Many of us reflect on our past and think “hmm if I only knew then what I know now”. We do that because with time we fail, we learn, we experience success, and ultimately, we grow. But we tend to forget what life was like before all of it. As a business owner I am very hands on with my organization, especially my leadership team and one thing that I am known for is giving them homework. I love school, I love learning, and I love when I push my team out of their comfort zone. My inspiration came from author, Adam Grant to have my team write a letter to their first day selves at Triple Crown to reflect on their journey and help them relate more to their team members. I also participated in this exercise. Here is a letter to my first day self as a Triple Crown Technical Recruiter and Business Owner.
March 8, 2021
Dave,
You are reading this on August 4, 2004, you are preparing for day 1 of Triple Crown and your first day of being a business owner. I am writing to you from 17 years in the future. What you are about to embark upon today is worth every second of the challenges you will face. You may not even believe It, but you should be aware of what you did today. The schedule to your right is a glimpse into one of your future days, can you believe it?
There is nothing else you would rather do. There is no place else you would rather be. It all starts when you pick up that phone in a few minutes.
Here is a bit more info without giving too much away:
- Tom Brady is the GOAT. He’ll win 5 more Super bowls between then and now, and he’s still playing! Keep following him, he sets a tremendous example of discipline.
- You are happier than you have ever been in your life. You have 5 kids now and they’re doing great! Awesome story here.
- Speaking of Triple Crown, you are going to do what you wrote in that Business Plan and much more. You are going to accomplish the lofty goal you set for yourself, and it is going to happen in 2021. You are going to screw up royally along the way. From each of those mistakes, growth will bloom, and you will learn serious lessons that will make you a force and push Triple Crown into the top 1% of Staffing companies in the US. You will stay true to your core values which will constantly be refined, improved, and evolve.
The purpose of this letter is to help you through today (It’s important that you only focus on today). The future day described in 2021 WILL NOT HAPPEN if you do anything but focus on today. Not only is it the first day of Triple Crown, but it’s also your first day of coaching football which will be life changing on the strategies and lessons that you learn.
I remember being at our first office and thinking it’s the most amazing thing. You’ve got your own cube in your own company and it’s up to you to succeed. You’re questioning if you made the right decision and asking yourself, can I pull this off? Do what you’ve been doing since you were 12 years old and show up. Showing up is the most important part of your formula for success. You have to be in it to win it. Now when you show up every day you have to outwork the room. The only person in that room that will still be there when you write this is Sab. Stay true to showing up, working hard, and effectively communicate with Sab about your completed calls and the candidates you recruit that day. Rinse and repeat tomorrow.
There is going to be a lot of noise along your journey. You will hire people who think you are too tough, and they may be right -they think that because you make yourself talk to 25 people a day and you expect them to do the same. Some will but most will not. Those who do will create their own reality and are the architects of their own future. I know you walk that fine line between confidence and uncertainty, and I know it’s easier to retreat into safety than it is to choose discomfort and growth. You will choose discomfort and growth again and again and you will get comfortable being uncomfortable. You will make more mistakes than you care to, but you already thrive on adversity, you are just not aware of it yet.
There will come a time sooner than you think where you will be more valuable crafting systems, teaching others, and driving behavior than being a recruiter and making 25 calls a day. You will struggle with that realization but until that day comes it’s all about the calls, your candidates, and what you do with them.
Triple Crown In 2021
Today, there is a recruiter at Triple Crown who is twice as good as you ever were on your best day. He has taken the system and made it his own. You’ve been fortunate enough to study what he’s done to contribute to the scale of your organization, and you are constantly modifying and taking advantage of what works. It’s all there today because you and Sab talked about your completed calls daily and coached each other on how to get better. You create a system that can and does evolve and you will still celebrate great new clients in 2021. I only wish I could show you the best client I’ve ever seen, it’s coming in October 2020 and it changes our client game for good. The Account Manager who is working with it is around 5 years old as you read this, and I suspect she already knows what a force she is going to become.
Triple Crown won’t take 50 job openings for the rest of 2004, but I am pleased to report we took 50 the first week of March. We had 61 placements in February 2021. It’s early March and there is an Account Manager who has 37 placements so far this year. She has more starts in 10 weeks than all Triple Crown will in 2005. She will never have that opportunity to do it if you don’t pick up that phone.
Here Is My Existential Advice
- The past is what it is, you cannot change it, you can only learn from it. Leave it there and focus on today.
- The future is yours to shape. Make plans and have a vision. Execute on those plans but stay in the present. Control what you can control today because it’s the only thing that is certain.
- Live your best life in the moment today. Walk through that door every single morning and take advantage of the opportunity each day presents.
- Hold nothing back. Effective communication is the key to unlocking that door each day and all the opportunity that exists behind it so bring your keys into the world each day- never forget them.
- Create a positive ripple. Today, Triple Crown employs 461 people, and we will end this year with over 500. You have an impact on 461 lives right now, some more directly than others. They can pursue their best lives because today you will pick up that phone and talk to 25 people. You’re going to bust your butt for thousands of people along the way. The numbers on the buttons on that phone will fade, but today you’ll make history.
I am proud of you. Work will set your free. Now stop procrastinating and get after it. P.S. Keep asking yourself what Belichick would do. It’s usually the right answer.