“I’m here to get cracked.”
“Don’t call it that. It’s a chiropractic adjustment.”
“Well, I crack when you do it.”
When I was 48, I started visiting a chiropractor because my hips had deteriorated to the place where I couldn’t sleep at night. I was 320 pounds and not at a place where hip replacement surgery was a viable option (more on that later.)
For the next two years, I would visit weekly, and hear my body crack. Each time, the pain would last at least an hour after the adjustment.
But, the pain would subside and I could sleep at night, until the next week’s adjustment. The wear and tear of normal life each week would get things out of alignment, requiring an expert’s modification.
Much like the chiropractic adjustment, leaders, especially those in the “old dogs” group, must continually adjust their methods, usually with the help of an expert.
I have found that the same places where you find a coach (See Finding Your Coach) are the same places where you can learn how to adjust.
Depending on your location and vocation, some trends may or may not apply. I’ve learned that certain parts of the country are slower at adapting to new methods than others. That’s one reason why my early podcast failed. It is also why some older books and resources (from the early 2000s) may seem like cutting edge to you.
In 2020, I read The 4-hour Workweek by Tim Ferris. Originally published in 2007, The 4-Hour Workweek really challenged my thinking as to what work could and should look like.
Ferris showed me a world where money can and should be made in your absence, freeing you up to explore, experience and expand your world.
Growing up in the newspaper business, my view of a successful businessperson was a leader who showed up before everyone else, and stayed long after the employees went home. Ferris’ manuscript flew in the face of that. It took hundreds of pages before I could even start to embrace any of his concepts.
While reading the book, albeit with a scowl on my face, I was reminded of a conversation I had in 2013 with a banker friend of mine. He held some of the same views of work schedules as I. But, he was starting to bend to a new trend.
“Have you ever heard of flex time?”
“Nope.”
“It is where two (or more) employees decide who is going to cover the hours necessary to perform the tasks in a given week.”
“That seems odd. How do you know who is working when?”
“That’s the thing. You don’t. It is up to them. Apparently, it improves production, efficiency and morale.”
“Wow. Do you think it will work?”
“I’ll let you know. If that weren’t enough, there are some of my employees, whose jobs aren’t public-facing that want to be able to work from home at times. How crazy is that?”
Today, that doesn’t seem crazy at all, which made me shift my mindset while reading these “outlandish concepts” written in a book from 2007. Ok, I actually read the “updated and expanded” version from 2009.
Side note, none of the links in Ferris’ book work anymore. But it is still an amazing read.
Looking for a place to start finding your own “adjustments?” Visit my website at davidaspecht.com/books for a list of my favorites.
What if an adjustment isn’t enough? Perhaps a change in direction altogether is in order.
DAVID SPECHT IS PUBLISHER AND EDITOR OF BIZ. MAGAZINE