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You may have heard it as a kid, “Pay attention, stop daydreaming!” Now that you are a full-grown adult, I highly encourage you to ignore this advice.
I’m driven by performance, while she is all about process.
I thrive under the pressure of a looming deadline; she likes to plan things out in advance.
I focus on the big picture; she’s laser-focused on the details.
Over the years, I’ve learned that neither of these approaches is right or wrong—just different.
Jodi, my assistant, and I have worked together on countless projects for almost a decade now. I often find myself saying, “I don’t know what I’d do without her.” I can proudly say, we are still very much a work in progress, but that’s part of what makes us great. It’s our shared commitment to personal growth that drives our success. Let me explain…
When I’m ready to dive headfirst into a project, Jodi is there to slow me down and ask the important questions: “How will this impact people?” or “Shouldn’t we establish a clear process first?” Sometimes she’ll even say, “I think we need more time.” I’ll admit, these moments can test my patience, but I always remind myself—this is exactly why I hired her. It’s that balance between performance and process that makes us such an unstoppable team.
After every big event, we take the time to sit down for a proper debrief. We ask ourselves three key questions: What went well? What didn’t? And if we had to do it again, what would we do differently? It’s tempting to rush into the next project, but reflecting on how we work together, not just on what we accomplish, has been a game-changer. It’s made us stronger, more accountable, and more aligned as a team.
So, in this season of gratitude, I want to send a huge thank you to Jodi. And I encourage you to do the same for someone on your team.
Ask yourself:
Who do you appreciate?
What specifically do you value about them?
How do your differences make you stronger together?
Adventurously yours,
P.S. One of the most impactful tools Jodi and I used to understand and value our differences was the SDI 2.0 Strengths Assessment. It gave us insight into the positive intent behind each other’s actions, improved our communication, and we learned to appreciate each other’s unique styles. Want to strengthen your team’s connection through an SDI 2.0 Assessment? Let’s chat.
Improving Employee Engagement Through Relationship Intelligence
Unless there is a concerted effort to help people understand what matters to them and to others, then people will continue to show up to work and try to do all the right things, wondering why they don’t find their work meaningful.
What ALL productive teams have in common.
Appreciation is your ability to believe that the differences between us are valuable and necessary in order to be as adaptive and innovative as we need to be to maintain high performance.
