All organizations are dysfunctional.

Those are the words of Michael Wade, consultant, advisor, author and former Equal Employment Opportunity Administrator for the City of Phoenix. And I tend to agree with him.

We’re just not that good at coming together to do stuff. We get in our way. We play politics. We blame. And we forget why we’re even doing the damn thing in the first place.

His solution? Three words: “wait a minute.”

Remember waiting? Pressing pause for a second to look inward, to see if we’re on the right track, to think. Remember thinking?

🐱 Imagine waiting a minute before deciding to redo the entire deck when all it needs is a few word changes.

🐱 Imagine waiting a minute before laying people off and realizing you can cut costs in a different way.

🐱 Imaging waiting a minute before scheduling a meeting that could easily be an email.

A few “wait a minutes” a day could save us hours of chasing down bad decisions. And help us do everything better than we’re doing it right now.

Here’s a good decision. Listen to Michael. He really knows his stuff.

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Welcome to the DesuckifyWork® podcast. The show where we cut through the BS and find ways to make work more fun, more human and less ridiculous. All of which makes your business more profitable, by the way. Today’s episode is a part of the ProHuman Series, in partnership with the ProHuman Foundation, where Michael is an advisor.

(If you enjoy this one, please like, share, rate, review or subscribe to the podcast.)

Let the desuckifying begin.

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You can follow Michael on LinkedIn. And check out his site at execupunditconsulting.com. And be sure to read his Substack newsletter as well. It’s awesome.

If you enjoyed the conversation and would like to help your teams bring their absolute best to work, I invite you to schedule a free half-hour discovery session. Type “meow” in the calendar invite and I’ll also send you a free DesuckifyWork® t-shirt!

Bye, everyone!

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Bonus question from Michael to our audience:How can you better connect with other people? What can you do to help the community? What can you do to help other people? Because there are people out there who are hurting.

It’s 3am. You wake up to discover you’re on the couch, cuddling with your laptop. You cringe, ugh, another night wasted, working through dinner, ignoring your family. You should get to bed and grab a few good hours before the day starts up again.

But then. Hey, it wouldn’t hurt to just crack that laptop open for a minute, make sure no critical emails have come through. I’ll just skim through a few to make sure…

“Good morning, honey!”What? Who? Where? You glance at your phone—it’s 7am. You’re still on the couch. Spooning the laptop again. Your spouse doesn’t bat an eyelash. Just another Tuesday.

F%ck.

This is work addiction. It’s insanely common. And it’s where MaryBeth Hyland was not so long ago. Now, she helps folks fuel their ambition in a healthier way. By connecting to what matters most—our core values. Finding the stuff that truly energizes us and doing more of it.

When we do that, we don’t feel the need to chase some invisible, unattainable marker of success into the wee hours each night. We feel full at the end of the day. We feel excited to share ourselves with family, friends, our pets, our other interests (wait, we can have those?!)

MaryBeth has traveled this road and come out the other side thriving. Just check out the view behind her on the video version of this episode to see how well things are going.

Welcome to the DesuckifyWork® podcast. The show where we cut through the BS and find ways to make work more fun, more human and less ridiculous. All of which makes your business more profitable, by the way.

(If you enjoy this one, please like, share, rate, review or subscribe to the podcast.)

Let the desuckifying begin.

You can follow Mary Beth on LinkedIn. And check out her site at sparkvisionnow.com to learn more about the awesome work she’s doing and get a free values assessment.

If you enjoyed the conversation and would like to help your teams bring their absolute best to work, I invite you to schedule a free half-hour discovery session. Type “meow” in the calendar invite and I’ll also send you a free DesuckifyWork® t-shirt!

Bye, everyone!

Bonus question from Mary Beth to our audience:What is the core value that’s serving you most in this season of your life?

To watch this episode on YouTube, please click here.

What if the problem with our politics is also the problem with our workplaces?

Our inability to truly see the people around us, keeping us from doing anything meaningful.

They’re far right, far left, too hardline, too accommodating, stupid, evil, “the problem.”

They’re account, creative, production, legal, stupid, clueless, “the problem.”

What if “us vs. them” became “what can I learn from someone I disagree with?”

Wilk Wilkinson is trying to make this “what if” real, with his podcast “Derate the Hate,” as an advisor to the ProHuman Foundation and in his role as Director of Media Operations at Braver Angels.

The key is focusing on shared purpose. Something I find a lot of common ground on when I talk with folks I disagree with politically.

And something that workplaces need to do a much better job of creating. What was the purpose at most of ad agencies I’ve worked at? No idea. And that’s a problem.

I invite each listener to start by getting clear on your own purpose. In life and at work. Why do you show up each day? What would the best day look like? What would the worst?

Once you answer those questions, start talking to the folks around you. And more importantly, start listening.

—

Welcome to the DesuckifyWork® podcast. The show where we cut through the BS and find ways to make work more fun, more human and less ridiculous. All of which makes your business more profitable, by the way. Today’s episode is a part of the ProHuman Series, in partnership with the ProHuman Foundation, where Wilk is an advisor.

(If you enjoy this one, please like, share, rate, review or subscribe to the podcast.)

Let the desuckifying begin.

—

You can follow Wilk on LinkedIn. And check out deratethehate.com to learn more about his work and check out his podcast.

If you enjoyed the conversation and would like to help your teams bring their absolute best to work, I invite you to schedule a free half-hour discovery session. Type “meow” in the calendar invite and I’ll also send you a free DesuckifyWork® t-shirt!

Bye, everyone!

——

Bonus question from Wilk to our audience:When you think about the 2,080 hours a year you’re putting into your current job, is that the place where you’re going to fulfill the purpose that you have in life? And if not, is there a way for you in your mind to make that the most meaningful place that you can be to spend your working life?

If you would like to watch this episode on YouTube, please click here.