The Plant Yourself Podcast

If What Lights You Up were simply an extremely practical guide to job hunting, I wouldn't have been interested in a conversation with the author, Mary Olson-Menzel.

Not that job hunting isn't an important topic — it clearly is, especially if you're out of a job or in one that's making you miserable.

It's just that I wouldn't be interested in having that convo, and so I'd skip it.

That said, What Lights You Up is in fact an extremely practical guide to job hunting.

What piqued my interest was the idea that our careers can be powered by joy, self-expression, and contribution rather than opportunism, random chance, or calculated self-interest.

What if we lived in a world where people were allowed — hell, encouraged — to break free from unfulfilling work and discover their passions? What might change if that were an unalienable right?

But this conversation isn't just about an inspiring thought. It's also an extremely practical guide to job hunting (have I already mentioned that?) that's powered by the principle that you can use work as a means to growing your best self and giving that self to the world.

We talk about a tool to help you figure out what lights you up: the "Light Log."

Mary shares with me a new (for me) way of networking, with intention and authenticity.

She also offers some exercises for job-seekers, and coaches me through the 3 P's of job searching (which are also the 3 P's of prospecting, so I was taking notes!).

If you want to make a difference while making a living, this conversation is for you.

Links

Just because homelessness is a complex problem doesn't mean that there aren't simple solutions.

The obstacles to ending homelessness stem from the "address homelessness" industry itself, which benefits from the persistence of the problem rather than its eradication.

What's needed, according to today's guest, Momma Kai Sanders, is affordable housing.

That's the root of the issue: homes that people can afford to live in.

And Momma Kai isn't just talking about it. She's taking action — running for mayor of Raleigh, North Carolina, on a write-in ticket.

She's running for her son, Wisdom, to create the policies now that can give him a chance at a good life in the future.

She's fighting for the most vulnerable and marginalized from a position not just of solidarity, but identity.

She's all about compassion and authentic leadership.

If you can vote for her, I hope you do so.

If you know folks who live in Raleigh who can spread the word, I hope you reach out to them.

It's a long shot, sure, but the most important question isn't "Who's going to win?" Instead, it's "Whose team do you want to be on?"

Links

Tom Solid and Paco Cantero are the minds behind the Paperless Movement, a consultancy and educational program for people who aspire to high performance in a fast-changing digital landscape.

Which is to say, they're here to help us get shit done in a world of infinite bits and bytes, a world of 24/7 access to information, and a world which will grab our calendar by the short and curlies and impose a zillion external agendas upon us if we don't learn how to defend our time, our priorities, and our purpose.

Rather than focus on the latest and greatest individual tools (the "it girls" of the productivity world), Tom and Paco emphasize the need to understand systems, and use tools for particular purposes to achieve desired results.

We dive into their ICOR framework, and encounter such things as the Capturing Beast, the Single Source of Truth, and the pitfalls of using the internet as a "Second Brain."

We also explore the difference between Deep and Shallow work, and why it's crucial to be deliberate in building time and space for the former.

Here are the key takeaways, according to AI:

• Productivity is about performing at your best without burning out.
• Understanding that everything is a system can enhance productivity.
• Busy professionals can be productive if they have clarity in their tasks.
• Switching tools frequently can lead to confusion and inefficiency.
• A structured approach to productivity is essential for busy professionals.
• Continuous improvement happens naturally when systems are in place.
• Clarity in goals and tasks leads to better tool usage.
• It's not the tools that matter, but how you use them.
• A combination of small changes can lead to significant improvements.

Ultimately, productivity is simply a means to achieve What Matters Most to us.

Joyfully.

With peace of mind.

And on purpose.

Links

In the movie There's Something About Mary, there's a scene where Ben Stiller's character picks up a hitchhiker who tries to pitch him on a business idea.

There's a popular exercise video called Eight Minute Abs, but the hitchhiker is going to capture market share by making a video called Seven Minute Abs.

He explains, "If you walk into the video store and you see Eight Minute Abs and Seven Minute Abs, which one are you going to take? Seven minutes, of course.

But he gets stumped by the question, "What if somebody else comes out with Six Minute Abs?"