Productivity

I struggled with work/life balance throughout my career. This is because the world has set a clever, two-part trap for us. I will explain the trap and how to escape it. Part One – Our own goals and ambitions. I wanted to be successful, to get more pay, and to be a part of bigger decisions. If you follow me here, I bet you are the same. You want to “be the best” and have a great career. Part Two – Corporate pressure. Companies have a simple goal of making profits for shareholders. This is most easily done by getting more work from the same people. The Trap: The two parts converge to destroy work/life balance because our healthy desire to do good work, earn a living, and find meaning is easily manipulated by corporate systems designed to maximize profits. Here is how they do it: 1) Most companies give bigger raises to “better” performers. What is better? Usually, doing more work. Sometimes you can be “better” by being smarter or more efficient, but over time even the best of us usually work harder 2) Competition. Since raises and promotions are limited in number, there will always be someone else willing to put in very long hours to come out ahead of you. Some of you will recognize this as “the prisoner’s dilemma” – if only one person works harder, they will get a lot of advantages for only a little extra work. But, when we all strive to be first it becomes a maximum effort race with no winners. Ways to Escape the Trap: 1) Set limits. Recognize the trap and decide what you will and will not give to your work. This may mean accepting some career tradeoffs, but unless you set the limits your body will do it for you over time. It is better to make the choices yourself. 2) Seek work only you can do. We are all gifted at some things, and you get two benefits from focusing on your gifts. First, you can stay ahead of others with less effort. Second, it is more fun to do things that come easily. 3) Choose companies and bosses wisely. Some leaders push you into the trap, some leaders try to keep you out of it. Seek those that keep you out. 4) Work for yourself. If you can be your own boss you can escape the corporate side of profit maximization, or at least have it under your control. 5) Redefine success. There is nothing wrong with wanting pay, promotions, influence, etc. But if the cost gets too high, remember that plenty of people are happy without corporate success. My own path was to climb the ladder, make the money, and then step off. I sacrificed many good years to work and high stress in order to get a set of years without it. A good trade? Time will tell. Readers, what are some other ways to escape the trap?

I built an AI agent that handles my entire inbound system. (And I used to be against automation). Here's how I did it: I used two tools: --> Make: For automation workflows --> Relevance: For AI agents Here's what my AI agent handles: When someone fills our form, it- --> Analyzes their LinkedIn profile --> Reviews their website --> Checks if they match our criteria --> Makes a decision in seconds For qualified leads: --> Sends personalized pitch deck --> Books discovery calls --> Handles initial questions For non-qualified leads: --> Sends a thoughtful rejection --> Explains why we're not the right fit --> Keeps the door open for future The best part? My team and I can focus on what matters - strategy and client success - instead of spending hours on admin work. No more: -Manual lead checking -Back-and-forth emails -Calendar scheduling headaches -Just high-quality conversations with pre-qualified founders. Want to know the biggest lesson? Automation isn't about replacing the human touch. It's about creating more time for it.

Want to stay motivated every single day? Borrow a strategy from Harvard. Then borrow another from stand up comedy. Together, they’re a powerhouse for momentum, motivation, and mastery. Here’s how it works: Let’s start with Harvard. Researcher Teresa Amabile studied 12,000 daily work diaries across 8 companies. She wanted to know: What truly motivates people on a day to day basis? What she found changed how we understand drive. The #1 driver of daily motivation wasn’t: Money Praise Perks It was progress. The days people made progress on meaningful work were the days they felt the best. Progress isn’t a luxury. It’s a psychological necessity. So how do we make progress feel visible especially on days when it’s not? Use a “Progress Ritual.” → At the end of the day, pause. → Write down 3 small ways you moved forward. → That’s it. No fanfare. Just ritual. This works because we rarely notice our progress in real time. It gets buried under busyness, meetings, and mental noise. The act of looking back gives your brain the reward it needs to keep going. Momentum builds from meaning. Now let’s add some comedy. Young Jerry Seinfeld had one goal: write new material every day. To stay on track, he created a brilliant system. Each day he wrote, he put a big red X on his calendar. Soon, a chain of Xs formed. And here’s the key: Don’t break the chain. One red X becomes two. Two becomes ten. Ten becomes identity. Whether you’re writing, coding, or training Daily action + visual chain = long-term motivation. Summary: The Two-Part Motivation System From Harvard: Record 3 ways you made progress each day. From Seinfeld: Mark an X for each day you show up then don’t break the chain. Progress fuels purpose. Consistency fuels confidence. Apply both and you’ll stay on track especially on the tough days. Because when your days get better, your weeks get better. When your weeks get better, your months get better. When your months get better, your life gets better. It starts with one small win today.

Rick Rubin went on stage in Helsinki the day after my talk. Someone asked how he resolves creative differences with artists. His answer was simple: change the conversation from "I disagree" to "let's build it." Then he shared a story: An artist played him a song. The transition didn't work. Rubin told him so. The artist said, "We'll just cut that part in half." Rubin thought to himself: What a dumb idea. But he didn't say that. He said, "Let's try it." The artist played it. It worked. Rubin is a legend. He's produced everyone from Johnny Cash to Jay-Z. Instead, he bit his tongue and let the artist prove him wrong. The principle: when you make an idea tangible, it stops being the person's idea. It becomes something you can both look at objectively and improve together. Once you build it, the truth is obvious. Here's what this looks like in practice: Your designer wants to change the entire homepage layout. You think it's too risky. Instead of three meetings debating it, you say: "Let's build a prototype and test it with 50 users this week." Your sales team wants to restructure the pricing page. Instead of blocking it because you're worried about conversions, you say: "Let's run it as an A/B test on 20% of traffic for two weeks." Your engineer wants to rebuild a core feature from scratch. You think it's overengineered. But instead of killing it in the planning phase, you say: "Spike it out in three days and show me if the performance gain is real." You're not saying yes to everything. You're saying, "Let's find out." Rubin also said something that stuck with me: "If there's disagreement, I always side with the artist's vision. Because to them, it's their career. To me, it's just one piece of my portfolio." Most leaders think backing down makes them look weak. Rubin knows that siding with the person who has the most at stake makes better work happen. Your job isn't to be right. It's to create the conditions where the best idea wins. Stop debating. Start building. P.S. This insight is from this week's newsletter where I break down why Yamaha dominates while Steinway got sold to private equity: https://lnkd.in/efSqP_9K P.P.S. Access additional research links, the podcast, and the full archive in the first comment 👇 Thank you to Nordic Business Forum!

Are your data teams building in silos? Think of your data org like building a city.  Without a plan, you get random houses with no roads. With one? You get infrastructure that scales. Here's how modern data teams work in sync to drive real business impact: 𝘈𝘳𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 design the blueprint 𝘌𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘳𝘴 build the roads 𝘈𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘴 guide the traffic 𝘚𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 predict the future When these roles work in sync, the city thrives. Here’s the loop that powers high-impact teams 👇 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗔𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 — The City Planner Designs where data lives and how it flows. → Defines architecture: lakehouse, warehouse, streaming → Sets standards: naming, governance, connectivity → Impact: Prevents chaos as data scales 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿 — The Infrastructure Builder Makes data move reliably at scale. → Ingests from sources: apps, APIs, sensors → Builds automated pipelines and validated models → Impact: Turns messy inputs into trusted assets 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿 — The Bridge Builder Transforms raw data into business-ready models. Designs dimensional models and metrics layers Builds reusable data products Impact: One source of truth for all consumers 𝗕𝗜 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿 — The Dashboard Architect Brings data to life for decision-makers. → Builds interactive dashboards and reports → Connects metrics to business KPIs → Impact: Makes insights accessible to everyone 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝘁 — The Business Translator Connects data to decisions. → Defines KPIs with stakeholders → Analyzes trends, gaps, and drivers → Impact: Leadership knows what's happening and why 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁 — The Future Predictor Moves from reactive to proactive. → Builds predictive models and optimization engines → Forecasts demand, risk, performance → Impact: Smarter decisions with confidence 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 — The Quality Guardian Ensures trust and compliance. → Monitors data quality and lineage → Enforces governance and security policies → Impact: Data you can actually trust 🔁 Goal set → Architect designs → Engineers build → Analysts measure → Scientists predict → Insights feed back → Repeat. The Result: ✅ One source of truth ✅ Faster, smarter decisions ✅ Clear accountability ✅ Real business impact Image Credits: Baraa Khatib Salkini 𝘔𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘢 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘴 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘰𝘴—𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘺𝘯𝘤. 👉 Which role do you resonate with most?

In the inbound marketing era, content was queen. In the AI era of marketing, yes, content is still queen. Last week, I spoke to a CMO whose content marketing strategy revolves entirely around SEO. After years of solid growth, her company’s traffic is declining. It’s a familiar story in 2025. She asked: “Now that SEO is less effective, is content marketing less important?” I told her the opposite is true. Content is more important than ever but a few things are different. 1. Content needs to be specific. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), or how your brand shows up in AI-driven responses is becoming important. The difference between being cited or invisible often comes down to one thing: specific, high-quality content. Marketers leading in AEO are seeing 3–4x higher conversion rates, but only when their content goes deeper than surface-level keywords. Authority, clarity, and originality are the new ranking signals. 2. Content needs to be multi-modal and multi-channel. Buyers no longer follow a linear journey. They read, watch, listen, chat, and scroll, often in the same hour. AI makes it easier to meet them in those moments, but you still need powerful assets to show up well: Video and interactive demos for discovery, Long-form explainers for education, Bite-sized insights for social. The format changes, but the foundation doesn’t: clear, helpful, human content. 3. Content needs to be dynamic and personal. AI gives us the signal—who’s interested, what they need, when they’re ready. But only great content makes the connection. Dynamic, intent-based content can turn data into meaningful engagement. That’s how you create moments that feel personal instead of programmatic. The tools have changed. The algorithms have changed. The constant is content. It’s still queen – because it’s still how trust, engagement, and growth begin. Ps: Huge shoutout to our HubSpot partner Mole Street, who’s all-in on helping customers grow through great content. Whenever I speak with Brendan Walsh or Brian LaPann, “Content Hub” comes up within the first two minutes. Last week they released a fantastic whitepaper on it, link in the comments if you’d like to take a look.

I was shadowing a coaching client in her leadership meeting when I watched this brilliant woman apologize six times in 30 minutes. 1. “Sorry, this might be off-topic, but..." 2. “I'm could be wrong, but what if we..." 3. “Sorry again, I know we're running short on time..." 4. “I don't want to step on anyone's toes, but..." 5. “This is just my opinion, but..." 6. “Sorry if I'm being too pushy..." Her ideas? They were game-changing. Every single one. Here's what I've learned after decades of coaching women leaders: Women are masterful at reading the room and keeping everyone comfortable. It's a superpower. But when we consistently prioritize others' comfort over our own voice, we rob ourselves, and our teams, of our full contribution. The alternative isn't to become aggressive or dismissive. It's to practice “gracious assertion": • Replace "Sorry to interrupt" with "I'd like to add to that" • Replace "This might be stupid, but..." with "Here's another perspective" • Replace "I hope this makes sense" with "Let me know what questions you have" • Replace "I don't want to step on toes" with "I have a different approach" • Replace "This is just my opinion" with "Based on my experience" • Replace "Sorry if I'm being pushy" with "I feel strongly about this because" But how do you know if you're hitting the right note? Ask yourself these three questions: • Am I stating my needs clearly while respecting others' perspectives? (Assertive) • Am I dismissing others' input or bulldozing through objections? (Aggressive) • Am I hinting at what I want instead of directly asking for it? (Passive-aggressive) You can be considerate AND confident. You can make space for others AND take up space yourself. Your comfort matters too. Your voice matters too. Your ideas matter too. And most importantly, YOU matter. @she.shines.inc #Womenleaders #Confidence #selfadvocacy

What do Albert Einstein, Paul McCartney, and Virgina Woolf have in common – besides being highly influential figures in their respective fields? All three revealed that some of their most creative ideas came to them whilst they were walking or sleeping. Ok, so what’s the brain up to this time? Why should disengaging help #creativity? In 2014, a group of researchers at Stanford measured the positive effects of mild physical activity on creativity – and found that walking boosted creativity by between 50-80%. 👉 When students took a brisk walk around the college campus or walked at a relaxed pace on an indoor treadmill facing a blank wall – their performance on a test of creativity called the “Alternate Uses Task” improved by a whopping 81%! The AUT tests “divergent thinking,” which is the ability to explore many possible solutions, including blue sky or out of the box thinking. 👉 Walking outdoors produced the most novel and highest quality analogies, indicating that walking had a very specific benefit in improving creativity. 👉 Furthermore, walking made people more talkative, resulting in roughly 50% more total ideas being produced compared to when sitting. In other words, just going for a short walk led to a massive increase in creativity. Or, in the words of the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, "All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking.” Sleeping on it seems to have a similar creativity-enhancing effect as physical exercise. How many times have you come back to tackle a seemingly insurmountable problem after a sleep – or even a nap – and the pieces seemed to fall right into place? Studies have found that during the phase of sleep known as Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep, the #brain is able to make new and novel connections between unrelated ideas, which is a key aspect of creativity. This state of sleep allows for the free association of ideas, which can lead to creative problem-solving and the generation of innovative ideas upon waking. REM sleep is thought to contribute to "incubating" creative ideas, as the brain reorganizes and consolidates memories, potentially leading to creative insights. Both physical exercise and sleep are mood-enhancers, which may contribute to enhancing creativity. Research suggests that positive moods can enhance creative thinking, making it easier for individuals to think flexibly and come up with innovative solutions. Positive emotional states often increase cognitive flexibility, broaden attention, and allow for more associations between ideas, which are key elements of creativity. Turns out, there are practical ways to spark more ‘Aha!’ moments in our lives. The next time you’re struggling to think of a solution to a problem, try taking a walk or sleeping on it – the evidence-backed cheat-codes for unlocking creativity!

If you're a founder trying to fundraise right now, it probably feels like the entire venture world has gone quiet. The response times are slow, OOOs are on and it’s easy to feel like you’re losing momentum. Don't stress. The summer slowdown is predictable, and it's not a setback, it's a gift of time if you use it well. I see this every year... The founders who scramble to send frantic emails in July/August are the same ones who struggle in the fall with an over-shopped deal and the fatigue of an endless fundraise. But the founders who use this quiet period for deep, focused preparation are the ones who run a crisp, successful process after Labor Day. The fundraising race is won in the prep lap. Here are a few things you can do right now to prep for a big fundraising push this fall: 1. Build a High-Fidelity Investor Pipeline. Go beyond a simple list of names. Create a comprehensive document that tracks every firm and partner, their specific thesis, your history with them (if any), your connections to them and crucially, the feedback they've given you in the past. This turns your outreach into a strategic campaign. 2. Assemble a "Push-Button" Data Room. Don't wait for an investor to ask. Build your data room now so it's ready to go at a moment's notice. This includes your customer contracts, cohort analyses, deck, references and financial model. A well-organized data room signals professionalism and creates momentum. 3. Craft a "Juicy" Forwardable Blurb. The best introductions are easy to forward. Write a tight, compelling, one-paragraph teaser. It must include a unique insight on the market, why your team is going to win and any key metrics. This makes it effortless for people like me to advocate on your behalf. 4. Pressure-Test Your Narrative. Use this time to pitch trusted advisors, mentors, and other founders. This isn't about memorizing a script, it's about finding the weak spots in your story. Ask them to be ruthless. The tough questions you answer now in a friendly setting will save you in a rapid fire partner meeting later. 5. Get Your "Diligence" in Order. This is the one everyone forgets. Talk to your lawyer now. Make sure your corporate governance is tight and your cap table is accurate (and clean). Uncovering a messy problems during late-stage diligence can kill a deal. Solving it now is a massive de-risking event. 6. "Warm Up" Your References. Your best customers are your most powerful asset. Don't wait until an investor asks for a reference call to talk to them. Re-engage with your top 3-5 champions now. Check in, share your progress, and get them excited about your vision. A reference who is prepped and genuinely enthusiastic is infinitely more impactful. The fall fundraising season will be here before you know it. The work you do in the quiet of August will determine the success you have in the chaos of the fall. We are prepping for our next fundraise as well so this is how I'm spending my time💥

Our health system still spends too much time moving and cleaning data across systems that weren’t designed to work together. That fragmentation slows providers, delays care, and limits our ability to deliver truly coordinated treatment. At Elevance Health we built Health OS to change that. It’s a bi-directional clinical data interoperability platform that securely connects systems and standardizes data—making it accessible, actionable, and AI-ready with privacy and security at the core. With AI and digital technologies, guided by human oversight, we’re replacing repetitive, disconnected work with intelligent systems that anticipate needs, automate routine tasks, and help care teams act faster. In the article below, Jeff Plante and I share how Health OS enables seamless information flow across providers, health plans, and member experiences—supporting earlier intervention, better coordination, and more proactive care at the right time. https://lnkd.in/gqx3UFfd