A beginning – To whom it may inspire
Somewhere between “time to write” and “yet another newsletter, really?!” lies “if it inspires one person, it’s worth it”. So here’s to that!
I’ve long been pondering if yet another newsletter from a (former, recovered) tech executive is needed. Thanks to the repeated encouragement from some of my close friends and mentors (thank you Markus, David, Philipp and others), the pondering has finally ended and I decided to write more publicly again.
I stopped publishing my writing (for the most part) in 2015 after Wunderlist got acquired. That same year, I became a dad and overall life threw a lot of things at me that required most of my energy to learn how to handle, get better at, and / or not suck at. But while I stopped writing publicly, I kept writing in private. In fact, I probably wrote more in the last 8 years than in the 31 years prior to that. Writing helped me process, understand, feel and become the man I wanted to be.
I’ve always been drawn to writing – especially poetry. The intention, mastery and emotional connection in every carefully crafted word has spoken to my soul like no other. Still does, deeper than ever.
With that said, this will be a place that imagine to sit at the intersection of business and poetry. And as the sub headline suggests, if what I write inspires at least one person, it’ll be all worth it.
Between my job at Stark and my teaching gig at Princeton, I feel fulfilled to be able to give back to the world not only through my product work but passing on what I’ve learned along the way (so far).
Going forward, you can expect a mix of my writing (like the example below), inspiring things I’m reading or have found on the internet (or the real world) or quick thoughts that are barely formed but occupy my mind. It’s scrappy by design, enjoy the ride.
From my notes:
When I resigned from my position at Chief Design Officer at SAP, I summarized my learnings and some guidance to my team and former colleagues as “something to leave you with”.
This document was a collection of notes I had written over the past 15 years on things I found to be profoundly true. Guideposts of how I led, how to build products people love, and how to shape teams that do great work. How to life and work well.
Here’s the opening paragraph of that document
It’s one of the great privileges of my life to create products hundreds of millions of people use, and to lead teams big and small that strive to create world-class experiences. This certainly incomplete write-up is an attempt to summarize what I’ve learned so far. It started as notes of principled truths I found and reminders I wrote for myself. As I’ve started mentoring aspiring leaders, many of the same questions and topics came up, and I noticed how I’d draw from this “collection” over and over.
My hope is that these notes that have served me well so far can help or inspire others as they go on their own journey becoming a creative leader. While I try to get these things right, I still fail and make plenty of mistakes. We’re all training on the job. Keep at it!
And here’s the first note from that collection:
We play Jazz here
I found that, when it comes to creative leadership, there’s not enough written and books to learn from. Most management books are still grounded in the outdated philosophies of the industrial revolution. And while they have their place to improve existing processes and maximize output, we’re increasingly living in a world that requires a fundamentally different approach to both leadership and management.
To borrow from an analogy that I’ve used in the past and that I believe holds up quite well: As the world is going through drastic paradigm shifts and times of uncertainty, we’re required to think of work less in the sense of a classic symphony orchestra. While this approach still has a place, the groups that will outperform and thrive in the new world will approach work like a Jazz band. Bringing together mastery of craft, confidence in their ability to improvise and a shared love for the process of creating something remarkable that resonates with the audience intellectually and emotionally.
3 Inspirations
Agile Ethics – We need to spend a lot more time speaking about and implementing better, more ethical decision making in business. I found this work by some of my Princeton colleagues to be great: https://agile-ethics.princeton.edu
Hassle Maps – An old article on a method that maps emotions along customer journeys worth revisiting given how much room for improvement there is to make experiences better, more enjoyable and inclusive: https://www.fastcompany.com/1781300/hassle-maps-genesis-demand
Smart Funny Tortured Podcast – I‘ve had the great privilege to work with Paul Chamberlain and he has quickly become a friend. Paul’s work on shame and his incredible experience as a creative leader are awe-inspiring, his podcast is about to go into season 3 (in September) and every episode is a treat: https://www.smartfunnytortured.com/episodes
You made it. Thank you!
Kudos to you for making it all the way to the end. Since this is all terribly new to me, please share your feedback, questions or any topics you’d like me to touch on.
And if you liked what you read, please subscribe and send this newsletter to someone you care about and who would appreciate the content.
This is fantastic Ben! Can’t wait to get an insight into the workings of your brain. Great to see you back writing again 🙌🏻
As a former professional jazz (and sometimes classical) musician, I love this design process model, Ben! Mastering the craft, loving the creative/collaborative process, building on each other's work to create experiences that resonate deeply with people! Thanks for writing this.