Strands of Genius: Letting Loose, Remote Work, Reflections on What Goes Unsaid
plus: a moment of zen at Laurel Falls
WRITING FROM | Nashville, TN
WORKING ON | helping Rosie’s fam clean up from the epic Easter gathering
LOOKING AHEAD
April 3-9 | Beersheba Springs, TN
April 9-11 | Dallas, TX
April 11-26 | Beersheba Springs, TN
April 26-28 | Palm Springs, CA
April 28-May 5 | Los Angeles, CA
May 5- June 9 | Seattle, WA
:: WHAT’S NEW & WEEKLY GRATITUDE ::
Today Faris is in Dallas with the other advisory board members for Frontier’s Gigaboard, and I’m hanging around Nashville until he gets back tomorrow. It’s been a while since Faris was on a business trip that I didn’t go on as well, and as much as I love our time together, absence does make the heart grow fonder ;)
This week, we’re especially thankful for:
Easter celebrations with Rosie’s fam, Madison’s birthday dinner (HBD lady! We love you!), lamb, the Andrews clan, Judy&the Graybar crew, the kiddos taking part in an Easter Egg hunt, sparkling water on tap, Niki & Jason and our Wholemeal hangs, Sequence&YamSlam&Pandemic, long walks & phone dates, a solo hike & YOU.
:: THE LINKS ::
MEN REFLECTING ON WHAT THEY WISH THEY TOLD THEIR WIVES MORE
I was sucked in with the click-bait-y title but if there’s one key takeaway, it’s this: “What goes unsaid goes unheard. Don’t let it be something important.” And while this is men reflecting on what they told their wives more, I think so many of these reflections could apply to siblings, parents, friends, and more. (Fatherly)
THE JOY OF LETTING LOOSE
In this piece from the New York Times, Shane O’Neil remembers how the 80s and 90s were filled with letting loose, especially when it came to pop culture. “[We saw] Cyndi Lauper convincing a gentleman in a suit to put down his newspaper and dance, I saw a world of possibility, one in which adulthood could be fun, with surprise waiting around every corner,” he writes. There were the Hamburger Tonight commercials. Bill Gates clap dancing on stage. People at the DNC doing the Macarena. O’Neil says that letting loose is inclusive, but there can be something transgressive about it, too. I love the playful vibe of the piece itself, which is filled with multimedia throughout the entire piece. (New York Times)
SHUNNING REMOTE WORK MEANS WE’RE ALL LOSING
We’ve spoken to so very many leaders about remote work, and can’t tell you just how many speak of wanting their teams back in the office. When we ask why, it’s about productivity. When we ask to see some stats that back it up, it becomes about collaboration. When we ask to see stats that collaboration is weakened with remote workers, it becomes about culture. We push back, time and time again, often saying “It feels like there’s something else going on. Is there something else? We’ll keep it just between us.” And then it comes out: They’ve already spent money on offices. It’s a sunk cost fallacy. And they feel like employees should show up because they had to. Or because they enjoy it. While this piece by Betsy Cooper is focused on Washington D.C., she echoes what we’ve been hearing: “ Arguments in favor of in-person work generally fall into three camps. The first is about productivity: Managers have a visceral sense that workers are more productive in the office. The second is about people: Teams work better together in person than they do remotely. Finally, in-person work is about places: It’s about the investments already made in office workspaces and the need — sometimes for national security reasons — to work in those offices.” And then she proceeds to outline exactly why those aren’t really great arguments against remote work, how productivity is actually slowing because of a return to the office, how culture and camaraderie doesn’t require in-person work, how physical spaces aren’t a requirement, even for most government jobs. (The Hill)
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:: YOUR MOMENT OF ZEN | LAUREL FALLS ::
Just last week I went on a solo hike, where I spotted more than 10 turkey vultures, 3 hawks, some gorgeous wildflowers, and Laurel Falls, gushing with water. I had originally brought my headphones, but quickly decided to immerse myself in the sounds of nature instead. The entire hike, I was filled with gratitude for this beautiful earth we inhabit.
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rockON,
faris & rosie & ashley | your friends over at geniussteals.co
@faris is always tweeting
@rosieyakob hangs out on instagram
@ashley also writes for deaf, tattooed & employed
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It's called Genius Steals because we believe ideas are new combinations and that nothing can come from nothing. But copying is lazy. We believe the best way to innovate is to look at the best of that which came before and combine those elements into new solutions.
Co-Founders Faris & Rosie are award-winning strategists and creative directors, writers, consultants and public speakers who have been living on the road/runway since March 2013, working with companies all over the world. Our Director of Operations is nomadic like us, our accounting team is based in Tennessee where our company is registered, our admin extraordinaire is based in Playa del Carmen, and our collaborators are all over the world. Being nomadic allows us to go wherever clients need us to be, and to be inspired by the world in between.
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Hi Rosie. Just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate your newsletter. I get a LOT of emails, but I always read yours. Thanks for doing what you do. You and Faris are an inspiration.