This is the final rule from my 10 Rules I’ve Learned and Live By to Motivate People and Organizations. Rule #9 was to create a culture where people spend more time working face-to-face in an office. When people spend time with each other in person, the overall level of motivation in the air gets kicked up a notch. It creates positive energy and momentum.
The last rule is about how to deal with challenges in your business and particularly when the situation continues to worsen. Remember, you should expect and prepare for challenges, but what happens when you feel like they are unsolvable? My rule: when faced with accelerating challenges in your company, don’t back away and don’t just stay where you are, but push forward and push hard. In the same vein as Sheryl Sandberg’s philosophy and new book “Lean In”, I’m saying don't only lean in, but lean in HARDER.
I learned this most vividly during my time at Intermix Media. In February 2004, I joined as CEO (formerly known as eUniverse) and faced the biggest challenge in my career. I was not only operating on a larger scale than before, but it was also a lot more complex than my previous companies. It was a big “lean in” moment to start with and took me out of my comfort zone (see Rule #7), but the challenge actually became even bigger and more difficult once I took it on.
I accepted the challenge of turning around Intermix because I believed in the core assets of the company. The business included dozens of websites that were all focused on viral content. They were proving the idea that certain content could be shared at a large scale and that “socializing content” was possible. A few months before I joined, they had launched a very small, but growing property called Myspace.
I was aware of the many challenges that business was facing, such as trading below $2 per share, losing $4mm per quarter, and recovering from an accounting restatement which caused its de-listing from the NASDAQ. However, once I joined, the challenges intensified, and I wanted to give up. But I knew that wasn’t an option, so I dug in and focused on solving one problem at a time. I made some smart decisions and some stupid ones. But I kept pushing forward despite all the new challenges that popped up, and I never gave up.
Do not fear the winds of adversity. Remember: A kite rises against the wind rather than with it. ~Myla Kabat-Zinn
As you all know by now, the underlying theme of all my rules is to stay positive and keep the organization motivated. In this case, my primary responsibility was to shield the management team from all the external drama and make sure they focused on the areas of the company with the most growth potential. I needed to demonstrate that I was moving forward even more aggressively as the road got bumpier. The organization felt it and outperformed even my big expectations. We changed the business operationally, grew revenues rapidly and achieved profitability. We even re-listed the company on the American Stock Exchange. Most importantly, we built Myspace.com into one of the largest and fastest growing properties on the Internet and created significant shareholder value when we sold the company to NewsCorp for $12 per share 18 months later.
While those were the most challenging 18 months of my career, they were also the most rewarding. I learned that every challenge can be addressed, even when unexpected, if you believe in yourself and your team and lean into the headwinds. With every challenge comes an opportunity, and if that is your mindset, you will find upside in places you never expected. And when you display that kind of resolve and attitude, so will your team. It creates a motivation in yourself that becomes contagious.
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