Design Your Day

by Claire Diaz-Ortiz

  I was fortunate to have mentors around me who helped me analyze the opportunities and landscape and provided wise counsel and encouragement when I needed it most. I don’t advocate taking the leap without a plan. Those who stand on the sidelines of life waiting for something good to happen will grow old waiting and watching everyone around them taking deliberate and intentional action and #winning in the game of life.

  This book is a tool for you. I want you to understand how to craft a plan for your life and career that’s in alignment with your strengths and values, how to avoid anchors that can hold you back, how to take the leap and accomplish your plan, and why taking the leap matters. The global economy is changing all around us. The Black Swan at the start of the Great Recession has changed the paradigm of work, jobs, and careers. What happened and what this means for the global workforce is still being discovered, but one thing is for sure: this is not our grandfathers’ economy, and there are new rules everyone needs to understand. Understanding these changes is important. Developing a plan and taking action is critical.

  LEAPING BY EXAMPLE

  A LEAP OF FAITH: Tom Darden, Cherokee Investment Partners founder and CEO

  By any measure Tom Darden—founder and CEO of Cherokee, the $2 billion private equity firm investing in brownfield redevelopments—is a success story worth studying. With a bachelor’s and master’s degree from the University of North Carolina and a law degree from Yale, Tom has an educational pedigree anyone would admire. Tom made his leap following graduation from Yale while he was working with the prestigious consulting firm Bain & Company. It was a safe and secure job at a prestigious firm, but Tom wanted to do something different. He was aware of Cherokee Sanford Group, the struggling North Carolina company on the verge of going out of business. Tom pulled together a plan to purchase the company and see if he could turn it around. “It was such a disaster when I bought it. It was going to fail without me, and if it failed at least I knew I had tried. I could always go back to practicing law,” said Tom. “I was a good saver and had saved up at least a year of savings before I made the move.” The move proved to be a pivotal moment in his career as he turned around the company, which became the largest privately held brick manufacturer in the United States. This gave birth to Cherokee Investment Partners, the private equity firm Tom leads today. It has massive impact around the world in environmental land reclamation.

  Pressing Tom further to understand how he can take such big leaps and press through the fear that most people would have succumbed to, he said, “Bob, any fear I have faced has always been a function of failure or embarrassment, never about money. I also never let fear stop me from doing what is right. When facing those fears, I would initially be upset at myself for not having more faith. Faith is a big part of your journey. I have learned to have comfort in faith, not accomplishments.” As I closed the interview and asked Tom what words of advice and counsel he would give people entering the workplace today, without pause he answered, “The central message I would convey is this: their own opinions of their current situation and the things that happen to them in their career are almost always going to be wrong. This is essential to understand. If something happens and you think it is good or bad, you really don’t know. Many times you may perceive something to be bad, like if you get fired or lose your job, but in reality it is good for you because it launches you in a new direction. The inverse is also true. Never form an opinion about your current circumstances because your opinion will almost always be wrong.” I asked him if he felt this changes over time and with experience, thinking I knew the answer. Again he surprised me. “Bob, you really don’t. You have to take each situation as it comes and only time will tell if what happened is good or bad.” Time has proven that Tom Darden is one of a kind. In 2010 he and his company were awarded the YPO Corporate Social Responsibility Award because of his work to return hazardous waste sites to productive use through environmental remediation. He currently has over 550 properties under management worldwide and his environmental work is making the world cleaner and safer for everyone. His leap is benefiting us all.

  CHAPTER 2

  “Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work.”—PETER DRUCKER

  As an officer in the United States Air Force I often heard the phrase, “If you don’t have a plan, you are planning to fail.” This wise counsel is not only great advice for leaders preparing for combat operations, but it is also crucial for those in the job market today.

  The reality is that without help, it can be hard to build a plan and then execute it. Having a plan of action can make stressful situations manageable with a specific step-by-step approach to reach your objectives. With a trusted mentor or advisor helping us it can be much easier, but it will still require time and thought to put it all down in a written document so we can reference it regularly and make sure that we are on track.

  The new economy has affected all aspects of life, and the old rules no longer apply. To navigate the ever-changing economic landscape, it will be critical to start with a deliberate plan—a life plan, freedom fund, and early planning for retirement.

  First of all, we need to know where we are and where we want to go. When you are orienteering in the woods, knowing your location is a critical first step to getting to your final destination. You might think, I know where I am … I’m a student looking for a job, or I’m about to launch a new start-up company. Unfortunately, this is not what we are talking about. We need to go deeper. Discovering who you are—your gifts, skill sets, desires, and values—will tell you where you are in life. This is your frame of reference. From there you can build a career plan that will maximize your talents and gifts to help you achieve a life of meaning and purpose.

  In this new economy it is critical that everyone have a high level of self-awareness to understand how they have been made, what their unique gifts and talents are, and what their passion and life goals are. In the past, high school and college were used as years of self-discovery, where people could take classes and over time decide on their career. Some even went on adventures in their 20s, continuing to live a Spartan college-existence, traveling and working multiple jobs that might have varied considerably with no thought to the future. It was easier to jump into a career path of choice.

  Today is different. Mounting education costs are drowning graduates in debt. Spending more time in college taking classes and dragging out the experience is no longer ideal, as it only adds to the mounting student-loan debt a graduate carries. The average student is graduating today with $30,000 in student-loan debt and having a hard time finding a job in their career of choice.1 Student-loan debt is now $1.2 trillion and is the second largest form of debt in America, behind mortgages and ahead of credit card debt.2 Many economists believe the real-estate bubble that exploded in 2007 will be followed by a student-loan burst that is looming even now. This has led many to debate the value of education today. Some have argued that college educations are not worth it and are a waste of time. I spent the past year interviewing leaders from all over the world—economists, CEOs, placement-agency executives, and recruiters—and everyone agrees that education is critical for success in this new economy. Because this has been a hotly debated topic I want to highlight some key facts here. The goal is threefold:

  Obtain useable knowledge you can leverage in your career.

  Obtain the right certification or degree for your desired career path.

  Do 1 and 2 as quickly and inexpensively as possible.

  EDUCATION

  In January of 2014, while attending the YPO Presidents’ Program at Harvard Business School, I was able to have dinner with professor Krishna Palepu and his wife, Laurie. Krishna taught at Harvard for 29 years, 10 of those at HBS, and is currently the Senior Advisor to Harvard’s president, so I jumped at the chance to ask him questions about the global economy and education. Knowing that Krishna and Laurie had children, one of my questions was, “What are the three most impo
rtant things you could tell your children today to be ready to have success in this new economy?” Without pause Krishna said, “First, become a lifelong learner. Second, learn to speak a foreign language. Third, travel the world to get a global understanding of the different cultures and how people see and interact with the world.” Understanding how technology was changing our world, I realized that all three were things that anyone could do right from their home. Yes, even if someone did not have the money to travel the world, they could spend time online to learn in-depth about countries, regions, and cultures of the entire globe. Technology was making it possible for everyone to have a world-class education at their fingertips.

  In the first chapter I pointed to a number of sources that foretell of this new global economy becoming more and more dominated by technology, and those who have the advanced skills and training will disproportionately win in this economy. Those who do not have the requisite skill and training will find it extremely difficult to find quality work and gainful long-term employment. Based on these comments some might think, I can’t afford the time or money to go back to school to get more education. Don’t be discouraged. Today, anyone in the world can receive a world-class education for free, right at home, and I want to tell you how.

  The amount of education you might need depends on your life plan and goals. For those who want to climb the corporate ladder and obtain leadership positions within Fortune 500 companies, college degrees and advanced degrees are going to be very important. The college you attend is equally important, as certain colleges with “prestigious brands” are seen differently than a small community college degree in these environments. There is no way around it. So if that is your desired career path, it is important to understand those dynamics. For those who aspire to be entrepreneurs and to start your own companies, the path can be a bit different. The goal: usable knowledge with the ability to execute in the marketplace; the degree or institution it is from is largely irrelevant to the entrepreneur. No matter where you are in your educational journey, I encourage you to grow as a lifelong learner and continue to advance your knowledge base and skill sets. Here is how you can start.

  MOOCS – MASSIVE OPEN ONLINE COURSES

  Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are college- and graduate-level courses being taught over the web. A person can enroll in a class being taught on campus, use the same course curriculum, be taught by the same professor, and many times monitor the exact class being taught on campus via the web. Many of these courses come with a certificate of completion. The very best universities in the world like Harvard, Yale, MIT, Stanford, Penn, Duke, and Michigan are now offering many of their classes via a MOOC environment, allowing everyone the ability to have a world-class education for free.

  Over dinner, Krishna Palepu told me the story of when MIT launched a MOOC with one of its hardest courses taught at the school. Over 150,000 people around the world signed up to take the class. At the end of the class, one of the top scores came from a 15-year-old boy in Ulan Bator, the capital of Mongolia. He was awarded a full scholarship to MIT and started a year later full-time.

  I recommend visiting Coursera.org, which is an online aggregator of MOOC courses from the top colleges in the world. You can search for a program, see when it is starting, and see which ones offer a certificate of completion. List these courses and certificates of completion on your resume under the heading “Continuing Education.” This shows that you are not satisfied with what you may have learned in the past but that you are challenging yourself, growing daily, and looking to the future.

  LEARN TO CODE

  As I have traveled the world I have heard many people mention that the global language of business is English. Some have said they think in the future it will be Chinese. Only time will tell. Regardless, many will tell you that in the coming years equally as important or more important than English will be the ability to code. Technology transcends all global boundaries, and those who can speak and understand “code” are in the driver’s seat in this new economy. It is reported that over the next 10 years there will be 2 million unfilled technology jobs.3 Companies are looking for MBAs who can assume leadership positions but can understand code, as this is becoming a new skill even leaders need. There is virtually zero unemployment in the coding field, with recruiters complaining they can’t find enough talent for the open positions they need to fill. Those same coders can ask a king’s ransom, and their demands are being met. If you want job security for the future, learn to code. Just like MOOCs there are many websites that will teach coding for free, from the basics all the way up to advanced coding, and will also provide certificates for completion. Here are my favorites:

  Codecademy.com

  Udacity.com

  ReFactorU.com

  KhanAcademy.com

  Again, list any course you take and certificate of completion on your resume. Every department in every company today somehow interfaces with technology. Regardless of your background, if you start building your coding knowledge and certifications you will be quantum leaps ahead of your peers when interviewing for jobs.

  PODCASTS

  I don’t know what I would do without my iPhone and the podcast content I have downloaded daily. I am amazed at the amount of educational material I can carry in my pocket and the amount of time I have to invest in my continuing education every day—from my commute, running, lunch breaks, and even shopping. I am always listening and taking notes. For aspiring entrepreneurs, I highly recommend the following podcasts, but my favorite by far is Stanford’s E-Corner.

  Stanford University’s E-Corner, “Entrepreneurial Thought Leader” series

  Harvard Business Review’s HBR IdeaCast

  Chicago Booth Podcast

  London Business School’s Official Podcast

  Seth Godin’s Start-Up School

  ADVANCED EDUCATION

  One of my favorite sites that I use regularly is KhanAcademy.com. No matter what subject matter you would like to learn, they have videos for you. It has been one of the most widely used global learning platforms, bringing world-class education to the masses. Since I am such a fan of this online learning environment, I am currently working with a team to launch CrownBiz.com/venture-academy-listing to bring Harvard Business School case studies to entrepreneurs. These are taught by an HBS graduate in a similar fashion to how HBS presents them. You might not have time for a two-year MBA, but many of the concepts and key principles taught in the HBS MBA-program can be learned online using the same case studies and teaching methods.

  I hope I have convinced you that education is important. For some, this will be a very beneficial option. However, education for the sake of “discovering yourself” or to find out which career is best for you is a luxury many cannot afford today. There are alternative ways to gain this experience and self-awareness.

  KNOW YOURSELF

  The Bible says that everyone is “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). You and I are totally different, and there will never be another person like us. God has given each of us special talents, skills, desires, and passions in His unique design for our lives. When we understand how we are hardwired and we pursue a career that is in total alignment with our skills, life is much easier. It is like we are swimming in a river with a powerful current that is helping us reach our destination. However, if we don’t understand how we are made with our unique values and talents, we could find ourselves on a path of study or in a career where we are misaligned. Being misaligned is hard work, painful, and sometimes full of misery. If you know someone who is struggling in life and not happy with their job or course of study, it is possible they are misaligned in a key area of their life.

  If you have never really been able to discover those talents or have always felt that you have been living outside of your God-given design, it is never too late to gain this self-awareness. I have seen so many people who were struggling and dissatisfied in life, but once they developed a great sense of self-awareness
, their life was forever changed.

  * * *

  We hope you enjoyed this excerpt from The Leap. For more from Moody Publishers in this genre and others, visit your favorite local or online bookstore.

  SO YOU’VE GOT AN IDEA?

  IT ALL STARTED FOR ME ON a mountain in Russia. In a blizzard. At 16,000 feet. I could’ve written it off to oxygen deprivation, but something within me said it was more. God placed something big in my heart that day.

  The blizzard pummeling our side of Mount Elbrus made our attempt to summit the highest peak in Europe an exercise in futility. We gave up for the day. Secretly, I was relieved. I realized earlier that morning when we pulled out the ice axes and roped our team together that I was in way over my head. This was above my climbing level; I had no experience ice climbing and only basic knowledge of how to use the axe in my hand. I was still loving it, but the situation made me remember there was some real danger involved.