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Welcome to the career design podcast. And I want to introduce you to today's topic, which is very interesting to me. For those who are Star Wars fans, which is all about the Clone Wars in corporate America. Have you ever wondered why everyone looks and acts the same inside of corporate America? Well, I'm gonna teach you about why that happens, and why it is your greatest downfall right now. Welcome to the career design podcast. I'm Lindsay and I am so excited that you are here with me today. Now I want to talk to you a little bit about the clone war inside of corporate America.
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Now a little bit about my background, I have been in contact with recruiting for 18 years, I've hired 10,000 people, I've wrote the best selling book on it. I've led to acquisition at Amazon and have recruited for some of the most elusive talent on the planet. And there is something that is really a struggle today inside of recruiting organizations for really high performance companies. And they are looking for these what we call purple squirrels. Okay, so what is the purple squirrel? Well, it is the epitome of the ideal candidate. So we call purple schools like trying to find a unicorn nearly impossible to find, and very hard to capture and retain slash recruit. And the reason why these people are so desirable is that they've created and cultivated a skill set that is unlike their peers. And it's really easy to blend into corporate America, okay, so I'm going to talk about how when you go through your life, you are conditioned and programmed, that you should go to school, that you should then go into debt and go to more school, and then you should go work for the man, and or woman, you know, equal opportunity here. But if you should do one of those things, and then likely, you're probably going to work forever, just because that's how most of us plan for our retirement is never ever to stop working. And it's why when I look at people, we can look at them as giant masses of people like numbers on spreadsheets, because we seem to forgotten that these are actual human beings that we're dealing with. We are talking about people who have feelings, people who have heartbeats, people who have family behind them. And they are not clones. They are not carbon copies. And this is when you think about Star Wars, right? Why did they create the clone army? Well, it was a great way for us to create, you know, and I should say, as like the Empire, but that we were creating this dominating force that was more dynamic than a machine, okay. But if you notice that what they did is they created carbon copies, that allowed for them not to have a lot of uniqueness. They didn't allow them to have a lot of flexibility, you weren't really conditioned to think outside of the box in in any case whatsoever. However, still not a machine. And so I want you to think about this is actually what we have decided to do in corporate America, we've created job descriptions that are cookie cutters. And they're meant to say Okay, so here you are, Lindsey, and here's your cookie cutter, and I'm just going to stamp this mold on you and make you a carbon copy like everyone else. And now you're going to go through onboarding, and you're going to do everything like everybody else. And then we question when we get to the end the day why we don't have high performers, why we don't have people who think differently, why we don't have people who question the status quo, why we still have groupthink, the idea of creating this homogenized set of ideas, we wonder why all those things happen when we have literally stamped people to form into a shape that we forced them into. Okay, so instead of saying, Okay, these are your God, given talents, these are the things that you're going to be so good at. And we're gonna say, actually, that's not included in your job description. In fact, I'll give you an example. I had a company I left. This was a long time ago. And it was more than a decade ago. And they came back to me and they said, Listen, we're really interested in having you coming back on board. And I said, Okay, well, here's, here's some of the things like rules of engagement before I would come back. And I was like, I'm really focused on employer branding, like, I really believe that your brand as an employer is an extension of who you are as your consumer brand. And that people should be treated like welcome guests. And they were like, wait, we wait. And remember these, these people had reached out to me. And they said, I don't think that's actually going to be included. And so I said, Okay, well, then I'm not interested. And it shocked them, it shocked them that I would not be interested in opportunity, because it wouldn't allow me to use my strengths. And this is where I want you to think about the paradigm of switching. Don't try to fit into the mold someone else makes for you. You break the mold, you be the thing that they want, because you have all these skill sets. And this idea of creating this like cookie cutter image, it doesn't do anything and we wonder why like, you know, times cover says, the death of innovation. Why? Why do you think that is? We've conditionally programmed people the entire entire lives up until the point they come in and start working for us. To be like drones, we've created them as clones, we've created copies. We don't want people who think we want them to be doers, right? Except
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now,
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except now we've realized that machines are better than human beings at just doing. Okay. And here's an example if people are like, Oh, I don't know, like this idea of artificial intelligence. And I'm like, there's a lot of different ideas around artificial intelligence. So I've had a chance to speak on a on a panel about this in particular, and I want to talk to you about like, it's happening now. It doesn't look like artificial intelligence, meaning there's no Skynet. You know, we're not talking about that kind of idea. But we're talking about is automation. Automation is the first step of artificial intelligence. Here's how you know, if you have one, if you just pick up your phone right
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now,
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go look at a calendar appointment that's reoccurring. That's what there is somebody whose job that used to be somebody like a receptionist, or some sort of administrative assistant, that probably had that job that has now been replaced by a calendar or a machine that creates calendar appointments for us. Now, it doesn't seem small. But I'm going to tell you like somebody once said, I wrote this one press release, they said, they put this entire industry on effect, which had like six people in it. I don't know, if I considered an industry, which was creating flashlights that were automatic instead of on apps, they were defaulted on side of your phone. So I want you to remember that, if you are tactical in what you do, which means if you've fallen into this clone, where Cold War challenge of in corporate America, then you are easily replaceable, okay, easily replaceable. Now, that doesn't mean that people who are just getting started, you are going to have to get your foot in, you're going to have to take on challenges, you're going to have to do things like companies asked you to. But when you get to the point, when you're established in your career, when you truly understand what your value is, you need to lean heavily on your strategic ability and not your tactical, and here's why tactical will always be able to be outperformed by a machine meaning there is a way that people can check email that is a lot better than when I get inside of it. Because we have machines that can automatically filter and do these pieces without having human interaction. So to be human is to be fallible. And it's good. Let me be really clear here. Also to be human is to be strategic. And to think like one thing machines can never be is human. And so while we watch this evolution, and you guys are going to see a big change happen because I I'm sworn to secrecy on a lot of things. But for now what I'm telling you it's coming, it's going to replace the things that remember, we used to have to like light street lamps with torches, okay, it's a button. Now, the same idea here is that unless you provide a strategic advantage, you can be replaced, okay. And that's where makes me very scared for when we think about all of the world today, because machine evolution, and the way that we're able to use machines, we're outperforming human beings already, I can tell you that inside of major organizations, but then they don't need rest. They don't need a salary, they don't need a benefits, they're always on and they learn better, faster, and they're more accurate than us every single time. We cannot win this war. However, you can if you're human, and if you're strategic, okay, so this is where we become these ideal, like purple squirrel candidates, the idea of the perfect candidate who brings all of these skill sets to us. And this is where like, again, going back into I talked a little bit about the dream job zone, you need to find somebody who's going to embrace you for all the skills that you bring to the table. That means not just the things that you have picked up as qualifications, but the things that are innate abilities, and God given talents, those things, and the companies that are not embracing this are going to die on the hill of innovation because they won't have anything to bring to the table. And the companies that are willing to nurture and lean into the people who have the most strategic advantage will be able to set themselves completely apart as revenue powerhouses. Because they've intentionally created career paths for their people to leverage their strengths instead of putting them inside of a box. Okay, this is the secret of why like the rise of machines like I am truly fearful for organizations because if they have subscribed to this idea where like we can automate and replace everything, in fact, I was watching it was Iron Man three, actually last night and it talked about happy with a, you know, the most valuable part of human resources is the human we need to get rid of that immediately. And I'm like, there's a lot of truth in that statement, even though this movie is, you know, eight years old now. And so, when you think about that, I want you to think really truly what is it that makes me different than every other person on the planet? What is it this and I know that this is your like, Well, you know, like I breathe I eat I pretty much like everybody else and I'm gonna say 99% of that is true, but the 1% the 1% effect That is what makes you a freakin rock star. That is what makes you unlike everyone else. And I'm not going to say that like, this is not something that's just like the very elite habit, that is not true. Every person has this inside of them, it's whether or not they choose to try to define it to distill it, and that they have enough belief in their worth, that they decide that actually this is worth pursuing. If they have that, then they can move past the point of being a tactical piece, if they are going to continue to be tactical, it's like you're a pawn in the game of chess, like you just get passed off, you're there to be the front run. But as soon as like, somebody comes into your zone, they take over your space, you're annihilate
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a lot of different analogies going on here right now. And then you move off the game board, okay, and you have to go find someplace else to play, I want you to get out of that, I want you to think of yourself on the back row, like on the chest defense, what are you playing, that is a strategic advantage. And I don't want you to think of yourself as like some sort of small player here, I want you to think of yourself as the king or the queen, I want you to think of yourself as the if I was gonna say, I'm gonna say Queen, because one, it's female to the Queen has a lot more power on the chessboard. So they can move where they want to go, they can target exactly where they want to go, they can achieve the things that they really want to choose, because they decided and they didn't let somebody else's narrative about who they were, or what they had to bring to the table to find their reality. And so this is where we get into that idea of like, how do we get away from thinking of yourself as just somebody who clocks in and clocks out, you're not just that you are more than the sum of your parts. And there's something inside of you that was brought here. Now, to bring something to this world. And I know this is where it gets a little woowoo. And I'm going to be honest, it is a little woowoo. Because Do you really think that you're unlike somebody like that you're just like everyone else, because I know you don't I know, you know that I'm deep in your core, there's something and it might even feel like this is wrong, or this is off about me, there is a lot of things wrong and off about me that have made me a powerhouse. And that's what I want you to think about the things that people have told you that are wrong with you. Those are strengths, the things that people have told you that hey, you shouldn't be doing that, guess what you should be doing them anyhow, all the things people told me ever Lindsey knock it off. That is what I have banked my career on. So don't listen to anybody except for that little voice at the end of the day that says yes, or no and not the fear of voice, you need to lean into the voice that says this is because I choose to do more. And whether or not this aligns with that vision or not, that's a different choice. But what I'm saying is, there's a voice of the very end of the day that truly believes that you're capable beyond even what you can comprehend. So this is the idea of what it looks like to be a clone inside of corporate America. And it's why companies that are they consider themselves as like a game changers are reaching the point of maturity, and then their decline. And their companies that are, you know, acting like these big tech innovators. And they're not because they have fallen in this trap of creating clones. And if we wait bigger and bigger and bigger, it doesn't necessarily make better, you have to really go strong inside of the idea of building an organization that's based on performance. And guess what performance is not cookie cutter performance is based on individuals, you have to give some leeway to help them allow them to choose and pursue the things that they're way better than you are ever going to be at. And which is what they should be doing. And let the other stuff go away. Don't force everyone to fit into a box that's not fair to you or to them. And it's not what you would choose for yourself. And you shouldn't use it for your people either or the organization that you're building. Now. If this makes sense to you, here's what I'm going to ask for you. We are still launching right now. So if you can do me a favor if this made sense. If this spoke to your heart, I want you to one go ahead and click subscribe. Please rate it Okay, and give me a review. I want to hear from you. Especially if you're like God, Lindsey, this made sense to me? Or can you go deeper into this I need to know from you. So that's what my ask is going to be. And then if you want to get entered to win coaching with me, if you want me to teach you how to be the purple squirrel, how to beat the clone war, if you want to figure out how to get into your dream job zone, then that is a program that I am actually offering. It's not even something I offer right now. But I'm giving one away as part of our launch of this podcast. And all you need to do is just go to career design podcast.com. And then you need to opt in, in addition to like, subscribe, and review. If you do that, then you're going to get a chance to win. And I cannot wait because we're going to document this person's process from beginning with me until the end. So you can watch the transformation of what it takes to go from the place where you're like, I have zero clue what I really am supposed to be doing here in my career. But I know I was tapped to do more to go into the place where I accept a job offer. And now here's what I'm doing. And here's how my life has changed. We're going to tell that story. And it's going to be something that you have a chance to enter to win if you go and take those steps right now. Thanks so much for joining me today. I can't wait to see you on the next episode.