The job is what you do when you are told what to do. The job is showing up at the factory, following instructions, meeting spec, and being managed.
Someone can always do your job a little better or faster or cheaper than you can.
The job might be difficult, it might require skill, but it’s a job.
Your art is what you do when no one can tell you exactly how to do it.
Your art is the act of taking personal responsibility, challenging the status quo, and changing people.
Seth Godin is one of the godfathers of modern marketing. I was lucky to have the chance to meet him over Zoom just once. Above is one of my favorite excerpts from his book “Lynchpin” and while it was published 16 years ago, doesn’t it still hold more true than ever today?
Happy October, friends!
Let's jump in.
- Jess
What I’m Practicing
Playing Offense on Purpose
Dr. Julie Gurner wrote recently about two modes ambitious people run in. Survival mode protects what you already have. Winning mode goes on offense, with work that can get you a "no." Her target mix is about 80% winning and 20% survival, and her challenge is to audit your own behavior using your calendar.
So I did. I sorted a week of my calendar into defense and offense, and about 75% landed on defense: email, deliverables, research and client meetings. Essentially, the reverse of Julie’s suggestion. 😮 The more useful finding was why. When someone is waiting on me, the work gets done, often within 48 hours. When nobody is waiting: my own outreach, relationship building or marketing content creation- well it often slides to next week. I’ll go to the gym when no one is counting on me (or even sees me do it), yet I haven't given my business the same treatment. Why do some of us prioritize others’ needs or what appears urgent at the peril of our own long term benefit? I suspect many leaders face a similar dichotomy, and the work with no deadline is often their own visibility.
If you want to run an audit on yourself, I recommend these steps:
Define what you consider defense and offense tasks.
Sort last week's calendar (Claude can help) and write down the split.
Ask: Are you anywhere near the 80 winning/ 20 surviving ratio? Probably not…
Now, pick the offense task you moved more than once (for me that can be writing this very newsletter).
Give it a due date and identify a specific person you'll email it to. Let them know what you’re doing.
Ask that someone to check on you by 5pm of that date.
What I’m Loving
Founder Confessions
I'm releasing an 8-part video series, launching later this month. It's called Founder Confessions, and each episode is a lesson I wish someone had told me before I started Co-pilot.
Before I locked the topics, I sent the list to my advisory board and a few business owner friends. Some ideas were a unanimous “yes” and others got a fast "we've heard this before," including one about how our physical health is #1. It's true for me, since my optimism and go-get-it energy dip when I skip a workout, but a million people are already saying it. Fair. Their feedback shaped the final lineup, so the 8 videos you'll see are the fan favorites. ☺️
Shining a Light
Samira Naraghi & Robin Schneider
This month I'm shining a light on Samira Naraghi, former Chief Business Officer at Enovix. I'm sad to see her move on, and I know she will be wildly successful in her next big role. I enjoyed our partnership and collaborative relationship. Some people you just have chemistry with out of the gates. She will be missed!
I’m also sharing a warm welcome to the newest member of the marketing leadership team at Enovix, Robin Schneider, with whom I live in the same city. Love that! Looking forward to shaping this next chapter of marketing communications work together.
ICYMI
The Friction We Need
In case you missed it, here's a short New York Times clip worth a listen. Sociologist Sherry Turkle talks with Ezra Klein about chatbots, specifically the way they adjust to whatever we want and push back only as much as we ask (PS: I’ve specifically written instructions for Claude question my assumptions). Turkle says we are "de-skilling ourselves from being able to deal with people," and the result is people start to feel “let down” when real humans don't behave like chatbots. Oh boy. Watch the clip here.
I'd add that the habit began well before AI. When we began joining online communities back in the early ‘00s, entry was easy and exiting was just as easy. If someone said or did something we didn't like, we could close the tab instead of confronting the person or the issue. We got less practice at the uncomfortable conversation that repairs a relationship. AI is the next, smoother version of that low-friction setup, and it removes even more of the push-back.
This is where my work as an outside advisor comes in. I get to look across a leader's team and peers, spot patterns, and hear things the people inside the company don't hear. Then I say it plainly, even when it's not what the leader hoped to hear. I get to tell the truth. I recommend giving yourself the same thing once a week: one conversation with someone who will tell you what they really think, where you ask a question you don't know the answer to. We need friction.
Where’s Jess?
Nobody guessed September's photo, and I don't blame you. It was Lost Lake in the Gorge area of Oregon. That was a tough one.
This month's photo is Roy and me. Hint: Two countries once almost went to war here over a pig, and you can watch orcas from the shoreline.
Reply with your guess. First correct answer gets a shoutout in the November edition.
Thank you for being here. See you in November. 💛
— Jess
Bet on yourself.
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