Want a deeper dialogue? You only need to ask

5 career rules from a football coach's journey | Why starting small is a great way to achieve goals | How Netflix found Blockbuster's Achilles' heel Created for {EMAIL} | [{NAME}]( at [{NAME}]( [For more relevant content - Update Your Profile]( | [Web Version]( December 10, 2021 CONNECT WITH SMARTBRIEF  [LinkedIn]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [SmartBrief on Leadership]( [SmartBrief on Leadership]( Innovative Ideas. Ahead of the Curve. [SIGN UP]( ⋅ [SHARE]( ADVERTISEMENT Leading Edge [] [5 career rules from a football coach's journey]( The career path of recently hired University of Oklahoma football coach Brent Venables shows that one of the simplest ways to be noticed is to excel in the job you're in, writes Wally Bock. Venables' path also reminds us how luck is involved and that there are no guarantees of success even when opportunities are realized, Bock writes. Full Story: [Three Star Leadership]( (12/9) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Why starting small is a great way to achieve goals]( One way to get started on big goals is to tackle small, habit-based goals where you've identified obstacles and set targets within each "micro goal," writes Jiji Lee. "If you're looking to end the year on a positive note, but don't necessarily have the emotional energy to expend on big, ambitious goals, micro goals are a great option," Lee writes. Full Story: [Ink+Volt]( (12/8) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Investing Pre-IPO is More Important Than Ever Are you investing in high-growth startups? Many sophisticated investors realize the potential for outsized gains that venture-backed startups can deliver. Alumni Ventures has made it easier than ever to get started in this high risk, high return asset class. [Click to sign up.]( ADVERTISEMENT: [] Strategic Management [] [How Netflix found Blockbuster's Achilles' heel]( Netflix started with a mere 900 DVDs in an old bank, but its advantage against Blockbuster was in cornering the then-nascent DVD market, delivering to home and ditching late fees -- three areas where Blockbuster was vulnerable, writes Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph. "Every large company has an under-defended niche" that offers a large potential market to startups but seems unimportant to incumbents, Randolph writes. Full Story: [Medium (tiered subscription model)]( (12/6) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Key steps to develop an integrated ESG approach Embedding ESG into business strategy is imperative today. Companies can use ESG as a proactive source of new product and service innovation, and as a driver to adapt their spending and processes for greater sustainability and social responsibility. [Read the e-book >]( ADVERTISEMENT: [] Smarter Communication [] [6 things to remember when having hard conversations]( Conversations with employees about disruptive behavior should be timely, highlight specific actions you have observed and focus on what the person can do differently in the future, writes MGR360 CEO Alicia Thrasher. If the encounter becomes tense, Thrasher suggests using the phrase "Can we start over?" as a reset. Full Story: [Texas CEO Magazine]( (12/9) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Want a deeper dialogue? You only need to ask]( Two words -- "say more" -- can help you facilitate a deeper conversation by offering the other person a chance to fully express themselves, writes Julie Winkle Giulioni. "Creating the space for others to talk through their thoughts and feelings earns you the well-deserved reputation as someone to seek out when important ideas need to be explored," Giulioni writes. Full Story: [SmartBrief/Leadership]( (12/9) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Read more]( from Julie Winkle Giulioni on SmartBrief on Leadership   Featured Content Sponsored Content from 1440 Media [News without all the B.S.]( Check out 1440 - The fastest way to an impartial point-of-view. The team at 1440 scours over 100+ sources so you don't have to. Culture, science, sports, politics, business and everything in between - in a 5-minute read each morning, 100% free. [Sign up now!]( [] Smarter Living Get your mind and body right each Friday [] [Why rest should be on your gift list]( A holiday break is a great time to catch up on rest, detach from technology, get back to nature and practice generosity, writes leadership coach Kerim Nutku. "With the added craziness of Covid, its lockdowns, and the constant uncertainty we've felt over the last two years, I know that 'rest' has to be the first gift I give to myself this holiday," Nutku writes. Full Story: [Cultivating Leadership blog]( (12/9) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] In Their Own Words [] [Create collaboration to overcome resistance to new ideas]( Even the best new ideas encounter resistance from consumers and employees, says David Schonthal, formerly of IDEO. "That process of inviting our audiences in to design the solution, or to design the strategy, or to design the product with us, reorients our view on the change," Schonthal says. Full Story: [McKinsey]( (12/9) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Daily Diversion [] [Bubbles, photobombs win comedy pet photo awards]( A photographic optical illusion involving a black Labrador puppy named Pepper and a bubble has won this year's Comedy Pet Photo Awards. Other honorees include photos of a dog catching water from a hose, plus dogs and cats photobombing shots of humans and other animals. Full Story: [Upworthy]( (12/8), [Business Insider (tiered subscription model)]( (12/7) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Editor's Note [] [What are you reading today?]( What are you reading today? Every Friday, we chat on Twitter about the books that are making a difference in our leadership journey. Please[respond to this tweet with your #FridayReads fave](! [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] About The Editor [] James daSilva James daSilva Hi, it's your SmartBrief on Leadership editor! Thank you for reading and subscribing. I know you don't need to read SmartBrief on Leadership. Rather, you're here because you're on the lifelong journey of being a better leader, communicator and thinker. If this newsletter helps you, please tell your colleagues, friends or anyone who can benefit. Forward them this email, or [send this link](. What topics do you see in your daily work that I should know about? Do you have praise? Criticism? [Drop me a note.](mailto:jdasilva@smartbrief.com) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Sharing SmartBrief on Leadership with your network keeps the quality of content high and these newsletters free. Help Spread the Word [SHARE]( Or copy and share your personalized link: smartbrief.com/leadership/?referrerId=japnABMSAp [] [] The most perfect technique is that which is not noticed at all. Pablo Casals, cellist, conductor, composer [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email](   SmartBrief publishes more than 200 free industry newsletters - [Browse our portfolio]( [Sign Up]( | [Update Profile]( | [Advertise with SmartBrief]( [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy policy]( CONTACT US: [FEEDBACK](mailto:leadership@smartbrief.com) | [ADVERTISE](mailto:lengel@smartbrief.com) SmartBrief, Inc.®, 555 11th ST NW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20004