Corporate survival tips from watching kids play Angry Birds
Surviving in today’s corporate world is tough. The stream of books and articles out there on how to dodge that redundancy bullet and survive the corporate jungle is testament to the anxiety that exists all around us. But sometimes we just have to throw out the rule book and take a lateral view of survival. Look at it through a different lens .... How about through the lens of a four year old boy?….playing Angry Birds on his mother’s iPad!.
I watched and listened to him playing Angry Birds, taking note of his win strategy and I came away with a whole new perspective of survival - and a deeper respect for the wisdom of children. Here it is in a nutshell.
1. Be your own best cheerleader ( Even when you are failing)
“Wow Mama, look at that!”. “ Aren’t I awesome??!!”. Enthusiasm is infectious. The above words were screamed at me when the birds bashed and crashed off everything, … everything except it’s target. Did I notice his abject failure?. Of course I did, but I was already hooked on his infectious enthusiasm and unmitigated joy. Lesson : Act like you are winning …. even when you are losing ( badly). Be joyful. Laugh. Be great to be around. It draws applause, even if, at times you don’t technically deserve it.
2. Keep your eye on everything going on all around you.
For my son, watching that screen is only a small part of the game. He spent on average 1 second in 4 actually looking at the screen. The other 3 seconds were spent glancing at the TV, looking outside the window to gauge the movements of the neighbours kids and, most importantly to observe what I was eating and negotiate some for himself. Lesson- Sometimes, we get way too glued to what’s happening on the screen and miss the real events going on all around. I am not suggesting you become an annoying ‘nosey nelly’ but replace some screen time with watching, listening and engaging with real people and real events. You never know when that vital piece of survival information will swim your direction.
3. Pass a failing project on to someone else. Quick.
“Here Mama, Have a go. Join in the fun. You’ll really love it”. The game always seems to pass to me with only one bird left ( those big black useless bombs!) and almost every piggie to knock down, all sitting there, smiling smugly at me. And when the big black bomb only managed to obliterate one small section, who was left with the words “LEVEL FAILED” ?. Not my son. Nope. Did I defend myself with my lack of ammunition? Sure I did. Did anyone care?. Nope!. I had attached myself to a failed project and that was that!. Lesson : Before you take on a project ask yourself those all important questions. What ammunition ( resources, support, exec endorsement) do I have to win?. What damage has already been done to this project ?. And importantly, What small smiley piggies ( unreasonable deadlines, dodgy plans, political unrest ) do I have to watch out for, determined to make me fail ?.
4. The line on the horizon is an illusion. Stop rushing towards it.
In the words of my son … “What the hecko? Another level?. Oh let’s just play cars?”!. In the corporate world, don’t ever think the job is done. IT IS NEVER DONE!. There is ALWAYS another level, another side issue that starts with “ so what are you doing about that??!. Lesson -No matter how many evenings, weekends and holidays you clock up in the galliant, but futile, notion that you are breaking the back off your workload, you will simply find another signpost with your name on it. Enjoy your work. Take your holidays, your days off, your lunch breaks, training days and whatever else you think you can’t do. It is not going to matter one jot in the end. Success is not the destination!. Because there is none. There is always, ALWAYS another level to climb.
5. Sometimes two stars will do just fine!. So celebrate it and move on!.
In the corporate world, your hard-won achievements may never get noticed or get used by someone else closer to the throne. Even if you hit three star success you may then discover that someone else secretly beat you to the “best score” anyway!. Sometimes that ‘best score’ person is you. But more often than not, it is not you. You will probably live most of your corporate life as a Two Star Terry. And you know what?, that’s OK. In fact, it is great. Great careers are sometimes built on taking the small two-star achievements and moving on to the next challenge. Just like my four year old. He just roars “STARS !” and wastes no more time on a time-consuming and sometimes fruitless 'best score' chase. It can tie you down more than failure. So celebrate your success, however, small and move on.
Lisa O’ Callaghan is a B2B copywriter , part-time author and Mum to Ryan, aka Mr. Wise.