© Jensen Group, 2015 Simplicity Project

Simplicity Toolkit25 Habits

for aDisruptive World

SAP has partnered with The Jensen Group,the premier expert on organizational simplicity

to provide you with some of their tools and insights

These documents are segmented into three areas of focus...

How To Addendum to Bill Jensen’s Disrupt! Think Epic. Be Epic.

Research Organizationaland

LeadershipSimplicity

Personal andTeam

Simplicity

ClickThe JourneyContinues

How To Addendumto

Disrupt!Think Epic. Be Epic.

By Bill Jensen

Disrupt!Think Epic. Be Epic.How To Addendum

Lint BinDisrupt! and The Courage Within Us are Bill Jensen’s sixth andseventh books. All his books begin with the research from theongoing study, Search for a Simpler Way, by the Jensen Group.To date, well over 1,000,000 individuals have been surveyedand/or interviewed for the study, from across the globe.

In this How To addendum to Disrupt!, Bill has included tips andtechniques that came from Simpler Way findings as well as tipsfrom many other sources. All findings and tips relate to knowledge-and service-work economies — not third-world or emergingeconomies — and may have only limited application in extremelyindustrialized or agrarian situations.

For more information: simplerwork.combill@simplerwork.com

© 2014, Bill Jensen, The Jensen Group

SECTION 1

Dos PAGE 4

SECTION 2

Don’ts PAGE 33

SECTION 3

Guiding Principles PAGE 42

The Powerof HabitWhat follows are additional how-to’s associated

with the 25 disruptive habits identified within

Disrupt! Let’s begin with a few tips about building

any kind of habit.

What is a Habit?It is an action that you perform seemingly without having to think

about it. Habits are so internalized that each Next Step and each

reaction are hard-wired into your thinking processes. Every action

seems to be performed without having to think about it.

45% of Our Day: Both Good and BadResearchers have found that up to 45% of what we do every day

are habits.

>INTRODUCTION

ClickDisrupt! How Tos 2

Good: Without habits, we’d go nuts! Every little thing that had to

get done would become a major thinking chore.

Bad: In a world of constant disruptive change, with almost half

your day filled with habits, you can be too slow to react to many

things that require you to change.

How to Build Any HabitPay attention to the cues that spark activities that deliver

rewards. An example, Pavlov’s experiments: Dogs learned that a

ringing bell (cue) meant food.

Focus on the reward at the end, not on the difficulty of the

work involved. Examples: Recognition or prestige or a bonus or

time off after working hard on a project; Or being healthier after

the hard work of stopping smoking.

The “Secret”Freedom of choice. You can choose to let go of old habits that

are no longer useful. You can choose to build new habits that will

be more helpful to you in a very disruptive world.

Daily Secret: Tools, checklists, buddy systems, support groups,

reminders… Anything that keeps you true to your commitments

until new habits have been formed.

The “Catch”Changing old habits and building new ones can be hard work.

The degree of difficulty is tied to the strength of your Ahas.

Little Ahas (“Yeah, I guess I should do this…”) = Very difficult work

ahead. Big Ahas (“I really must do this, it’s worth it!”) = No work

seems too difficult — you’ll just do it.

FOR MORE

The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg

Tiny Habits Method by BJ Fogg

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Dos[ Do Epic Shit ]“If you don’t disrupt and you don’t free your

own mind in how you apply yourself to

challenges, you can’t address today’s most

intractable problems.

“If you want to make a change, life’s too short

to be anything but disruptive. We need a Tahrir

Square in everyone’s mind. We need the same

freedom from fear in which we first saw in the

streets of Cairo. The big challenge in our future

is how we break the boundaries in our own mind.

That’s where the future lies.”ClickDisrupt! How Tos 4

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That’s Salil Shetty, Secretary General for Amnesty International.

His advice is the perfect introduction to this How To addendum to

Disrupt!

Shetty is a lifelong activist on poverty and justice issues, and

leads the movement's worldwide work to end the abuse of human

rights. One might think that he’d be a “can’t we all just get along”

kind of guy. Not so. He knows that the only way to thrive in a

disruptive world, is to take disruptive actions of your own.

“Life’s too short not to be outraged and not to be disruptive,”

he continues. “Yes, patience is a virtue. What’s important is how

you channel that in a way that results in change. It comes down

to a combination of passion and analytics.

“My optimism and hope lies with who wants power to be

distributed more equitably.”

HABIT 1 QUESTION EVERYTHING PAGE 6

HABIT 2 AUDACITY MATTERS PAGE 8

HABIT 3 KILL WHAT YOU CHERISH MOST PAGE 11

HABIT 4 DO EPIC SHIT PAGE 12

HABIT 5 BLOW STUFF UP PAGE 14

HABIT 6 BE A TRIAGE MASTER PAGE 16

HABIT 7 MAKE A MESS PAGE 17

HABIT 8 DO IT ANYWAY PAGE 19

HABIT 9 GO FASTER PAGE 21

HABIT 10 LEAP BEFORE THE NET APPEARS PAGE 23

HABIT 11 SIMPLIFY CONSTANTLY PAGE 25

HABIT 12 HAVE LOTS OF AFFAIRS (ON YOUR BOSS) PAGE 27

HABIT 13 GO BACK TO THE FUTURE PAGE 29

HABIT 14 FIX THE WORLD’S FLYING TOILETS PAGE 31

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14 HABITS FOR DOING GREAT WORK

IN A DISRUPTIVE WORLD

Question EverythingHow to Ask Questions That Rock the Boat

Find Your Core Set of QuestionsThese are your go-to questions that are helpful in most any

situation. Limit your core questions to 3—5. For me as a business

consultant, I almost always begin with…

How do you define success? Or: If we were super successful

and we asked 100 people for their reactions, what would they

say? This puts the person you’re speaking with in the customer’s/

client’s/audience’s shoes.

Why? Journalists are taught to ask variations of this same

question up five times until they get to the real truth.

Time/Quality/Cost: Pick Two. You can’t ask this directly.

Everybody will always respond that all three are equally

important. But they never are. One of these three is always the

deciding factor. (And cost is often a lot more flexible than we’re

led to believe.) You will need to ask this question indirectly

multiple times in order to uncover which one it is.

Some additional suggestions…

What is our (company, team, store, etc.) core purpose on earth?

Variations of this question always quickly get to “Why are we

really doing this? What’s the ultimate purpose of this?”

What should we stop doing?

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If our (company, team, store, etc.) didn’t exist, how would we

approach this?

How could we do this differently?

— Adapted from Warren Berger, host of the blog A More Beautiful Question

A few more suggestions…

What if there were no rules for this? What would we do?

What would we do if we wanted to have no regrets?

Is this the hill we want to die on? (Is this really that important?)

What’s the difference between what they want and what

they need?

What really matters in this situation?

Practice, Practice, PracticeTo accomplish Step 3, you will need to practice your core set

of questions constantly. In most every meeting, in most every

exchange.

Sense the Tipping PointAt some point in the exchange, the vibe will change. If you pay

very close attention, you will begin to sense the exact moment

where the vibe switches from “OK, will give you some discovery

time…” to “Let’s move on to getting stuff done.”

For example, many of my new business opportunities occur during

teleconferences. Assuming a one-hour call, the tipping point is

usually between 20 minutes and 40 minutes into the call. I then

quickly switch into “Here’s what I’d recommend we do” mode.

Your goal is to push right up to the edge of that tipping point

(maximizing discovery time)… But never go over it (the point at

which just one more question will annoy others).

Get to the Point… Fast!After you’ve questioned as much as you can, jump quickly into

getting stuff done.

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Make sure your actions/recommendations are built upon how

people just answered your questions.

Get to the point fast! Spell out recommendations and action items

clearly and succinctly. (See Habit 11: Simplify Constantly)

Repeat: Going Further Each TimePush as far as you can with one round of questions… Execute

based on what you learned… Then push a little further the next

time you have the opportunity.

Audacity MattersCareer Audacity: Making Big Changes

No Yeah Buts or Monetary ConcernsHold off on those — at least initially. The main reason people stay

in bad jobs and in less-than-great situations is because they can’t

get past their Yeah Buts and initial concerns.

Validate Your GutSix Reasons to Make a Career Change

Learn more about common mistakes people make

Dream Big, Ask Big QuestionsTreat your life as a blank piece of paper with no pre-determined

rules or boundaries. Ask big questions like…

What do I want?

What marketplace needs (products/services) excite me?ClickDisrupt! How Tos 8

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What can I offer on those needs or any?

Do I have what it takes?

What skills do I have that are transferable?

My own firm? Somebody’s employee? Combination of both?

FOR MORE

Big Career Questions

Go to Your Audacity YodaLots of people will help you plot the safest or wisest course.

Somewhere in your life there is (or needs to be) a mentor or

friend or family member who will guide you — and, if necessary,

tough-love you — toward adventure, exploring, and risk-taking.

Brainstorm new possibilities with this person

Brainstorm what you’d do during the next few months if you were

to select one of the options

Brainstorm how to facilitate conversations with family or anyone

who will have monetary or Yeah But concerns.

Once you do this, you will find many of the concerns will have

already been addressed!

Chart Your New CoursePlan it with family and anyone who will be impacted by your

decisions. Having done Step 4, you will experience a little less

worry and a lot more adventure!

Project Audacity: Making Big Pitches

Pre-Work: Read the Modern ClassicsGetting to Yes

Getting Past No

Difficult Conversations

Ask Decision-Makers to Share Their DreamsMost of us know a standard corporate practice — pre-shopping

new ideas with decision-makers before the ideas are actually

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proposed. That way, when you finally present the idea, it gets

approved because the decision-makers have had a chance to put

their fingerprints already all over it.

Problem: This approach almost always waters down audacious

ideas into way-too-safe ideas.

So use the process differently:

Meet with key decision-makers before you brainstorm your ideas

Ask them their dreams for your project. If your project could

exceed their wildest expectations, what would that look like?

Use their big dreams to jumpstart your audacious ideas

Audaciousness is built-in because the decision-makers’ biggest

dreams are already included

Close the SaleYour passion and a great idea are not enough. Go into to that

meeting prepared to discuss:

Immediate next steps

Who is responsible for what

What success looks like

What tools and resources are needed

Finally: Two important things to remember:

Make it easy for everyone to say Yes. Organize all of the above

into and easy to review and understand checklist. Ideally, on

one page

Be yourself! Because in the end, you are selling you.

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Kill What YouCherish MostYour Projects: Plan Obsolescence From the StartFollow a two-track approach…

Create An Ongoing Iteration LoopAs soon as you launch your project, you will need to start seeking

feedback that will help you keep designing new iterations.

Hackathons are a great model to follow. They keep the feedback

loop intense and keep the iterations coming. Here, here, here and

here are some 411s on hackathons.

Great feedback is useless unless somebody does something

with it. Contract with your bosses, up front, for fast response

times for feedback. The best models are similar to Zappos and

Ritz-Carlton where everybody knows that they are empowered to

make changes without going through the chain of command.

If you are stuck with a more traditional managerial structure

(my condolences), then contract with your bosses on the one or

two key metrics where they will empower your team to make

changes without going up the chain of command.

Day 1 of Your New Project: Start Killing ItThe moment you launch your latest project, someone out there

is already working on making all your efforts obsolete. Don’t wait

for that. Start killing it yourself. Start…

Researching what technologies or approaches might surpass

what you just accomplished

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Brainstorming with teammates Version 2.0 of what you just

accomplished

Don’t wait for approval. Don’t wait for permission.

FOR MORE

How Apple does it

Consequences of not killing your project

Do Epic ShitRedefine Your NicheSo Being the Best Is Attainable

Pre-Work:Watch Six Commencement SpeechesSteve Jobs

Jacqueline Novogratz

JK Rowling

Meryl Streep

Jeff Bezos

Neil Gaiman

You will be reminded of timeless truths which will carry you

through your quest to be the best

Be You: The Amazing YouMovie director Alfred Hitchcock once said “Drama is life with

the dull bits cut out.” The same applies to you being the best in

the world. Accentuate your most wondrous qualities and then

amplify them.

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Like how…

The Mythbusters guys entertain us with experiments

Richard Saul Wurman launched TED

Salman Khan began reinventing education from his closet

Lenny Bruce, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert showed us new

ways to see ourselves

Redefining your market niche is you, with the dull bits cut out.

Define Market Needs That You Alone OwnDefine a set of market needs, established or new — (no one asked

for the first iPod, but one visionary saw a huge market for it) —

so that you (as envisioned in Step 2) are the perfect match in

fulfilling those needs.

Market size must be connected to your dreams. (World domination

or best in your neighborhood?)

Your goals should be tied your skillsets and strengths. (If you’re

tone deaf, it may not be realistic that you’ll be doing epic shit as

a musician.)

Define True SuccessSome who do epic shit achieve wealth or fame. Yet most are

simply striving to be the best version of themselves. Define true

success in terms of how much fun you have, or how comfortable

and natural it is to be that way, or what you’ve learned and

experienced, or who you’ve met and spent time with. Being the

best you can be will never be measured by market size or

revenues. If those happen to come your way — great. But true

success is an awesome journey!

DeliverSteve Jobs once said that “real artists ship.” Meaning: At the end

of the day, your product or service is only epic if you actually

deliver the goods. Great execution matters.

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Blow Stuff UpHow to Blow Stuff Up and Get Away With It

Be BuckyBuckminster Fuller famously said “You never change things by

fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new

model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

Do not blow stuff up by attacking the current system.

There are too many people invested in keeping things the way

they are. They will wear you down.

Instead, invest your energies in building a new model, a new way

of doing things

Start Small, With a Narrow FocusThe size for mobile phone apps is projected to be over $100 billion

by 2015. All that from products that cost, on average, about $3;

and where 90% of all apps are free. Regardless of what your

product or service is, or how it’s delivered, or how much (or little)

technology is involved…

Focus on a sub-subset of a larger system. (Most apps do one

narrowly-focused thing very well.) The more narrow your focus —

like how one form gets filled out, or how one training program

works — the better your chance of getting away with disruptive

changes

Start small: Keep initial costs as low as possible (a lot can be

done with $0 and sweat equity); launch pilots; then iterate,

iterate, iterate.

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Make Life EasierTime poverty and the fact that everything takes so much effort

are two of today’s biggest challenges for most everyone. If your

solution makes it easier to (fill in the blank), your chances of

blowing stuff up are greatly increased.

If you are selling something internally to your bosses: This

includes making their lives easier too. Save them time or effort,

and you are golden.

For customers: You will go viral if they not only get ease of use,

but if your product or service also gives them a chance to express

themselves — customizing your product to their personality or

their specific needs; participating in follow-up activities, etc.

Build a Loyal FollowingBefore selling your idea to the world, build a loyal following who

love your disruptive change. When it comes time to sell it, they

will do it for you. If selling your idea internally to your bosses,

enlist one or two them to test or experience your change. If it’s

as good as you think it is, they will become your champions.

Passion Seals the DealYour passion for how your disruption will change things for the

better. Your loyal following’s passion for what it did for them.

If you are successful in Steps 3 and 4, you’ll achieve Step 5,

and you will have blown stuff up and gotten away with it.

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Be a Triage MasterTop Tips: Become a Master, You Must

Commit to Yin Yang ThinkingEducators call this Lower-Level Thinking and Higher-Level Thinking

— two dimensions of critical thinking. Triaging requires you to

develop the ability to bounce back and forth between the two

before you make decisions.

Example of Lower-Level Thinking: Who needs this, by when?

Examples of Higher-Level Thinking: Is this important? Why is this

important? Are any of my To Do’s more important than this?

Master triagers learn (through practice, practice, practice) to

quickly weigh both of these before they act. You need to get good

at thinking about both how to quickly get stuff done, and what

really matters — doing both super-fast, at the same time.

Build Yin Yang Daily RoutinesStart small: With any decision that takes almost no time —

like how to answer just one email. Before responding: Weigh both

Lower-Level needs (getting the task off your plate) and Higher-

Level needs (should the sender be thinking differently about the

problem?).

Build a routine: Start applying what you practiced in one email

to all your emails; to meetings; to presentations. Focus on daily,

recurring routines so you can easily practice, practice, practice.

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Be a Ruthless PrioritizerAfter Steps 1 and 2, you’re ready for the big leap: Incorporating

two-level thinking into how you make more important Go/No Go,

Yes/No, Do/Don’t Do decisions. All great triagers, all great leaders

are ruthless prioritizers.

Read more about how and why great leaders do this here, here,

here and here

Plan Your 2020 Up-SkillingCheck out the Institute for the Future’s Work Skills 2020 findings.

Ask mentors, colleagues, bosses for 360° feedback on which skills

are your strengths and which ones require need up-skilling.

Mentor OthersPay it forward. Share your lessons learned and mastering of

triaging with others.

Make a MessStart Small Failures, Grow Them Into Big Messes“At the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that

his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know

neither victory nor defeat.” —Theodore Roosevelt

Get Over YourselfYes, bad bosses and poor work cultures and bureaucratic rules

fuel and prey upon everyone’s fear of failure. But 99.99% of your

fear of failure is within your control. Stop worrying about how

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you’ll be perceived or what will happen if you fail. To help with

that, check out…

Daring Greatly by Brené Brown

Sallie Krawcheck on Getting Fired

Screwing Up Could Be Your Best Career Move

If You Don’t Make Mistakes, You Don’t Make Anything

Best Advice: Down But Not Out

How to Think About Risk When Investing in Your Career

Assign Yourself Failure ProjectsYou need practice projects: Safe places where it’s OK, (more OK

than normal), if screw-ups occur

If your bosses aren’t assigning you Failure Projects — (those with

higher-than-normal acceptance of disruptive risks) — then assign

them to yourself. Take on one project per quarter — (for the more

risk-averse…one project per year) — in which you intentionally

push yourself or the project beyond a safe and predictable zone

If it goes well, realize that your fears of failure were unwarranted,

and push further on the next Failure Project

If it doesn’t go well, your response should be “So, I got dinged.

I’m still a great employee. Life did not end. I’ll try again later.”

Grow Small Failures Into Bigger MessesAfter Steps 1 and 2…

Build a team (three or more people) around your next Failure

Project. Everybody on the team agrees to push this one project

beyond the normal safe and predictable zone — and that if it

doesn’t go well… (there’s safety in numbers)… everybody agrees

to share the hit together. United you stand: equal glory or equal

blame.

With each successful Failure Project, grow the team, increase

the risk-taking.

Soon, as hippie Arlo Guthrie once sang, you will have started

a movement!

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Always: After Action ReviewsThat’s what the U.S. Army calls their debriefing sessions. They

are extremely disciplined, as you need to be, about capturing,

understanding, and leveraging the lessons learned from each of

their assignments. The whole point of making messes, is so that

you can iterate, iterate, iterate. You can only do that if you learn

from each experience.

Iterate, Iterate, IterateUse what you’ve learned from each failure, to make the next

version even better.

Do It AnywayTop Tips: How to Get Away With Doing It Anyway

Part 1:Change How Your Respond to “No”Use every “No” from your boss as an opportunity to change your

relationship with him/her. Do not challenge… Ask better questions.

Discover the UnsaidThere’s almost always information behind every “No” that bosses

didn’t think to share. Discover what that is by asking questions

like…

“Help me understand what you’re trying to achieve.”

“Help me understand why my idea isn’t a good one.”

“Help me understand my next steps.”

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“What’s driving this deadline?”

“Did I misunderstand our department’s top priorities?”

Explore AlternativesBased on what you learn in Step 1, explore alternative solutions

to what was first rejected. Like: “Now that I better understand

your needs…

“I’d like to come back to you with a couple new possibilities?”

“If I meet those requirements, I assume you will review a

revised proposal?”

“I will revise my budget and get back to you next week.”

Present AlternativesUse information gained from the boss in Step 1 to help close

the sale.

Part 2:Find Your Voice, Take a StandBetter to Ask Forgiveness…

If Steps 1—3 Work…

Great! No need for the next step. You are successfully changing

your relationship with your boss to take more risks and be more

innovative.

If Steps 1—3 Keep Getting You Nowhere…Clearly, your boss is holding you back and this not going to stop.

You have two choices…

Either: Stop asking for permission altogether. Just do whatever

you think is best. And then when you get dinged, ask for

forgiveness.

Or: Quit

WORDS OF WISDOM

Richard Branson on Living a Life With No Regrets

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Go FasterHow To Let Go To Go Faster

Embrace This: The Problem is YouFor at least two out of every three of us: the main cause of

slowing things down is you:

Ego…

“I can’t let people see this before it’s right.”

Fear…

“I’ll get dinged if it’s not perfect.”

Self-Imposed Criteria…

“I don’t have time to think. I have to just keep it moving.”

Excuses…

“They don’t give me the time to think.”

CYA…

“I can’t look bad. What will my boss think of me?”

etc.

What you need to focus on is what’s really slowing you down —

your own attitudes and beliefs.

Inventory Your Daily RoutinesTen minute exercise. Two columns:

LEFT Current Routines RIGHT Ideal Routines

List all business routines you do on a daily basis, including the

average amount of time you spend on each activity.

For example:

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Current Routine Ideally, Should Be

Emails: 2 hours Emails: 1 hour

Meetings: 4 hours Meetings: 3 hours

The discrepancy between what you do now and what you should

be doing is where you need to focus.

Jensen Group research found that the average person is losing

2-4 hours per day on time-drains that are within that individual’s

control to change!

Close the GapsGaining back 2-4 hours per day is completely within your control.

Some examples:

Better use of filters on your emails, so only true high priority

emails and critical people get your most urgent and focused

attention

Applying the 80/20 Rule to replying to whomever communicates

with you. (80% of your most-valuable communication is with no

more than 20% of your contacts. Focus there and “be OK” with

not getting back to everyone else.)

The majority of the meetings you attend are a waste of your time.

Why do you keep doing that to yourself?! Give yourself permission

to start opting out of meetings and being more selective.

All people who are productive do this!

FOR MORE

Communication Tools: Speed-Freak Clarity

How to Delete 75% of Your Emails

Seven Qualities of Uber-Productive People

11 Productivity Hacks of Super Productive People

Lifehacker

Travel Beyond Your RoutinesThe people who are producing far more than you, far faster than

you have all taken this final step. Examine your other long-held

beliefs that may be holding you back and wasting your time,

like…

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Is this the right career (or job, or company) for me?

Should I be changing my lifestyle (car, house, etc.)?

Why is (fill in the blank) so damned important to me?

Why not change (fill in the blank)?

Most likely, you have at least one long-held belief that’s holding

you back from working smarter and faster. Something that’s

totally within your control and is totally changeable. Tackle that

and you will be free to work as smart and as fast as humanly

possible. (See Habits 19-25 for more.)

Go FasterTop Tips: How to Build Your Net En Route

Assumption: You Are Ready to LeapThat doesn’t mean being fearless. Everyone is afraid. It’s how you

push past those fears that counts. If you need more help in that

area, some suggestions for pre-reading…

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey

Drive by Daniel Pink

Strengths Finder 2.0 by Tom Rath

Go Put Your Strengths to Work by Marcus Buckingham

Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely

How We Decide by Jonah Lehrner

Practical Wisdom by Barry Schwartz

On Managing Yourself by Harvard Business Review

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Be SpecificEveryone who succeeds by design — athletes, artists, dieters,

explorers, workers, managers, leaders, — does so by being clear

and specific with their goals. Think of the SMART model: Specific,

Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, Timebound. e.g., “Lose 5 pounds

this week and increase my exercise time by 15 minutes” is far

better than “Lose weight. Exercise more.”

Plan No More Than 3—6 MonthsBefore you leap, plan your goals for the next 3—6 months using

the SMART model. Only for 3—6 months! During that time, you

will learn so much and things will change so much that planning

any further out would be a waste of time.

Apply the Immutable Law of LeapingEverything is figureoutable is the one immutable law that

governs all successful leaps. All those things that are freaking you

out? Don’t worry. Be happy. As your leap progresses you will find

whatever it is you need — everything is figureoutable.

Enlist Your TribeAs Manick Bhan described in Disrupt!, your social network is your

biggest safety net. That can range from sleeping on a friend’s

couch while in transition, to daily direction from your closest

supporters, to the AttaBoy and AttaGirl support you needed just

when things looked darkest. It takes a village to make a leap.

Enlist yours before you go for it.

Be a Realistic Optimist“I can do this, I can do this, I can do this!” is crucial. But so is

the ability to realistically assess progress (or lack of it) and adjust

plans accordingly. Pragmatic problem-solving and passionate

optimism need to be need to work together as teammates.

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Stick To ItAs Cenk Karasapan said in Disrupt!, “If there are 50 doors, and

you’re on the 48th door and get tired, do you give up? No. You

keep trying.” You will get tired and be in the dumps several times.

Do not despair. Push through that. Your reward is just behind the

next door!

Simplify ConstantlyFive Ways to Make Most Anything Simpler

Practice Disciplined Empathyand Common SenseSimplicity is based on very basic human needs: Could this app be

made easier to use? Could this medicine container be made easier

to open and easier to read and understand? Can making a bank

deposit be made easier? The first step to making most anything

simpler is to walk a mile in the user’s/audience’s/customer’s

shoes. And, as part of that, focus on the basics. Making most

things simpler isn’t about solving world hunger. It’s about making

each small step in the process easier.

Ask Just One QuestionSteve Jobs was correct in his belief that customers can’t tell you

what they want when it relates to innovations such as the first

iPod or iPhone or iPad. But most complexities people encounter

can be addressed by simplifying something that already exists.

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Ask your user/audience/customer just one question — “How can

we make this easier for you?” — and you will quickly learn what

simplicity looks like.

Always Start with Time Povertyand Attention Deficit DisorderYes, there are bigger, more systemic, more entrenched problems

that need simplification. But if you focus on saving people time

and on capturing and using their attention wisely, you will never

go wrong. These are among the top two challenges that will

always benefit from simplification efforts.

Always Give the User More ControlThe more control that the user/audience/customer has over using

your product or service, the simpler it will be for them. (Assuming

you have diligently practiced Steps 1 and 2!)

Joy and Great ExperiencesTrump Pain ReductionListen carefully to the responses you get in Step 2. Most people

will describe simplicity in terms of pain reduction. e.g., “This

medicine bottle cap is too hard to open.” or “I hate how long it

takes to download this.” Your job is to push past that because,

in the end, while people describe simplicity in terms of things they

want to reduce or get rid of… Growth in sales and reputation is

almost always based on the thrill of simplicity! Something that

truly excites!

FOR MORE

Communication Tools: Speed-Freak Clarity

How to Delete 75% of Your Emails

The Ultimate Ten-Page Presentation

Ten Simple Truths

Simpler Company: Starter Kit

LinkedIn Discussion: Tools for the Time Crunched Manager

The resources above are all free.

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The following resources require a small fee:

Managing Your Manager

How to Say No and Get Ahead

How to Work Smarter by Asking the Right Questions

Easy Ways to Build the Courage You Need to Work Smarter

Strategic Plan on One Page

Have Lots of Affairs(On Your Boss)Getting Away with Lots of Affairs

Practice Common SenseIf your boss and your company culture are such that you would

never tell your boss you were looking for a new job until after you

landed it, follow the same approach here. However, be aware that

in today’s world, the ability to keep anything a secret is usually

measured in minutes.

If Possible: Make Your Boss Your Silent PartnerNot everyone will have this luxury, but if you have a boss in whom

you can confide, do so right away. He/she will not make excuses

for you, but can provide air cover for your occasional missed

meeting or other minor transgressions.

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Results Always MatterIf you are going to have freelance or a business on the side,

and still continue to be a full-time employee, there will never be

any excuses for letting the quality or speed of your full-time

work lapse.

Embrace Terrified JoyThe rush of doing your own thing will always be accompanied

by the terror and anxiety that there is no place to hide when the

business is your own. Steel yourself for that. It will never go

away. Ever.

Success Must Always Include Personal GrowthMany businesses fail. Yours may too. But if you view every new

venture as a path to personal growth, you will never fail.

Action-Plan Only Three Months OutEverything will change constantly. Planning much further out is a

waste of time.

Evaluate Success One Year OutEverything you hope to achieve will take longer than you think it

should. Be patient. Keep calm and carry on.

Bring the New You to WorkIf you are maintaining your day job and building your business

on the side, ensure that your boss and teammates observe the

personal growth that’s coming from this outside work. (e.g.,

An increase in confidence.) When it’s time to go public, that will

make conversations about your affair go a lot easier.

Get Your Tribe to Evangelize YouThe best way to blend both full-time employment and your own

thing is not talking about it directly: Let your blog following or

your customers or requests for interviews do your speaking for

you.

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FOR MORE

Five Top Tips for Starting a Successful Business

Six Things Silicon Valley Can Teach Social Entrepreneurs

30 Wildly Successful Bloggers Reveal It All

Profiles: Seven Self-Made Immigrant Millionaires

The Four Essential Personality Traits of Every Entrepreneur

How to Think About Risk When Investing in Your Career

Go Back to the FutureFive Dos and Don’ts with a Half-Age Mentor

Be Super HumbleMost of us (c’mon, admit it) approach those half our age as if

we’re the ones who should be teaching them, not the other way

around. Be super humble and much you will learn from them.

Wear the mask of wisdom-comes-with-age, and much time will

be wasted.

Get Life Advice, Not Tech AdviceAs long as they have full access to the latest tools, odds are that

someone half your age is more of a digital native than you are.

Resist the urge to focus on all things digital. Seek to learn about

freedom from fear, creativity, embracing risks, new business

models, being true to one’s vision. You want advice from them

about how to unchain yourself from what you have learned

because they haven’t yet learned those inhibiting beliefs and

habits.

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Have Specific GoalsYou want your half-age mentor to take you out of your comfort

zone. But that must be lead to Ahas and experiences that will

take you where you want to go. e.g., Unsure of how to build a

disruptive product and build a team of young Turks? Define your

exact goals for this experience before enlisting the help of your

half-age mentor.

Contract to Be PushedLike with any mentor/mentee relationship, establishing the rules

of engagement is crucial. But especially with your half-age mentor,

make sure that you are contracting to be pushed out of your

comfort zone, and keep demanding that.

Reverse Mentor… Carefully!You will surely want to share your twice-age wisdom with your

young mentor. Do so. There is a lot you have to teach him/her.

But do so only as you get close to reaching your goals. Reverse

mentor too quickly and role clarity will go out the window and

your sessions will become a confusing mess of each of you

trying to mentor the other at the same time.

FOR MORE

10 Steps to Finding Your Mentor

13 Tips on Finding a Mentor

7 Ways to Be An Effective Mentor

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Fix the World’sFlying ToiletsTop Tips: Making a Difference

Work from Your HeartWhen it comes to making a difference anywhere — in your family

or community or the world — the most crucial thing is to work

from your heart. Believe passionately in the cause. All joys and

rewards are linked to how deep your passion runs.

Push Your ThinkingGo big. Unleash yourself. Go beyond just volunteering or donating.

Food for thought…

10 TED Talks That Give You the Power to Change the World

10 TED Talks to Change the Way You See the World

CNN Heroes: Everyday People Changing the World

Four African Teenage Girls Create a Pee-Powered Generator

Follow These ChecklistsChecklist for Changing the World by Nilofer Merchant

17 Habits of People Who Change the World

Bust Your HumpGuaranteed: This work will be at the top of your most memorable

life experiences. These stories will be those you share most often

throughout your life.

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Pay It ForwardMentor someone else to do the same thing you did. Create your

own How To checklist. Most importantly: Promote the frontline

heroes and beneficiaries of your work. Make sure the world

knows how special they are.

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Don’ts[ Things to Avoid ]“I’ve lived my life with no regrets. If I’m ever

hit by a bus and I get a chance for last words,

they’ll be ‘It was a damn good life. I haven’t

wasted a second.’

“Don’t feel pressured into following somebody

else’s dream. Do whatever your heart is telling

you now because it won’t let you down if you do.

If you have a burning desire to do something,

go do it — because it will work. And don’t live

anyone else’s live, just don’t. Because you’ll

regret it.

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“Don’t believe what other people tell about life.

Go live yours. Go find it. Broaden your horizons.

I’ve found that people are generally good.

And if you’re good, you’ll attract those people to

you. Question authority. Educate yourself.”

That’s disruptive hero Jerry Comyn, who is currently a volunteer

Project Manager at non-profit Challenges Worldwide. Prior to

that, his “Take this job and shove it” resignation letter from an

advertising firm went viral. He was simply speaking the truth

about what matters and what doesn’t.

Comyn’s act of leaving his company was a last resort. What

follows are four things to avoid before you get to that point —

always keeping in mind what matters and what doesn’t.

HABIT 15 DON’T FIGHT STUPID PAGE 35

HABIT 16 NEVER HESITATE PAGE 37

HABIT 17 NEVER ACCEPT DINGLESS TOOLS PAGE 38

HABIT 18 DON’T KNOCK DOWN, BUILD ANEW PAGE 40

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4 HABITS FOR ENJOYING THE RIDE

Don’t Fight StupidFive Ways to Spot Stupid

Live for Daily HappinessReverse the mainstream formula for happiness and success.

Currently, most of us see it as: “If I work harder, I’m more

successful. And if I’m more successful, then I’ll be happier.”

Which also means: “I’ll always have to put up with a lot of

stupid crap in order to be happy.” Instead: Always ensure that

happiness is a daily goal, not something that’s just reserved for

later… Live a life where you always seek out, create and demand

happiness instead of enduring stupid crap!

See Shawn Achor’s TEDx talk, The Happiness Advantage

Red Alert: Meetings, Emails and MoreJensen Group research has found that the average person loses

2—4 hours per day on cluttered, unfocused and unnecessary

communication. The top two offenders are daily meetings and

the onslaught of messages through emails, IMs and more. And,

(if you are not super disciplined), social media and the distractions

that come with it are also top drivers of stupid wastes of time

and energy.

Lack of Air CoverYour manager thinks her job is to help you do the company’s

bidding. Wrong. Her job is to protect you from corporate stupidity.

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If you’re not seeing lots of air cover from her, you should be

thinking about moving on.

For more: For Steps 2 and 3, see all links related to Habit 11,

Simplify Constantly.

Sucky ToolsOne of the biggest ways your company forces you to work stupid

is through the design of their corporate infrastructure and work

tools. Simple evaluation: If anything you use at work isn’t as

easy to use as your smartphone or tablet, they’re making you

work stupid.

For more: See Habit 17

Training That Doesn’t ChallengeThe purpose of most corporate training and development is to

get you to do what the company wants you to do, how they want

you to do it. That’s fine…to a point. But if your boss is not giving

you assignments or sending you to training that also pushes you

beyond your current way of thinking, you’re going backwards…

You are becoming stupider without even realizing it.

FOR MORE

Five Paths for Doing Great Work at a Terrible Company

LinkedIn Discussion: Workplace Evolutionaries

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Never HesitateFear:Acknowledge It, But Keep Disrupting AnywayFear is real. Yet all of us can push past it if we choose to.

The following is an even-shorter adaptation of a near-perfect,

already short and very helpful article on getting past one’s fears

from Fast Company.

Identify the Belief That’s Holding You BackYou create the reality you serve with your beliefs — how you feel

the world operates. List your beliefs until you find the one that’s

most hard to face.

Identify the AnchorsWhat event anchors your belief? (e.g., Punished as a child for

speaking up? Chastised for expressing a contrarian view in your

last job?)

Pick a New Belief“I think I can, I think I can…I know I can, I know I can…

I can do this!”

Release the AnchorsEmbrace evidence and other people’s success stories that show

you, too, can get past the anchor that’s holding you back.

(“John spoke up in the same way I’d like to, and he was

rewarded, not fired.”)

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Chart Your New CoursePlan what specifically you will do (SMART goals) in the next few

months to back your new beliefs with actions.

FOR MORE

Quit Bitching Motivation

12 Things My Grandmother Told Me Before She Died

Never AcceptDingless ToolsMeasuring How Good or BadYour Company Tools Are“Men have become tools of their tools.” —Henry David Thoreau

Do a Gut CheckYou have a smartphone and/or tablet that you have customized

to meet your needs. Compare any and all rules, tools, forms

and processes that the company wants you to use to your

smartphone. You will have an instant gut check as to whether

your company is helping you put a ding in the universe —

(if everything they’ve designed for you is as easy to use as your

smartphone) — or if they are dinging you.

Download SimplerWork IndexSix questions which will help you evaluate how well, or poorly,

your company’s tools support you.

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Download Work 2.0 ReportSubtitled: Is Business At Work With Its Workforce? This report

details what to watch in the war between corporate-centered

and user-centered tools.

Build Your Own AppTake any task that your company makes you do — filling out a

form, for example — and make it easier, more user-centered.

You may not be able to convince your company to go with your

app, but you certainly will have a far greater understanding of

how much better your company’s tools and infrastructure should

be. For more about building your own app, go here or here or

here or here.

If You Are Unhappy With What You Find,And Your Company Isn’t Listening…

Hack a WorkaroundJoin the underground army — (between one-third two two-thirds

of everyone who works at your company) — of benevolent

hackers who are saving business from itself, one bad act at

a time. Stop tolerating stupid rules, tools and procedures.

Hack a workaround.

Josh Klein on How Hacking Work is Good for Business

Lifehacker

FriedBeef

43Folders

Digital Inspiration

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Don’t Knock Down,Build AnewCare… and Also Move On

Some People Will Be Pissed Off:Be OK With ThatInvite everyone to join you in your disruptive change! However,

know: some of those who have a vested interest in the old way

of doing things will not be happy with you. Be OK with that.

And still keep inviting them to join you as your disruption grows

Share EverythingThe more inclusive you are the better. Open-source everything.

No holding back anything until it’s just right or until everything

has gone through the proper channels. Take your current

participation and transparency levels and increase them by a

factor ten. For more, go here.

Give Everybody Else the CreditOf course, you do that now. Ramp it up even more. Take how

much you are promoting others, and increase it by a factor of ten.

Play A Lot MorePeople who innovate in a disruptive world are a lot like

kindergarteners. Everything great that happens gets done

during play time.

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Launch: Then Iterate, Iterate, IterateThe faster you get new versions of your work into other people’s

hands, the faster you grow your following. The faster that grows,

the faster the pissed off curmudgeons will see something they

like and join you too.

FOR MORE

Six Habits of Remarkably Likeable People

The Business Impact of Lots of Recognition

How Saul Khan is Disrupting Education

(Perfect example of a very likeable guy completely reinventing

an entire industry)

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Guiding Principles[ Live These ]“I’m perfectly happy to be anonymous. My

family is more important to me than anything.

I make my work fit my lifestyle — so I write

and speak at my convenience.”

— Disruptive Hero Guy Kawasaki, Co-Founder of Alltop.com,

an online magazine rack of popular topics on the web;

he’s the author of ten books including Enchantment and Rules

for Revolutionaries; and he’s the former chief evangelist

of Apple.

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“In our pockets we have a device to access all

human knowledge and to communicate with

anyone on the planet. That’s astonishing!

The growth of the Internet in the developing

world is coming much faster than most people

realize and is going to have a much bigger

cultural impact that most realize.”

— Disruptive Hero Jimmy Wales, Co-Founder of Wikipedia

HABIT 19 KNOW THYSELF, DEEPLY PAGE 44

HABIT 20 OF COURSE, FOLLOW PASSION PAGE 45

HABIT 21 RESILIENCE MATTERS PAGE 46

HABIT 22 DISRUPT YOURSELF PAGE 47

HABIT 23 YOUR POWER IS IN YOUR NETWORK PAGE 48

HABIT 24 YOU ARE THE POWERS THAT BE PAGE 49

HABIT 25 IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU PAGE 51

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Know Thyself, DeeplyFive Ways to Confirm orChange Your Inward Journey

Experiment With MapsBegin with a map — a self-assessment tool — that not only helps

you discover more about yourself, but how being true to yourself

impacts others. A few to consider…

Enneagram

DiSC

MBTI

Emergenetics

StrengthFinder 2.0

100 Things About You: An Owner’s Manual

Own Five Inconvenient TruthsOf these 60, which five most match you?

Own Five Life LessonsOf these 45, which five most match you?

Own Three Cult of Done ValuesOf these 13, which three most match you?

Own Three Life Manifesto ValuesOf these 16, which three most match you?

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Of Course,Follow Your PassionWriting a Legacy Letter: Detailed InstructionClarify for yourself what truly does and does not matter in life

and in work by passing it on to someone you love.

Download this graphic from Pinterest for detailed instructions.

Here are the headlines…

Write a Legacy Letter to a Loved OneShare the most important lessons you’ve learned about

work and life.

Share Your Letter

Talk About It

In Your Conversation:Be Truthful, Specific and VulnerableSomething magical and extraordinary will happen:

You will get back more than you give.

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Resilience MattersBuilding Resiliency Through Micro-ActionsYou can adapt more easily and quickly to disruptive change

if you do these small-yet-big things…

Help At Least One Person Each DayIt doesn’t have to be big, yet the results to you and them

always are.

Go Beyond Standard RespectSure, you’re respectful. But you can go further. Everybody is

suffering from time poverty. Respect others by doing something

for them that saves them time and energy.

Learn Something New Every DayThat will train your brain that every day is about a new adventure.

Lighten Your LoadAt work, we’re all supposed to do more with less. Practice for that.

Pack one less thing for a trip. Keep one less thing in the closet.

Buy one less thing you needed and improvise.

Go for a WalkOr a run. Or read a book. Or take a nap. Or meditate. Or just sit

still. Do anything like these for 5—30 minutes a day and you will

return to the tasks at hand refreshed and more resilient, ready

for the next change coming at you.

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Disrupt YourselfTop Tips:If It Feels Scary, You’re on the Right Track

If You Feel No Discomfort in Your Career,You Have One Foot in the GraveIf a disruptive world, you should feel discomfort and a little scared

on a regular basis. If you don’t you’re not paying attention to the

world around you.

If You’re Not Taking Risks,You Will Be Blindsided by Worse RisksThe idea of disrupting yourself is to pick the risks you think

you can manage, instead of waiting for the ones you’re not

prepared for.

Feedback is the Breakfast of Champions;Tough Love is the Best Meal of AllFew of us put ourselves in situations where we get tough love

on a regular basis, and yet that’s exactly what’s called for in a

disruptive world. Seek out more tough love.

When Two Paths Present Themselves:Take the One Less TraveledStart selecting new adventures, ones that are new to you and

others. As Robert Frost concluded in his poem: That is what

will make all the difference.

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The Future of All Work is LearningThe more you disrupt yourself, the more you learn and the faster

you learn. It’s that simple.

FOR MORE

The Future of Work is Learning

Disrupt Yourself

10 Ways to Disrupt Your Career

Your PowerIs In Your NetworkHow You Add Value Will Grow Your TribeThe following are highlights (focused on how to add value) from

the free download that accompanied Seth Godin’s book, Tribes.

It All Starts on the InsideWhatever you value, others will see as valuable too. You may

need to search to find those people, but they are there. Itemize

and think about what you value. Then start putting that out in

the universe.

Everyone Values Saved Time and Saved EffortTake on work that saves others time and effort. Your short-term

investment will help you build your network.

Replace Problem-Solving with AdventuresYes, most everyone wants some help with most challenges they

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face. But the real value for those in your network is not just

helping them to solve a challenge, but replacing that experience

with an unexpected adventure. Excite their senses when all they

were expecting was a problem to go away.

Create a Safe ZoneEveryone needs someone to watch out for them. Find more ways

for your network to watch out for the welfare of its members.

That’s super valuable.

Foster a Value of Challenging the Status QuoThe more people who have that value within your network,

the safer and easier it will be for everyone to continue to push

for change.

You Are thePowers That BeYou Can’t Break FreeIf You Don’t Know You’re in a Cage

Every Employer Should Be Teaching YouHow to Be an EntrepreneurIf they’re not, they’re locking you into a very precarious future.

At Least Once a Week, Reserve Some Slow TimeWe are all forced into morebetterfaster, and because of this, most

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of us are losing the ability to do deep thinking. You can’t break

free of escalating race that constantly saps you of energy unless

you break the habit of fasterfasterfaster.

Do the Opposite ofWhat Everyone Else is DoingLemmings do the same as the guy in front of them.

And you know what happens to lemmings!

Create SerendipityInnovation and change is often the result of unexpected and

random conversations and experiences. Create more of them.

Talk to more people you don’t know. Take a different route home.

Go to events you wouldn’t normally attend. Explore. Serendipity

will find you.

Open the Next Door Before You’re ReadyMost of the best experiences in life (and some of the worst)

happen to you long before you’re ready. You grow into them

and through them. Seek out new opportunities before you’re

fully ready.

FOR MORE

9 Beliefs of Remarkably Successful People

Business Wisdom from AirBnB to Zappos

Change.org: The World’s Petition Platform

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It’s Not About YouOn Being a Sustainable Human BeingThe following is an abbreviated version of 8 Things You Should

Fight for Everyday. Check out the full blog post.

Every day, fight for…

Personal GreatnessDo not what’s easy. Do what you’re capable of, and more.

Honesty and TruthTruth — of all kinds — will always set you free.

A Mind Free of Envy and JealousyMore than just deadly sins, these sap you of energy you

need elsewhere.

Positive ChangeFight the good fight and your efforts will outlive you.

A Willingness to Learn from Your MistakesThe speed at which you learn and unlearn is key to everything.

Persistence and PatienceRest when you are tired, but don’t quit. Everything you want

and need will come in time…If you are patient and persistent.

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True LoveNot just romantic love. There are only two root human emotions:

Love and Fear. Always choose one over the other.

GoodwillDo the right thing. Always

FOR MORE

TED talk: Shut Up and Listen

Why Humility Is So Important

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Disrupt!Think Epic. Be Epic.How To Addendum

www.simplerwork.com

bill@simplerwork.com