Too Late To Start

This week: How does coaching relate to troubleshooting an electrical engineering project? We talk through sensors, effectors, and the code we each run as we answer the question - "why isn't the rug vacuumed?". Here's my 3rd project for the Creative Engineering class. There was a lot of troubleshooting and debugging at play! Thanks for your feedback and ideas. If there is anything you'd like to send my way, please shoot me a note at podcast@toolatetostart.com

I just started a creative engineering class and the first few experiments reminded me of Seth Godin's thoughts on creativity. Are you setting yourself up for success by figuring out the way forward through experimentation and small failures? Here's the Tim Ferriss episode with Seth Godin. Mark Rober built and hosts the creative engineering class which includes a peer group of 20 learners and an interesting learning process. Please continue to send your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com and if you like the show, I'd appreciate a review wherever you find your podcasts. Thanks!

What do Powerpoint presentations and magicians flipping over cards have in common? The journey from learner, to being jaded, to mastery on this episode. Pursuit of mastery of the little things can be the difference between impact and being an average, jaded amateur. Thanks to Erik Tait and the Penguin Magic Podcast for the idea for this week's episode. Here's the home for Mindset Digital. I highly recommend experiencing one of their presentations or attending a live workshop. Also, not mentioned in the podcast, but for a great resource in the constantly changing practices of learning and development design, tools, and research, check out Mike Taylor. Thanks for sharing your time and please send your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com

Have you ever slipped and done something stupid when you were frustrated? Did your actions have long-term consequences to professional or personal relationships? This week: personal frustration and some ideas on how to recognize when you're primed for less than stellar reactions and what to do about it. Thanks for your ideas and feedback. Please continue to send it to podcast@toolatetostart.com Here's the coverage of the Novak Djokovic story: ESPN

How can watching the launch of a spacecraft help you evolve your work? This week a quick story about getting in trouble at museums, watching history being made with innovative space launches, and how launch processes and procedures can potentially affect your work. Please continue sending me your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com. Thanks! Launch events mentioned in this episode include: The graphic map that shows the upcoming events down to the second at the bottom of the video. Also, here's an example timeline Transferring go/no go responsibility to the rocket/computers in the final minute Max-q Fairing jettison Landing the 1st stage and catching the fairings (this really happens - with ships that have giant nets) The team cheering when something good happens Debrief and learning after View recent SpaceX launches on their website (or just search on YouTube)

This week, a story about reconnecting to a younger me. Spoiler alert: I am a band geek, choir kid, brass player, and golfer that once had a mullet that my mom called my "MacGyver hair" for a good chunk of 5th grade. Reconnecting with that earlier me had some surprising results for some recent workouts and my thoughts going forward professionally as well. My friend, corporate speaker, small business owner, and executive coach, Natalie Siston has a new book coming out called Let Her Out: Reclaim Who You Have Always Been. I was part of the advance reader team and am impressed with the concepts and exercises she put together. The book comes out on November 19th, 2020 and I recommend picking it up to find ways to reconnect with the younger you, bring your whole self into the present, and drive greater performance and meaning into you daily lives. Thank you for you continued support, ideas, and feedback. It would be great if you could leave a review on the podcast platform of your choice as that helps visibility of the podcast. Have a wonderful week! Here are a couple of links for examples mentioned in the episode. I don't own any of the content of course. La Fiesta The Madison Scouts 1996 DCI Show Olympic Fanfare and Theme A sample of Gabrieli

This week: a story of a daring cat rescue after a storm - or perhaps an experience about priming and perception that almost resulted in breaking down a literal wall for an unexpected reason. Quick note: no animals were hurt or even ended up being involved in this story. It will make sense as you hear it. Thank you for listening, and please continue to send your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com Have a great week!

We're surrounded every day by a series of defaults. These could be canned responses to texts and emails, or maybe the pre-filled in length of meetings on your electronic calendar. Sometimes those shortcuts serve to save us time and energy, but at what cost to our actual goals? This week, a short story, some examples of defaults in our lives, and a challenge for the coming week to identify the defaults impacting your life and goals, and to try changing a couple that aren't serving you well. By the way, I didn't come up with the phrase "the devil is in the defaults", but it absolutely resonates with me and our increasingly tech supported lives. For additional reflection on the phrase, here are earlier examples of its use and impact: Mireille Hildebrandt wrote Smart Technologies and the End(s) of Law about how smart technologies are recreating our daily world and the impact of our actions and morality. Laurence Scott wrote The Four-Dimensional Human in the same year about our existence in the digital world. And of course, a Google search will bring up a few more examples, law review articles, etc. Please continue to send your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com. Thanks for your support and have a great week!

Yes, a Corn Palace is a thing, and the one in Mitchell, South Dakota can teach us all a few things about being a bigger dot on the map and how to modernize with the times. You can check out a bit of their story here. A Google image search for Mitchell Corn Palace gives a great view into how they've changed over the years, each year. Thanks for listening and please keep sending your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com.

This week we have a quick story about sewing blackout curtains and how sometimes the strong approach isn't the most effective. The thoughts here remind me a bit of different martial arts styles and using your opponent's momentum to your advantage. Please keep sending your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com and have a fantastic week!

What happens when you invite someone different to the meeting, are glad to have them there, but they aren't prepped to do things they way they've always been done? This week, a few thoughts about inclusion and innovation inspired by true stories shared by two professional performers. Huge thank you to the Shezam Podcast, and hosts Kayla Drescher and Carisa Hendrix for opening many eyes in not just the magic community, but many industries, and sharing their journeys. Check out their podcast for wonderful interviews, ideas on elevating a variety of voices, and hard experiences and truths that many can learn from. Have a strong week and thanks for sharing your time! -Shawn

This week we explore the Four Stages of Competence Theory and a phrase many in the corporate world have heard a version of: "professionals don't ad-lib". Is it true that those at the top of their game don't improv or go off script? Who on the team should have a license to ad-lib? In case it doesn't come across as fully in the episode, the concept of "knowing the rules to know when/how to break the rules" comes into play with this thought as well. Those that are the best at ad-libbing, likely know the script, and the reasons for each impact point in the script, better than most anyone else, hence operating at level 4: unconsciously competent. Here are a couple of additional links to the theory and please continue to send your ideas, questions, and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com Thanks and have a strong week! -Shawn https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_stages_of_competence https://trainingindustry.com/wiki/strategy-alignment-and-planning/the-four-stages-of-competence/

Last weekend I added some wiring to our electric panel. Prepping and executing that scary project illuminated a few parallels to leading a team and how to upgrade a system. Here are a few quick takeaways: Take the time and go deep enough to diagnose the real weaknesses, don't just trust your gut or go for the obvious thing It is possible to do more damage than good when trying to make an upgrade Sometimes to make an upgrade or strengthen a weakness, you need to address the support structures of the system first Please continue to send ideas and questions to podcast@toolatetostart.com. Thanks for sharing your time and have a strong week! -Shawn

As the world continues to learn and take advantage of remote meeting tools like Zoom, are you showing up and connecting with others the way you want? Are you coming across like the person that never looks at the camera in a selfie, or the seasoned pro? This week is a quick thought on how to remind and prime yourself to connect warmly with your audience through virtual tools. Give it a try and let me know how it goes at podcast@toolatetostart.com Have a great week and thanks!

Season 2 of the podcast starts with a quote from The Prophet by Khalil Gibran that leads us into some thoughts on the phrase "getting comfortable being uncomfortable". Is this a helpful phrase? Does it lead to straining and injury or stretching and growth? It may all depend on how you support your family, friends, and team as they find their individual definitions of "uncomfortable". Thank you for all of your feedback on season 1 and for sharing your time. Please keep ideas coming to podcast@toolatetostart.com. Have a great week!

This one is a little different: Far less scripted, a bit longer, a bit more rambling, but also a bit more conversational and authentic. Please keep sending in your ideas and feedback to podcast@toolatetostart.com Thanks! Here's a take on the 100 hour rule discussed in the episode. Here's how to actually remove blue painter's tape (I did this and it only mostly worked...). And if you've never seen Spaceballs - here is a quick clip compilation on YouTube.

How do you make sure that all the members of a team or project are on the same page? Do you all actually agree on the definition of important terms and goals? What happens when portions of the group think that discussion is a waste of time? In this episode we explore a couple of exercises to illustrate how even the simplest of concepts can be defined very differently by members of a group. If a team doesn't define key terms similarly, it is tough to build anything on top of that shakey foundation. Here are the Story Cubes mentioned in the second example (non-affiliate link). I'd love to hear your feedback and ideas. What do you think of the podcast? What concepts would you like to see covered in a future episode? Email me at podcast@toolatetostart.com and your ideas might be featured in the future. Thanks and have a great week!

Have you ever tried ballroom dancing? This week is a quick story about my experience taking lessons with my wife (who is much better than I am) and learning about backleading. Have you encountered a partner or client that isn't getting the right lead from you? Maybe putting yourself in their danceshoes can help you give better signals and increase connection in the future. For a bit more info about backleading, try this article from dancecompreview. Thanks for sharing your time!

Based on your feedback, I'm trying to go a little less scripted this episode. Thanks to everyone for their ideas and reactions, please keep them coming! We've all seen the ads about the "1 simple trick that doubles your business", or the "simple thing that will make you drop 30 pounds". We know there is usually some sort of gimmick associated with these often less than truthful lines. Today's discussion is about gimmicks in both magic and business and where the most successful professionals invest their time and effort. Plus there's a little challenge at the end about when a gimmick might be the best way forward, regardless of how you feel about it. By the way, if you're looking to get into magic, Vanishing Inc. has been a great partner in my journey - highly recommended. Thanks for sharing your time and have a great week!

We all have an inner monologue that can range from helpful to a complete derailer. In today's episode I explore some ideas from a friend that recently came to visit, along with personal experience in nudging that voice in a more helpful direction. www.toolatetostart.com has an accompanying article link for how to become a copy editor for for your inner voice, or better yet, build "autocorrect" for phrasing to drive better outcomes. Thanks for sharing your time!

Last year I started to learn how to pick locks - legally. Through that learning process I've taken a few lessons from lockpicking into my personal and professional life. Lockpicking golden rules: Never pick a lock you don't own or have permission to pick. Don't pick a lock that is in use and you rely on.

Ernie of Sesame Street fame may have had it right about his rubber duckie, but he should have taken his duck to work as well. In today's episode we talk about a concept related to helping coders find issues with their code that can be applied to all types of interactions. Working from home might be the perfect time to bring your rubber duckie to work and give this exercise a try!

Recently I had to create a script and set of slides to show my presentation style for a potential employer. For the past 17 years I've created content for a company that now owns all of that work, so I delved into my personal experience and told a story about Dirty Charlie the plumber. This is the off the cuff version - I'm working on how to script podcasts next. Thanks for sharing your time! -Shawn