Jody Peterson

Redefining the Chase - a guide to making your work, work for you

I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I congratulate you on your accomplishment. As a recent graduate of the MEES program, I have a great appreciation of what you went thru to get to today and I was honored when Sandra asked me to speak as an alumni.

I readily accepted this opportunity to speak, and after some thought I decided to share my point of view on what I like to call 'the chase', or how to make your work, work for you.

The Chase

The chase typically goes like this and this is in the context of searching for a job, you go to school, do good in everything, you graduate and start chasing down companies to find a job. Write resumes, cover letters, do interviews, you know the drill. What I propose is this - get those companies to start chasing you. Turn this thing around, and do something big in the process.

So how does this work? First and most important of all you need to find and focus on your strengths.

Working on a strength is like hitting a resonant frequency – small amount of energy in produces large amounts of energy – meaning it takes little to no input energy to get large displacements. Think of a task that you dread – how much energy does it take to complete that task a lot. Now think of a task you love to do, how fast time goes by, and how you probably feel energized after completing such a task.

My own strengths are as follows - Futuristic, learner, empathetic, strategic, and individualization.

Think about what you like to do and how your strengths fit into it – this is sometimes not as easy as it seems.

Work vs Job

Once you know what to focus on this becomes the work that matters. It is not a job. A job is something any capable person, with the proper training can perform. Work on the other hand is different. Work comes from within. When an artist creates something he calls it his work, he doesn't call it his job. An author states – this is my greatest work to date. Those who create call it work. The work is what matters, so make time for it, set aside time for it. If you believe in it, start doing it and be passionate about it.

You can direct your energy there, but you need to commit to doing the work, to be professional about it (meaning do it every day, treat it like your job) examples, painting, writing, being an expert at anything make time for it. Get up early. Go to bed late. Fight thru the dip. The dip occurs in most things, they start out fun, and then they become not so fun and most people quit there. Those who get thru the dip go on to become experts, and professionals at what they do.

Sharp knife analogy – when you pull out a knife you expect it to be sharp right? Think of it like this – you are the expert at what you do – the best engine guy, the best tattoo guy, the best beer maker – the best - that is what you want to be.

Find and use tools that empower you and your strengths

Barriers to entry continue to disappear. For me it’s the iPhone I shoot and edit pictures, I capture and edit video. I write and produce music. It gives me everything I need. I can even sell my music with it.

For instance as a songwriter, I no longer need an entire studio to produce music – I only need a computer. As a video producer, I no longer need cameras – my phone will do just fine. As a designer I only need Solidworks and a rapid prototyper. As a company, I no longer need dedicated website to promote my business, I let Facebook do it.

Today’s age of social connectivity makes easier for everyone to share and connect quickly, so if you need assistance doing something, just look for it. There are literally millions of people out there, waiting for work (notice I said work and not jobs) to come their way. Seek out the super enthusiast, the super-user, that is what you want to do. They will gladly take on your project. This is the age of connectivity and collaboration.

Give it away, give it away, give it away now...

So now that you have something, you need to give it away for free – sounds crazy right, but its really the only way. How much does a song cost, 99cents, how much does an app cost, $5? People expect a lot for a little these days. Since you can’t get any cheaper than free, this where you should start.

The about a street performer – constantly working for free – and of the 100s of people who walk by, they only perform for the 5 that stop and pay attention. They don’t concern themselves with people who pass by, and you should do the same. Only focus your efforts on those who pay attention to you. It goes back to the resonance thing, put your energy into those who want to know more about you, instead of trying to get the attention of everyone.

Social sites the same way. The social sites give us the ability to browse and immediately share what we have found or created with our circle of friends. Think about what social media has done in its short lifetime – email is on the way out – social status is on the way in. So when you find something you like you post about it. When someone finds you, sees the great work you give away for free, they talk about it.

Start small, within your circle of friends. Most people buy things based on what their friends say, or personal recommendations, so build a small tribe of followers and let them do they work for you – utilize social media outlets to gain a greater audience. Over time you will build a legion of followers, and you will build credibility.

And remember you will be paid in direct proportion to the perceived value of your brand. Look at Facebooks IPO valuation. Or one of Jesse James motorcycles. Are they really any greater than anything else - no - but the public perceives them to be and as such they can demand a premium in the marketplace.

Ok back to this Chase thing...

Once people are actively talking about what you can do, you will find that people will start to seek you out, asking you do to work for them, and some of them will even want to pay you for what you do.

Example #1 - Personal experience – I made a short video, where I interviewed a coop student. I called it “Meet the Co-op”. I posted it on an internal blog at my former employer, where it caught the attention of HR, who showed it to public relations, who showed it to the President of the company. Next thing I know I am sitting in the President’s office and he is asking me to create a video for him. So I did, and he showed it to everyone. So I can tell you from experience that these ideas work.

Example #2 - Glorified Welder – Jesse James – he makes no qualms about what he really does, and yet people will gladly hand over thousands of dollars for one of his creations. But what does he really do, he welds. But he does it professionally, every day.

So from my perspective the MEES education falls into the tools category of what I have talked about. You are now armed and dangerous when it comes to engine design and program management. The question is, now what are you going to do? Use this at your job, or use this in your work?

Remember this - You no longer need permission from anyone to do anything. The choice is yours to make. Continue the chase as you know it? Or choose to leverage this age of connectivity to do something greater. I would encourage you to go make something happen.

Thanks again for this opportunity and I wish you the best of luck in your future endeavors.