1 00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:10,640 Speaker 1: Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the New Corner Office, 2 00:00:11,520 --> 00:00:15,160 Speaker 1: the podcast where we share strategies for thriving in the 3 00:00:15,240 --> 00:00:19,920 Speaker 1: new world of work, where location and ours are more 4 00:00:19,920 --> 00:00:25,400 Speaker 1: flexible than in the past. Today's tip is to collaborate 5 00:00:25,560 --> 00:00:29,560 Speaker 1: on something new. Whether you're feeling stuck at work or 6 00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:33,320 Speaker 1: just looking for a challenge, actively seeking out to a 7 00:00:33,400 --> 00:00:38,040 Speaker 1: new collaborator and trying a small project together can be 8 00:00:38,120 --> 00:00:41,040 Speaker 1: just the nudge you need to keep work in Trusting 9 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 1: Remote work is great, but as many of us have 10 00:00:46,520 --> 00:00:49,400 Speaker 1: discovered over the last few months, sometimes it can be 11 00:00:49,479 --> 00:00:53,320 Speaker 1: hard to introduce new things into daily life. We tend 12 00:00:53,320 --> 00:00:57,240 Speaker 1: to generate new ideas by combining our existing knowledge with 13 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 1: something novel. Where do we get those novel inputs Often 14 00:01:02,520 --> 00:01:05,960 Speaker 1: by doing new things, such as attending conferences or meeting 15 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:08,600 Speaker 1: people in different industries, or even chatting with a new 16 00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:13,080 Speaker 1: colleague in a different department. These activities have all been 17 00:01:13,120 --> 00:01:19,160 Speaker 1: more challenging since COVID changed how people work, but challenging 18 00:01:19,840 --> 00:01:24,920 Speaker 1: doesn't mean impossible. One great way to shake things up 19 00:01:26,000 --> 00:01:29,480 Speaker 1: seek out a new collaborator and then come up with 20 00:01:29,520 --> 00:01:32,600 Speaker 1: something small but cool that the two of you can 21 00:01:32,640 --> 00:01:37,640 Speaker 1: do together. The emphasis here is really on the who. 22 00:01:38,640 --> 00:01:42,240 Speaker 1: Who do you find intriguing? Whose emails do you always 23 00:01:42,240 --> 00:01:44,760 Speaker 1: feel excited by when you see them in your inbox? 24 00:01:45,959 --> 00:01:48,400 Speaker 1: Who is a friend of a friend whose career you've 25 00:01:48,440 --> 00:01:51,080 Speaker 1: followed a bit more closely than you might admit during 26 00:01:51,080 --> 00:01:55,400 Speaker 1: a first conversation. Which former colleagues have you really wanted 27 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:58,800 Speaker 1: to stay in touch with. Any of these people could 28 00:01:58,800 --> 00:02:05,240 Speaker 1: be potential collaborator, So pick one who seems amenable. I'd 29 00:02:05,280 --> 00:02:09,800 Speaker 1: start with the who rather than the what, because these days, 30 00:02:10,360 --> 00:02:15,200 Speaker 1: small acts of collaboration are almost ridiculously easy to pull off. 31 00:02:16,240 --> 00:02:18,400 Speaker 1: For instance, a writer friend and I just set up 32 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:21,480 Speaker 1: a Facebook live chat recently. It was a way to 33 00:02:21,520 --> 00:02:24,720 Speaker 1: introduce our related but slightly different audiences to each other. 34 00:02:25,560 --> 00:02:29,400 Speaker 1: Took a grand total about forty five minutes. And that 35 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:32,440 Speaker 1: same friends set up a virtual speaker series that involved 36 00:02:32,480 --> 00:02:35,120 Speaker 1: pairing two experts on a bunch of different topics to 37 00:02:35,160 --> 00:02:38,040 Speaker 1: have a conversation with each other. Now, I know that 38 00:02:38,160 --> 00:02:41,040 Speaker 1: she put a lot of work into organizing this, but 39 00:02:41,160 --> 00:02:44,800 Speaker 1: each individual expert was able to collaborate with someone just 40 00:02:44,840 --> 00:02:48,120 Speaker 1: by discussing a topic that other people could then listen to. 41 00:02:49,600 --> 00:02:52,519 Speaker 1: You can do Instagram live chats or Facebook live a 42 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:55,960 Speaker 1: Twitter chat or something on LinkedIn, set up a zoom 43 00:02:56,040 --> 00:02:59,040 Speaker 1: for interested people to watch. Or you could do something 44 00:02:59,120 --> 00:03:01,880 Speaker 1: that requires a bit more effort, like co writing an 45 00:03:01,960 --> 00:03:06,680 Speaker 1: article together, are creating a limited run podcast, interview your 46 00:03:06,680 --> 00:03:11,399 Speaker 1: collaborator for a virtual training session for your colleagues. None 47 00:03:11,440 --> 00:03:13,400 Speaker 1: of this takes a lot of time, but with the 48 00:03:13,520 --> 00:03:16,000 Speaker 1: right collaborator, it will be a lot of fun for 49 00:03:16,040 --> 00:03:20,160 Speaker 1: you and probably produce something worthwhile for others. We can 50 00:03:20,240 --> 00:03:22,480 Speaker 1: all wind up doing a lot of our own stuff 51 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:26,600 Speaker 1: and saying the same things over and over again. Introducing 52 00:03:26,639 --> 00:03:30,320 Speaker 1: someone a little different can shape the discussion and make 53 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:35,960 Speaker 1: you start thinking about things in new ways. So today, 54 00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:39,360 Speaker 1: identify someone in your life who might be open to 55 00:03:39,400 --> 00:03:43,840 Speaker 1: a short collaborative project. You could propose an idea as 56 00:03:43,880 --> 00:03:45,480 Speaker 1: you reach out, but be open to what the other 57 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:50,800 Speaker 1: person might suggest. To brainstorm what you'll accomplish, and think 58 00:03:50,800 --> 00:03:54,320 Speaker 1: about who would be interested in watching or listening, and 59 00:03:54,360 --> 00:04:00,000 Speaker 1: then look forward to this novel work event. Chances are 60 00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:03,760 Speaker 1: work will feel a bit more interesting. It always does 61 00:04:04,400 --> 00:04:07,960 Speaker 1: when we've got time with intriguing people on our calendars. 62 00:04:09,600 --> 00:04:14,680 Speaker 1: In the meantime, this is Laura, Thanks for listening, and 63 00:04:14,760 --> 00:04:21,599 Speaker 1: here's the succeeding in the New Corner Office. The New 64 00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:24,800 Speaker 1: Corner Office is a production of I Heart Radio. For 65 00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:28,719 Speaker 1: more podcasts, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 66 00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:30,440 Speaker 1: or wherever you get your favorite shows.