One of my favorite professors in grad school gave me a book: Tom Peters' Reinventing Work: The Brand You 50, Fifty Ways to Transform Yourself from an "Employee" into a Brand that Shouts Distinction, Commitment, and Passion. I pulled it off the shelf the other day after reading a book very similar to it but not as good: Me, 2.0.
The following items come from the Introduction to Peters' small book, in what he calls a contrast between "a-Day-in-Dilbertland-in-'Right-sized'-Towers" and the "Liberating-New-World-Order-of-brand-new-Brand-You" (6-7). I give you 10 of the 20 he lists:
|
|
“Brand You” World |
|
“Employee” World |
|
1 |
Working
on a memorable (WOW) project. (If it’s not WOW…I’ll make it WOW…or bust
trying!) |
|
Doing
what’s been assigned. |
|
2 |
Committed
to my craft. Intend to be incredibly
good at s-o-m-e-t-h-i-n-g. |
|
Working
assiduously on inbox contents. |
|
3 |
Don’t
waste a single lunch … networking is
my mantra. |
|
Lunch
is my business! |
|
4 |
Willing
to take a “lowly” task if I can turn it into something “cool.” |
|
Don’t
try to push bullshit off on me, bro. |
|
5 |
Understand
that Projects-Are-Me. Period. (This
ain’t funny: I am my project “portfolio.”) |
|
I show up. I don’t make waves. |
|
6 |
Think
“fun” is cool! |
|
A
day at work is a day at work. Don’t make a congressional case out of it. |
|
7 |
Am
(frequently) angry at our slowness to change. |
|
C’est
la vie. |
|
8 |
Love
bright colors. |
|
Gray
is beautiful. (Invisibility rules.) |
|
9 |
Embrace
life. |
|
There’s
enough shit that comes your way without asking for more. |
|
10 |
Chose
this project because it will add to my learning / because it will
s-t-r-e-t-c-h me / because it allows me to hang with cool people. |
|
It’s
what the boss told me to do. |
Not everyone will "get" this list, and that's OK. For those of us who do get it, well, we get it. But I I need to revisit this book from time to time, especially as I make changes in my life and remove myself from an "employee" world. If nothing else, this list reminds me that I recently made a very good decision.
This is a great list. Right now, I feel like I'm living somewhere between both columns, and I have been feeling the urge to turn more toward the left hand side... It's been a tension for me.
Posted by: Bright Star (B*) | April 01, 2009 at 05:11 PM
Such perfect timing for me. I just set new goals for my business's growth and this matches how I'm attacking it. :)
Posted by: Julie | April 01, 2009 at 05:28 PM
I've been following your blog and twitter feeds and didn't realize you were at NCSU! (Got my BA English there in 1983. Did you work with Dr. Covington?)
I'll be entering UNC this fall for an Info Science PhD -- at the age of 48, leaving my job, rolling the dice, absolutely sure that someone there will realize they made a mistake in letting me in. Anxiety and anticipation in equal measures. But also wonderful love and support from my family and new friends.
Thanks for doing this blog. It's been encouraging and exciting to see your progress.
Posted by: Mike Brown | June 09, 2009 at 03:33 PM