90 Seconds to Be Inspired

As a little girl, my future career was crystal clear. I was going to be a Fashion Designer. I spent every waking moment drawing girls in pretty clothes. My dreams started to solidify when I got accepted to the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC for college. Upon arrival, I realized quickly that I was missing the skills of sewing, pattern-making, and draping, to name a few. So, I did a little pivot, and majored in fashion merchandising vs. fashion design. I had always been in the “dumb” math groups in school, but something clicked for me in my Retail Math class, and I started to build confidence in myself. When I graduated and got a job as an Assistant Buyer for Dresses at Macy’s, I felt like I’d died and gone to heaven. Dreams, realized.

 I soon recognized how hard this job was. It was Excel spreadsheets and math, 100% of the time. I quickly learned the meaning of “Sunday Scaries” as Mondays meant pulling all the sales data from the weekend and formatting them into beautiful Excel spreadsheets for our bosses. This process took me significantly longer than my peers.

While I’ve never felt like the smartest person in the room, I tend to be the most resourceful. So, I started coming into the office on Sunday nights. After a few weeks of this, my boss pulled me aside and said - “I know you’ve been coming in on Sundays to run your reports. While I appreciate the work ethic, it shouldn’t be this hard.”

I was confused, “it shouldn’t be this hard?” I asked her back.

“Joy, this job is math and this job is Excel. Pretty much for the next 5 years this will be your life. You kind of have to be a “numbers stress” person to be good at it AND enjoy it. Now, I’ve noticed that every morning, you have a line of people at your desk, wanting to get your advice on things. I’m wondering if you might be more of a “people stress” person?”

I felt blindsided and seen, all at once.

I realized at that moment that all my years of drawing girls in clothes was more about the backstories of the people I was creating than what they were wearing. I was creative, I wasn’t a math person, I was a “people” person! Somehow along the way, I had deviated from my strengths and interests. It was time to get back on track.

I got lucky and was able to transfer into the Learning & Development department of Macy’s which began my 12 year career in HR and People Operations. 

I went from a Rachel to a Toby.

About year 7 of my HR career, I realized I had an itch. I wrote in my journal “I want to be my own boss”. This manifested in a 5 year plan to work for myself. I side hustled and learned I could sell, and realized I was pretty good at delivering what I was selling! In 2020, I started ScaleJOY. I jumped, and thankfully, the ledge appeared. I went from a Rachel, to a Toby, to finally…a Wendy.

Reflecting on this journey, It took me almost 2 decades to be in a job that fully utilizes my strengths. BTW in Clifton Strengths™ they are:

1. Strategic 

2. Woo 

3. Communication 

4. Maximizer 

5. Activator

I think my ability to work long hours and travel constantly isn’t leading to burnout because I am working in my zone of strength. As a mom of 2 and the sole breadwinner of my family, understanding this formula is critical for my sustained success.

So how do we get more individuals and teams identifying and playing to their strengths, earlier in their career?

90 Seconds to Learn a Little

I’m lucky to have built over 50 leadership development programs for companies over the last 4 years. This perch allows me to see trends and also acquire data on what actually works.

Here’s the formula I’m seeing out in the wild that is working:

• Companies that spend time articulating and documenting their mission, values, principles, and hiring or not hiring accordingly. And I’m refreshed by companies not trying to be like everyone else. Celebrating their idiosyncrasies, like Mr. Beast did here!

• Assuming the first bullet is true, we should have “purpose”, the first of Dan Pink’s Science of Motivation motivators, checked. Dan Pink’s research showed the other two common motivators were autonomy and mastery. So let’s weave these in!

• Every manager I’m currently working with is experiencing some version of “do more with less”, “get more juice from the squeeze”, being dictated from the top. But most are not being given the traditional rewards/incentives to drive this. So, we either have to get creative, or go back to basics. 

• The cool thing about autonomy is letting people try. Letting people take risks, giving them more! But, Joy, I’m really worried that they will burn out. I know, the fear is real. But in reality, most won’t. And if you connect the third motivator, mastery, you’re really shoring up your chances at success.

• Develop your people. But don’t start from the gaps in their skills, start from doubling down on their strengths. Then layer on a strategic priority from the business. Then have them choose an action (autonomy) that will let them capitalize on a strength and connect their actions (mastery) to furthering a strategic priority of the business (purpose).

• It’s as simple as this template. Have your team fill it out, and gather them to share. You might be amazed at how simple it is to bring motivation back into the equation.

90 Seconds to Connect

Speaking of getting more juice from the squeeze, it’s almost budgeting season, my friends! A mentor of mine gave me a great framework to approach budgeting. She said, start by asking yourself this question when considering how you’ll achieve your goals for the year ahead…

Should I build, buy or borrow this product, process, or skill to:

1) achieve my goal in the least amount of time

2) at the highest level of quality

3) with a strong ROI

Let’s examine each option:

Build: This means you currently possess the capability and capacity to create the best version yourself (this is rare).

Buy: This is the path of least resistance but not always the best option to achieve quality and ROI. Consider this as buying a product or hiring a person.

Borrow: The least chosen and the hidden gem! When I think of borrowing I think of - who has done this before that I can hire for a % of time and extract maximum knowledge? Or, who has a version of this available open source that my team can use as a V1 and tinker with? 

So, if you’re scratching your head trying to develop, motivate, retain your people (or want any/all of these things for yourself!!!), give me a call. If I can’t help, I’m sure I know someone who can!

It takes a village, my friends. Don’t be a hero, seek help. If you’re looking for referrals, I’m your gal.

Help expand my inner circle!

My company, ScaleJOY, has delivered quality experiences to hundreds of clients and has grown solely by word of mouth referrals. Spread the joy by sharing this newsletter, or connect them directly to me for leadership development, coaching, or offsite facilitation. Thank you for your continued support!