Do and be better...better.

Happy Monday!I come bearing gifts. Kind of.I've been asked quite a bit over the last few months to do some consulting/coaching/speaking on how to prepare for an inevitably more unpredictable future -- what people can do to plan and execute better for themselves, their families, their companies, their investments, etc. Something that tries to tie together broad themes, systems thinking, known facts, and soooo many moving pieces with regard to climate, and COVID, and medicine, biotech, politics, the market, and giving.It's a lot. I get it. There's so many questions, and so few facts to operate on.For those of you who asked me to do that and I haven't responded to yet, I'M SORRY. I'm working on it, I swear. For everyone else, I thought it might be helpful and prudent to start sharing some combination philosophical/methodological thoughts, gleaned from everything I've learned running INI, engaging with the smartest people in the world, and basically trying to be ultimate high-functioning generalist.I'm not saying these little memos will always be coherent, and much of the content won't be anything new under the sun, but the message will always be constructed through the prism of how to fight for a better future for everyone. And it's important to note here that, yes, "everyone" includes yourself, your family, and your business. And then of course all of the many humans out there who demand and deserve fairer legislation, and education; justice, and a better, cleaner job; affordable, accessible health care, and all of the rest of the things we can sometimes take for granted.Before I get to it -- quick request. If you have any ideas for a short, catchy name for this new series, just email me at questions AT importantnotimportant DOT com. As always, I love your input.

Who do you want to be? And more importantly, why?I ran/biked/swam a triathlon in 2008, competing with Team in Training and raising money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. I raised over $20,000 from a wide swath of friends and family. Many close friends gave immediately upon hearing about my mission and the organization I was raising funds for. But quite a lot of the money came from friends of friends, and even from several degrees further. In 2008, using Facebook to get the word out about a cause was fairly novel — and I was struck by how incredibly effective it was. Of course, it’s no longer novel today, in 2020, when it seems like millions of strangers on GoFundMe are covering half our nation’s medical and bail bills..That ubiquity is a double-edged sword: it’s never been easier to donate time, money, and other resources on the web...but it can be daunting — not to say paralyzing — to sort through the countless worthy causes: the federal government is in shambles — donate to these presidential candidates, and these Senate races, and these House races. But we can’t forget down ballot races, either, like we did for the last 10 years, so here’s another twenty make or break races. And then of course there are all of the worthy and reputable non-profits across health, politics, science, food, water, civil rights, and more.Thankfully, there are even tools to help corral all of that, to make it easier to strategize and then give. But it’s still easy — and completely understandable — to feel pulled in a million directions at once.One possible corrective, which these Monday notes will try to help encourage, is to take a big step back, and ask “Why?”Think of the hammer and nail story, which I’ll thoroughly mangle here for your benefit:You go to a hardware store, because you need a nail. “Need” is a strong world. You want a nail. But you don’t really want a nail, you want to be able to hang something on your wall. But you don’t really want to hang something, you want to hang art. But you don’t really want to hang art, you want to hang the art of an up-and-coming Black artist. But you don’t really want to hang the art of an up-and-coming Black artist, you want to show yourself, and anyone who comes into your home, that you appreciate this art, and support young, Black artists. But you don’t really want to just show them that you’re that person, you want to actually be that person. And buying a nail to hang this frame of artwork on your wall is the very first step to being that person. Or you think it should be. Or someone told you it should be. It seems logical, easy, a toe in the water. But step back a little bit further...and now even further...ok, stop: why do you want to be that person? The why — at 30,000 feet — should always drive the how. In your life, your parenting, your work — everything. This isn’t some new idea, btw. I’m certainly not the first to say it/support it/attempt to live it. But it applies to our world more than ever, and to you, our action-oriented audience.So, as you stand there in the hardware store aisle, trying to figure out which nail will support your progressive, sexy new Framebridge piece without ripping out a chunk of your drywall five minutes later, start by asking yourself this: Have you always wanted to be the person that does these things? That holds these values? Or is there something or someone new in your life, or in the world, that’s encouraged you to become that person? To take the first step?And further back — is this the right first step? Maybe!If you really want, for example, to support young Black artists, what is the rest of your strategy to encourage more support for this artist, and for other young Black artists? Are there galleries you can visit, to which you can bring friends? Can you feature their art on your Instagram? Should you reach out to the artist to have a conversation about their intentions, and perspective? Are they open to that? Why or why not? Can you sponsor an art installation at the local library? Can your company chip in? Are there non-profits you can contribute to that provide stipends for Black artists in your area? Is your local government interested or involved in supporting Black artists? If not, do you need new voices in your local government, to draft legislation that will support the artists that live in your town now? Who might be best suited for that office? And further, would having those new elected officials in place, writing progressive legislation that supports diverse art and makes the cost of living more affordable, knowing art doesn’t exactly always pay the rent — might all of that attract more artists to come and work and live in your town? How will those moves help put your town on the map, per se? Coming at a problem or opportunity from several, concerted directions at once can often be more effective —so what might be the limited portfolio of strategies you are best suited to simultaneously engage in, for this specific opportunity?What makes you— your personality, your energy, your income, your time, your skills — most effective here? How can you personally affect the outcome?Will you do all of this quietly, or do you seek approval from your spouse, or your children, or the artists themselves? Is there a middle ground that appeals to your ego, and is still effective?What are the second order consequences of choosing to invest your time, money, or energy in this? We can only do so much with the time we are given.Ask honest questions about yourself, and your intentions, and the life you want to live. For yourself, and others. Build your whys. If you subscribe to our newsletter, you already know you care about the planet, and others, and equity, and justice. You enjoy taking action — to fight the bad stuff, and bring up the good stuff. You can drill that down a little further into caring about environmental justice, about clean water and air, about healthy, affordable food, groundbreaking clean jobs, helping frontline communities adapt, about the zebrafish that drive pediatric cancer research.Make your current and future day-to-day actions answerable to your three to four core values. Look at today’s (probably endless) to-do list and, like my children do, ask “Why?” for each action, and then ask it again, and again, and again, going from ground-level, to 5000 feet, to 10,000 feet, to 30,000 and blue sky, until you’ve arrived at one of your core values...or you haven’t, in which case you might want to ask yourself if you should be spending your valuable time on something that doesn’t fit those core values.Be relentless about this last part and you will live a purposeful, devastatingly effective life. And (checks notes) we clearly need way more of that.Find your whys that let you successfully answer the who— who do I want to be? — and then work your way down through the hows, all the way down to the practicalities of buying that nail. Because it turns out, you might need two. And that’s just the start.

— Quinn