that party.
Key Takeaway
Lean into life. Say yes to the opportunities and adventures. Participate. Contribute to the conversations. Partake in the traditions. Dance and sing and play when it’s time. When we Yes we create momentum. We deepen bonds. We create memories. And ultimately, we enrich each other’s lives. It’s not hard to do. And the rewards last a lifetime.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
A year ago this week, I published my first book, titled What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? The response to the book has been extremely rewarding. People have appreciated the book enough to write great reviews and gift the book to others. And so far, no school districts, governments, or Tipper Gores have banned or burned the book.
But over the past year, there is one question I have been asked over and over, again. (Like Tim McGraw and Nelly.)
“When is the audiobook version of your book coming out?”
I would love to have an audio version of the book. I listen to audiobooks all the time. They are great to listen to when I am driving. Because I have found that when I read regular books while driving bad things tend to happen.
The book is currently available in paperback, hardback, and digitalback.
However, I wrote this book in my writing style, which also mirrors my speaking style. My ‘voice’ contains regular, random asides and uncited pop culture references. Because I wanna know who really gets my jokes. (And I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain?)
Because I wrote the book in my voice, readers have insisted that I also record the audiobook. Which means that I have to find the time to read and record the audio version.
Recording the audiobook entails reading for about an hour each morning, day after day, until I finish the 290-page book. I would read first thing in the morning to ensure a consistent sound to my voice. And I expect I can only read for about an hour before fatigue would make me sound less enthusiastic than listeners deserve.
I am considering making the recording an End-of-2022 Project. But before I wake up and read my book to myself and my recording device for a couple weeks I have 2 questions for you.
1. Do you listen to audiobooks?
2. If so, where and when do you listen to them?
Your Opportunity:
Please leave your response below, text me at 614-256-2850 or email me at adam@theweaponry.com. If you provide your feedback, and I do record the audio version, I’ll include you in my acknowledgments section of the book. Heck, you can even game the system and share this with all your friends and family. Whoever responds will get included. (If no one responds and I record the book anyway, I will dedicate the book to crickets. And the sound of silence.)
Key Takeaway
It’s easy to make the mistake of creating products, services, or entire businesses with no natural audience. Before you jump into creating something new, do a little market research to see if there is an audience interested in what you are about to create. That way you ensure you invest your time, energy, and money into projects expected to offer good returns.
*If you know someone who would like to be mentioned in an audiobook, please share this with them.
+If you still need an inexpensive Christmas gift written to help readers learn a little, laugh a little and lift a little, you can find What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? here.
A year ago today my first book went live on Amazon. It was crazy to see What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? on the virtual shelves at Bezos’s Books n’ More! So I ordered one right away. It came the next day because Bezos makes things happen.
The first time I held my paper baby.
I had no idea what to expect over the next year. The people who pre-read the book told me it was really good. But I didn’t consider that an accurate predictor of public reception. After all, the pre-readers were either friends or part of my publishing team. And the friends were selected specifically because I thought they would say good things. Because sometimes you need support more than you need honesty. (Sometimes we really do notice that zit but there’s nothing you can do about it.)
But the real-world feedback has been amazing. The online feedback has been extremely positive too. (Except for guys on GoodReads named Zac, or Zach or Zak.) A year later I can confidently say that people (other than Zacs) genuinely enjoy the book.
Here are some book-related highlights from the past year.
Gifters: The number of people who have bought 5, 10, or 20 copies (or more) is a total surprise to me. Numerous people have bought many copies to give as gifts. I am honored and humbled every time this happens. And I’m thrilled I haven’t been asked about my return policy.
Speaking Opportunities: I have been giving regular book talks throughout the past year. I love being able to share the lessons from the book live. The follow-up interest in the book after the talks tells me that we are talking about important lessons and ideas. Another upside to the book talks is that I kinda want to have a hot mic faux pas that will circulate on YouTube and lead to my 15 minutes of fame. (The Hot Mic Faux Pas sounds like a bestselling book. Or maybe an album title.)
New friends in Missouri.
Meeting new people: People (and smiling) are my favorite. I have met countless new people this year thanks to my book. (I tried to count, but a woman in Cleveland kept moving, which threw off my tally.)
Me and my friend Jonathan Taylor, who said he would write the Foreword to my next book.
The Impact: We all have our own unique life experiences. By sharing 80 life lessons with the world, I knew that each lesson would speak to readers in different ways. Hearing the impact or value that specific lessons have had on readers has been insightful and rewarding. But the true impact of the book will not likely be known for years. Or even decades. So I’m eating right and exercising to be around to see it.
The ultimate copy of my book.
The Markups: I love seeing books that have been highlighted, underlined and filled with stickies. It shows me where people found value. And it makes me wonder why all valuable things in life are not made in highlighter colors so they are easier to find when we lose them.
My guy Adam Emery reading in St. Croix.
The Oreo Style: There are several different ways to eat an Oreo Cookie. I twist the cookies apart, scrape the filling stuff off with my teeth, then eat the chocolate-ish cookies individually. (Usually just before walking into a dentist appointment so that I get my money’s worth.)
I’ve also found that there are several different ways people read What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? Some people read it all in one day. Some people read it steadily over a week or month. Some people read one chapter each day, like an advent calendar, and spend time focusing on one specific lesson. While other people simply pick up the book, open it randomly, and read whatever pops up, considering the lesson presented as a sign from the universe. Or at least a message from the world of physics and book-binding science.
The Morning Blend Over the past year I have been invited to appear on The Morning Blend talk show 4 times. The show is the primary morning show on NBC in Milwaukee. I love talking to hosts Molly Fay and Tiffany Ogle about positive lessons from the book. Plus, it’s a good test of what kind of humor I can throw out on the fly on live TV without getting zapped by the censor.
Podcasts: I have been invited on several podcasts to tell my story and share lessons from the book and about the writing process. I love being able to share the stories behind the stories. Plus, someone else has to do the editing, which to me feels like dining and ditching.
Travel: The fact that this book led to organizations paying me to travel to talk at their events amazes me. It combines a few of my favorite things. Kinda like brown paper packages tied up with string.
The pictures: Receiving pictures of people with my book from all over the world has been a great bonus that I didn’t imagine when writing. To know that my book and the lessons I have shared have migrated to all corners of the United States, and countries all over the globe means that my paper baby has seen things I haven’t. #bookenvy
2X Olympic discus thrower Kelsey Card sporting a cool hat and a copy of my book. Both of which she could throw very far.
The Giggle Reports: Readers regularly write me to tell me they keep giggling while reading. Which prompts those around them to ask ‘What’s so funny?’ That may be my favorite feedback of all.
Signings: Nearly everyone who buys a book from me asks me to sign it for them. At first, I thought this was weird. Because I thought only famous people signed things. But I have quickly warmed to the ritual. Now a year into this author thang, I have signed hundreds of books. Including 35 in the past week.
Just as it took me a while to dial in my personal writing style, it took me a couple of books to find my book signing style. Now I write in the book as if it were a high school yearbook.
I write: To (name of book owner):
I add the day’s date for context.
Then I write a brief message, summarizing some of my most important lessons within the book.
I finish that note with my initials (-AA).
Then I sign my name right under my printed name on the title page of the book.
Finally, I put my initials (AA) on the table of contents next to a few chapters I think will be valuable to the reader. Readers seem to enjoy this. Here’s an example of a response I received via Twitter about my AA-marked chapters in the table of contents:
I received this special delivery from my good friend and partner in doing hard things creatively, @annenormsen! Thanks so much Adam for the signed book, note and guided instructions—I am reading the AA asterisked lessons first—and they are exactly what I need! @adamvertising
@telisayancy. (AKA Telisa Yancy, President of American Family Insurance)
Key Takeaway
I wrote What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? to have a positive impact on the lives of those who read it. But the person who it has impacted most is me. It has fundamentally changed my life. I have received more positivity and support than I ever imagined. It has inspired me to write, share and do more for others. If you are thinking about writing a book, do it. Start now. Develop a regular writing habit. And by this time next year, I may be reading your book.
On Monday my friend and former coworker Jeff Hilimire and I released our new book, . The book shares 9 proven ways to create an undeniable culture. A great culture is the X-factor that both magnetizes and propels an organization. When you get it right, you create magic. When you get it wrong you create the Los Angeles Lakers.
The “Before the Book” podcast
One of the most enjoyable experiences in the process happened last week. Jeff and I sat down to record a podcast talking about our life and career experiences that have taught us the importance of culture.
I loved recording the podcast. But it was weird how the book & phone floated near Jeff’s head the whole time.
This fun 30-minute-ish podcast covers:
Engauge: (How we found our momentum after highly disruptive mergers)
Weness: How it fuels culture. (So follow your weness.)
My Family’s 5 Most Things: One of them surprised and delighted Jeff.
Our families: I find it interesting that Jeff and I both have 3 sisters and no brothers.
Sports: We were both college athletes. (I talk about my college track experience and my high school football team.)
Bad bosses: (They teach us so much. Like the importance of finding a new job)
I am thrilled to announce that my new book is available today! The book is titled The Culture Turnaround. It shares 9 Proven Ways to Create an Undeniable Organizational Culture.
I have always been a huge believer in the power of culture. It is the secret ingredient that magnetizes humans to each other. Culture is what helps make families, teams and businesses greater as a collective than they are as individuals. (Plus, you can’t make yogurt without it.)
I first experienced the transformational power of culture through team sports. In high school, I was part of a state championship track & field team. And my high school football team made it to the state semi-finals twice. #GoMarauders! In college, I was a member of the University of Wisconsin track and field team that won Big 10 Conference championships in both my junior and senior years. #OnWisconsin!
In business, culture is one of the most important and least understood ingredients of success. My co-author Jeff Hilimire and I worked together at Engauge after our previous advertising agencies merged in an acquisition.
Instead of letting territorial battles ruin the new organization, our leadership team purposefully created a new culture based on ‘weness’ and high performance. As a result, Engauge flourished and began a new business win streak like I had never seen before. (#streakingthequad) This ultimately led to Publicis acquiring the agency.
I went on to launch the advertising and ideas agency, The Weaponry, and Jeff launched another great agency called Dragon Army. We also both started writing books to share our learnings with the world. (Which is easier than buying the world a Coke.)
Today, Jeff and I share insights about what we helped created together at Engauge. The Culture Turnaround is a fictional story that shares how you can change the trajectory of an organization by focusing on its cultural foundation. The book offers 9 practical ways to improve your team culture or establish a great culture in a new team.
The book is available in paperback and on Kindle. The piece of wood is not included.
Where To Find It.
If your organization could use some help in the culture department, I highly encourage you to pick up a copy of the book at Ripples.media/shop or at an Amazon website near you. The book also makes a great gift, which is good to know if you have any major gift-giving occasions coming up in the next, say, 13 days. #hohoho
I also encourage you to check out Jeff Hilimire’s first 3 books in The Turnaround Leadership Series. The first book focuses on leading like an entrepreneur, the second on leading through a crisis, and the third on building a great team. Then, along came The Culture Turnaround.
Let’s Talk!
If you would like to learn more about how to implement a great culture within your organization, please let me know. I’d love to talk.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
Friday night my family and I drove down to Chicago from Milwaukee. We had planned a fun holiday season weekend in the city. And when I say we planned it, I mean, my wife Dawn planned it. But I drove. And found parking.
The itinerary included restaurants and shopping. The central event was going to the The Nutcracker at the Lyric Opera House. Which is a funny name for an opera house, because I haven’t understood a single lyric of any opera I have ever seen.
Friday Night
After driving nearly 3 hours through snow and rain Friday evening we finally got to Chicago. We checked into our hotel and walked to our dinner reservation. Which was delicious. Then we walked back to our hotel. At 9pm, as the 5 of us relaxed in our hotel room we had to decide if we were done for the night.
It would have been easy to stay in our hotel room. After all, we had already had a long day of school, work, travel and walking. Plus, the room was comfy.
We debated our evening plan for several minutes. But we were on a family adventure in Chicago. So we decided we were heading back out into the city.
Adventure!
We had packed our ice skates for the trip, just in case the spirit moved us. And at 9pm on Friday night, it moved us. So I threw a duffel bag loaded with 5 pairs of skates over my shoulder and we urban hiked nearly a mile to the Millenium Park ice skating rink, which is right next to the Chicago Bean. (The magical fruit.)
Trying to show these sponges how to soak it all in.
We found a bench and sat down to swap our shoes for skates, Mr. Rogers-style. For the next hour, we skated and laughed and tried not to fall or get run over.
Christmas music played. The lights of the city skyscrapers rose high in the background. And there were Christmas lights twinkling everywhere. It was a magical night.
Me and Dawn, skating in a winter wonderland.
As I experienced the child-like joy of skating at night in the heart of one of the world’s greatest cities, 2 weeks before Christmas, there was a thought that kept running through my head:
I could have missed this. My family and I could have lounged on the beds in our hotel rooms. And watched TV. Or scrolled through our phones. Or simply gone to bed. And we would have missed this experience. An experience that didn’t cost a dime. It simply required us to get out and do it.
-Inner me (as told to Outer Me.)
That cone followed me around to warn everyone to stand clear.
Key Takeaway
Live while you can. Fill your days with experiences and adventures. Enjoy time with friends and family while you can. Because someday it will be too late. And you will wish you had.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
Welcome to the heart of the holiday season. While it is a time full of great gatherings and good cheer, it is also a time full of encounters with perfect strangers. Like Balki Bartokomous and Larry Appleton.
I want you to try an experiment. Over the next 24 hours note how many people you encounter that you don’t know. I warn you, it may freak you out. Most of us live anonymously in a sea of strangers. They are everywhere. Like minivans. Yet we have become immune to these strangers that surround us. It’s as if they disappear when we ignore them. Like reality TV stars.
I was reminded of my own anonymity a few years ago at my gym. After I scanned my membership card, the guy who routinely works at the reception desk said, “Have a good day, man”.
A normal person would have just done what they were told and had a nice day. But instead, I asked the guy working the counter at Elite Sports Club, “What’s your name?’ He replied, ‘Andrew’. I said, ‘My name is Adam’ (that’s my go-to). We shook hands. From then on, every time I saw Andrew we greeted each other by name. We had real conversations, instead of an awkward, “Hey-Man” relationship.
Insiders vs Outsiders
Everyone we encounter in business, at holiday gatherings and at the grocery store is either an Insider or an Outsider. The difference is whether or not we know each other by name. That sense of familiarity and friendship that can only develop once you know a person’s name makes an enormous difference on this planet, where we are so often surrounded by John and Jane Does (that was supposed to be Doe-plural. But it looks like does, doesn’t it?).
I think about names at work. At the advertising agency, The Weaponry, we encounter people when we visit our clients that we don’t have to know by name. The receptionists. The people who sit next to the conference rooms where we make too much noise. The IT person who inevitably saves every presentation. But I want to meet them too. So I make a habit of introducing myself, by name. Suddenly we are not just people who see each other regularly. We become people who know each other, by name.
Key Takeaway
Convert more of those people you see or say hello to regularly into people you really know by name. It’s easy. Introduce yourself, by name and ask for their name in return. Write the names down. Remember them by starting a list with the names of people you meet and a description of who they are on your phone or in a notebook. Refer back to the list as necessary. The rewards are profound. Just ask Andrew from Elite. Or Norm from Cheers.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
During the 25 days leading up to Christmas, it’s a tradition to count the days with an advent calendar. Each day this calendar is opened to reveal a daily gift. There are a variety of themed calendars. Some offer a good bible verse, a small toy, a chocolate, a saying, or an ornament. (I’m holding out for the mini-oven calendar, where you open a tiny oven door to remove freshly baked muffin tops every morning.) But regardless of the theme, these calendars provide a daily gift to look forward to each day as we get closer to Christmas. Kinda like the Lifetime Network.
For the self-improver, life is like an advent calendar. Every day there is a new gift to be discovered. A new quote. A new idea. A new relationship. A new source of inspiration. A new motivation. A new goal. A new lesson. (And in New Hampshire there is a new Sununu.)
When I wrote my book What Does Your Fortune Cookie Say? I collected 80 of the best life lessons I have learned and shared them with the world. Many of the people who read the book tell me they use it like an advent calendar. They read one of the 2-4 page lessons every day. Then they apply the new idea, knowledge, or skill to improve their life. As the author, this is extremely rewarding feedback. As the author, it is extremely rewarding to hear that other people get as much out of the lessons I share as I did.
Key Takeaway #1
Commit to making your life a living, breathing advent calendar. Look for your daily gift that makes you better. Then add that new lesson, story, saying, person or idea to your personal treasure chest by writing it down in a journal. When you do you will quickly transform that once-empty journal into the most valuable book in your library. Remember, when you condition yourself to find a daily treasure the treasure will surely appear.
Follow Up…
Within a minute of writing this post, I got a text from my friend Molly Fay, host of The Morning Blend on TMJ4 (NBC) in Milwaukee. She wrote that they had a cancelation for the next day’s show, and wondered if I could fill in. I responded with an enthusiastic Let’s do this! Then she asked if I had a topic in mind related to the upcoming holidays.
Me, Molly, Tiffany, my book, a yellow couch, and two Yeti cups. No partridge. No pear tree.
Key Takeaway #2
Be the kind of person others can turn to when they need help. Because at the end of our days the only thing that really matters is the impact we have on each other.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
Success always sounds easier than it really is. You set a goal. You work hard. And you accomplish it, right? It’s all so so logical, and linear.
But the logic overlooks the most overlooked stage of success. The pre-boil. You remember. It’s the lesson we learned in science class. And it’s a lesson we’re reminded of every time we watch a pot. Because that mofo never boils.
When you boil water there are 5 stages to the process:
You fill a pot with water.
You place the pot on the stove.
You turn on the burner
The burner heats the water.
The water boils.
4 out of the 5 stages of the process last only a matter of seconds. Like an Instagram story. But one of the stages takes much longer.
Stage 4: The Pre-Boil.
The Pre-Boil is the part of the process when you put in the necessary work to get the result. But you are not yet getting the result you are after.
You have to go through the pre-boil phase:
When you exercise.
When you want to lose weight.
When you want to establish a successful career.
When you want to be an influencer.
When you start your own business.
When you are a student.
When you write a book.
When you want to make a tasty lobster dinner.
And when you want to build Rome. (Because everyone knows that is not a one-day job.)
The Most Common Cause Of Failure
Most attempts fail because they don’t survive the pre-boil. Because during this stage the effort you put in is far greater than the results you get out.
However, during the pre-boil, your effort, work, dedication, and sacrifice are accumulating. Just like the heat that is accumulating in that pot of water on the stove.
The pre-boil is the price of entry. It is the initiation to the club. It is the test to see if you really want what you think you want. If you really want that dream to come true you must keep marching through the pre-boil. It is the only way to get to your goal.
Key Takeaway
All great accomplishments require sustained effort. The energy you exert is added to your account. But you won’t see the results right away. Know that. Accept that. And keep going. Success is a test. The universe holds back the reward to sweeten it. Which makes it worth both the work and the wait.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
Adam Albrecht Blog 