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March 2023 The Contractor’s Advantage
HarrisonLawGroup.com (410) 832-0000 jwyatt@harrisonlawgroup.com
LUCK: WHERE PREPARATION AND CHANCE MEET
How Hard Work Manufactures Good Fortune
I don’t believe there is such a thing as luck, but there is chance.
“The problem with luck is that people think it exists because they haven’t seen the hard work going on behind the scenes; they only perceive the overtly positive or negative result as it happens.”
This month, with St. Patrick’s Day and “luck of the Irish,” many people will be focused on the “luck” they have experienced. However, I believe these moments of “luck” aren’t random or happenstance but products of the preparation for chance. For example, I recently had a hearing that ended in a spectacular success due to an obscure legal issue. From the outside looking in, some might say I was lucky, but the truth is that I had prepared for this hearing and spent many nights grinding away over the small details. I saw this obscurity in my preparation and figured there was a chance it could arise in the hearing, so I prepared as if I knew it would. This legal obscurity is why we were able to win the case, and it wasn’t just luck it happened to come up in court and I was ready for it. I had put in the work to prepare for chance and was rewarded for it, which is why I think of these moments as “fortune” instead of a concept like luck because it implies the reward was earned rather than a random occurrence. The problem with luck is that people think it exists because they haven’t seen the hard work going on behind the scenes; they only perceive the overtly positive or negative result as it happens. This leads people to believe that great — or terrible — things lie in wait for them, and there is no
need for preparation or hard work to receive or prevent them. Humans are both frenetic and lazy when it comes to telling ourselves these stories of luck, because life is hard. We need the stories we tell ourselves to make sense of the world around us. In a tragic situation, like a child contracting cancer, thinking of that as simply unlucky is more comforting because you don’t have to think about the reality of how such an awful thing happened. Calling things lucky or unlucky eases our minds and allows us to go easier on ourselves when something unfortunate transpires. But, at the end of the day, luck is just a story, and fortune doesn’t reward those who put in half the effort. And in law, sitting back and relying on luck can be dangerous because being unprepared and leaving someone’s case up to luck is the best way to lose it. That’s why in my experience, the harder I work, the “luckier” I get. By routinely preparing for chance, I manufacture the luck I need to succeed. You can manufacture this luck, too, by looking at every situation as an opportunity to prepare for what others consider unpredictable. Go above and beyond the bare minimum to cover every base and every possibility.
So, this month, don’t wait around for luck. Put in the work, time, and effort to prepare for those chances that create fortune.
-Jeremy Wyatt
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DON’T BURY YOUR FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS Workplace Vulnerability Can Yield Benefits
Some people may think showing vulnerability in the workplace is a sign of weakness. But it’s actually a sign of strength and can positively impact your team and work culture. Now is the time for business owners and managers to step out of their comfort zone and practice vulnerability. Why? Because a survey by Catalyst showed that employees are willing to put in more effort and go the extra mile when their managers are open and show vulnerability. Why should you show signs of vulnerability at work? Showing vulnerability in the workplace demonstrates you can take accountability for your actions, admit when you made a mistake, and ask for help when you need it. When you show signs of vulnerability, it will encourage your employees to be vulnerable — which can build trust and strengthen bonds. In addition, being vulnerable will boost your team’s psychological safety, which means they will be more willing to voice their concerns, opinions, ideas, and criticism without fear. This openness allows you to communicate more efficiently and comfortably with your team. When your employees share more, you learn more, and everyone can become more productive and efficient in the workplace. Overall, vulnerability will positively impact your work culture in many ways. But how do you begin implementing vulnerability in your business plan? How can you, as a leader, encourage this? Well, it all starts with you. Acknowledge and share your feelings, wins, and losses. It’s easy to sweep your emotions under the rug. However, instead of overlooking your feelings, wins, and failures, share those with your team. Take time to understand your own
feelings, why an outcome was good or bad, and how you can use these experiences to help your company. Once you analyze how you’re feeling, share these thoughts with your team. While it might be intimidating to do this, you will develop a stronger sense of community with your employees. Touch base with your employees frequently. You may already have systems in place to connect with your team. If you do, use these avenues to communicate with your team. While you must voice your feelings, encourage your employees to do the same — and reassure them it’s needed and safe to do so! Some people may not feel comfortable voicing their concerns in front of others, so provide your team with different platforms and options. This will only strengthen your relationship with them, making them feel more comfortable when their voices are heard and valued. Take action! Giving your employees a platform to vocalize their feelings and concerns is great. But do you really hear them? Show you’ve listened to them by making needed adjustments to your work environment that reflect their thoughts and feedback. While you may find it challenging to be vulnerable, imagine how tough it is for your employees to trust it’s safe for them to show it. Taking action and making changes will encourage your team to continue to confide in you. Showing vulnerability should be the No. 1 tool you use to enhance the relationships between you and your team members. If you implement vulnerability into your leadership role and at your company, your work culture will nurture trust, empathy, innovation, inclusivity, and feedback to grow your business.
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DO YOU WANT YOUR BUSINESS TO THRIVE? Consider Reading ‘Good to Great’ by Jim Collins!
“Good is the enemy of great.” This is how Jim Collins begins his book “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap ... and Others Don’t,” which discusses how a handful of companies perfected their business strategies to create great businesses. If you’ve ever wondered why some businesses only last a season while others last 15–20 years, then “Good to Great” is a must-read. Over the past three decades, Collins has analyzed 28 businesses by studying their leadership skills, practices, and business strategies to understand how these companies skyrocketed past their competitors. After conducting dozens of case studies and analyses, Collins outlines several results that make excellent companies stand out. Here are three takeaways from “Good to Great.” The first key takeaway is determining your “hedgehog concept” — a strategy you can use for many years. This approach is based on Greek philosophy: “The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing.” To find your hedgehog concept, ask yourself these questions: What can your company be the best at? What can you and your colleagues be passionate about? What economic indicator should you focus on?
When creating habits and using technology, you don’t need to use everything on the market. There are millions of platforms, software, tools, and technologies to use within your business, but which one will strengthen your hedgehog concept? Collins suggests only implementing technology that complements your business. He recommends waiting before jumping onto a new trend, platform, media platform, and technology. Be sure it aligns with your values, goals, and hedgehog concept. What do you do when your business is faced with uncomfortable situations, facts, or data? Great companies and business leaders don’t sweep hard facts under the rug and deny them. However, leaders don’t wave the white flag or give up. Instead, great companies and business owners acknowledge hard facts, identify pain points, and implement strategies to help overcome struggles and strengthen abilities.
Along with learning tips and strategies from these three lessons, you will also have a chance to learn more about Collins’ case studies, what companies he studied, and the techniques used to create business powerhouses. You can find “Good to Great” online and anywhere books are sold. Happy reading!
HAVE A Laugh
We know the Olympics as one of the most popular sporting events in the world, if not the most popular, because there is an athletic event for everyone. But once upon a time, Olympians competed in the fine arts, with competitions in painting, sculpture, architecture, literature, and music! These art categories thrived until the 1940s when the Olympics was put on hold due to World War II. And when the Olympics returned, the International Olympics Committee had a new president, Avery Brundage. Brundage wanted the Olympics to represent sports without the influence of money or power. And to him, the arts could be bought. Since artists naturally rely on selling their Fine Arts: The Forgotten Olympic Event How This Olympic Category Came to Be Forgotten
creations for money, a gold medal could majorly inflate the value of their work.
So, after much debate on the committee, it was agreed that the art categories would be removed to preserve the event’s integrity.
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Jeremy Wyatt jwyatt@harrisonlawgroup.com HarrisonLawGroup.com (410) 832-0000
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Inside This Edition
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No Such Thing as Luck!
3 Ways to Show Vulnerability in the Workplace Have You Found Your Hedgehog Concept? The Olympics Used to Have a Fine Arts Category!? One of the Hottest Marketing Trends of 2023
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What That Means for Your Marketing ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IS EVERYWHERE!
Today, artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the hottest marketing trends of 2023. AI is helping business owners boost their customer experience, better understand their target audience, and measure and judge for optimized growth. But what exactly is AI marketing, and how can it benefit you and your business? What is AI marketing? Companies will use AI technology to make automated decisions quickly. It collects and analyzes data, observes economic trends, and develops strategies faster than any human can. AI marketing software can take on a wide range of responsibilities, such as data analysis, consumer trends, and content creation and personalization.
it predict your actions on apps, websites, and other media. With this insight, companies can use these trends to create personalized content just for you in a matter of seconds. What are the benefits of using AI? One of the biggest benefits of AI marketing is that it gives you a better understanding of your consumers. This means your automation will be faster and more intelligent and can positively impact your company’s revenue and ROI. AI can also generate personalized content both on social media and in emails that will attract your customers. In addition, because you’re using technology to create content, AI won’t make any costly mistakes.
AI marketing doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. In fact, it’s expanding its channels by improving customers’ experience using chatbots. The marketing tool will improve business’s messaging services to provide customers with a better chatting experience. Chatbots could even integrate into sales, lead generation campaigns, and other customer service channels.
But how does AI compute and calculate this information? Whose data and trends is it looking at? Because AI marketing is used to help businesses improve their customer experience and understand their audience better, the best data for AI to use would be yours — the business’s customers.
AI will analyze customer data and notice specific trends that will help
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