Isaiah Johnson, Project Beanstalk
Having been in a number of physical opportunities for growth such as fellowships, I was not sure what to expect with the Berrett-Koehler Foundation’s mostly virtual Fellowship, but the experience far exceeded my expectations. It kicked off with a very pleasant retreat (a nice note for anyone with a budget who is looking to pilot or improve their fellowship), and provided many opportunities for me to learn as well as improve my leadership skills. My favorite part of this fellowship was easily the other fellows. They are very kind and knowledgeable and come from many different parts of the world. Learning from them was exciting, energizing and was useful from both a personal and professional standpoint seeing as my startup Project Beanstalk focuses on creating diversity throughout the video game industry by creating video games that represent people from marginalized groups. The other fellows are truly inspiring and working with them helped improve upon many of my own work practices.
When running a business, time is anything but on your side. While I usually enjoy making time when something comes up, I found that the amount of work that I had made it a challenge to balance fellowship related work, Project Beanstalk, and learning more about as well as helping the other fellows. There are several ways to get around this if you ever face the similar challenges. For starters, setting aside time be it a day or a week just for thinking. This can involve brainstorming, planning, and simply taking a break. This is great for recollecting your thoughts and energy because it’s easy to get exhausted when you have a lot of work on your plate. I read that even Bill Gates partakes in his own ‘think week’, where he gets away every now and then, away from all distractions, in order to think, read, and ultimately take time for himself away from the craziness of his daily life. I definitely find that it even works to a business trip and clear up my task list during a conference or hackathon. There are also many founders like my friend Brandon Anderson, the founder of Raheem.AI, always makes sure to at least dedicate mondays to performing background tasks such as clearing up emails and setting important dates. It also helps to be very specific when creating tasks for yourself. If you are creating a list of what needs to be done, many project managers are known for breaking a single task into even more specific ones. This helps in pacing and easing the overwhelming sensation that may come when you have listed a task that is so big that you are not quite sure where to start. Being specific also applies to working with and/ or helping other people. I did not have the time that was necessary to help all of the fellows with all of their tasks so it was very valuable to be specific in what I can help them with based on my skill set and network, why I wanted to help them (it is ok if you simply want to help someone just because you like them and/ or their values), how much time I can spare, and what (if anything) will/ could I gain from working with this person. I found that with my experiences in leadership, grant finding, and tech the insights I had to offer best suited the needs of Mandip Kaur, the founder of The Hungry Orchid, and Shalini Krishnan, the founder of Kalpanadham. As a plus, I had a lot of questions revolving around design, Indian culture, and fundraising which they were able to help with along with the other fellows during our Mastermind sessions. With little time on each of our ends, and a major time zone differences, we set accountability meetings every couple of weeks where we checked on each others progress, asked/ answered questions, and went over next steps. The information sessions went a long way, so if there’s someone you want to help but you don’t have the time to do certain tasks for them. Simply setting aside times to meet or co-work can be very helpful.
The most valuable resource that the Berrett Koehler Foundation was able to provide was knowledge. As a book publishing company, they were able to supply books and authors to help us learn how to overcome our challenges as well as gain insights on other matters relevant to us. The first book I read in this fellowship was “Ice Cream Social: The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s” by Brad Edmonson. This book discusses Ben & Jerry’s throughout its growth and gave me an in depth look at business growth, distribution, dealing with competitors, exit plans, using your work for social impact, and so much more. I was able to do a lot of business modeling and thinking ahead thanks to this book. There was also the book “Help Them Grow Or Watch Them Grow, Career Conversations Employees Want” by Beverly Kaye and Julie Winkle-Giulioni. This book teaches you how to improve the retention of your business by simply letting your employees empower their own career development. This was an amazing book! My team and I were able to practice many of its techniques to build a happier team that takes the time needed for each individual to explore their own growth whilst still being efficient. They were also kind enough to provide “The Change Handbook” by Peggy Holeman and ”Lean Startups for Social Change” by Michael Gelobter.
A special thanks again to the program coordinators or Weavers as well as the other fellows! I’ve learned so much and that knowledge will continue to impact me as I continue to grow! I look forward to seeing what comes next with the Berrett-Koehler Foundation.
When running a business, time is anything but on your side. While I usually enjoy making time when something comes up, I found that the amount of work that I had made it a challenge to balance fellowship related work, Project Beanstalk, and learning more about as well as helping the other fellows. There are several ways to get around this if you ever face the similar challenges. For starters, setting aside time be it a day or a week just for thinking. This can involve brainstorming, planning, and simply taking a break. This is great for recollecting your thoughts and energy because it’s easy to get exhausted when you have a lot of work on your plate. I read that even Bill Gates partakes in his own ‘think week’, where he gets away every now and then, away from all distractions, in order to think, read, and ultimately take time for himself away from the craziness of his daily life. I definitely find that it even works to a business trip and clear up my task list during a conference or hackathon. There are also many founders like my friend Brandon Anderson, the founder of Raheem.AI, always makes sure to at least dedicate mondays to performing background tasks such as clearing up emails and setting important dates. It also helps to be very specific when creating tasks for yourself. If you are creating a list of what needs to be done, many project managers are known for breaking a single task into even more specific ones. This helps in pacing and easing the overwhelming sensation that may come when you have listed a task that is so big that you are not quite sure where to start. Being specific also applies to working with and/ or helping other people. I did not have the time that was necessary to help all of the fellows with all of their tasks so it was very valuable to be specific in what I can help them with based on my skill set and network, why I wanted to help them (it is ok if you simply want to help someone just because you like them and/ or their values), how much time I can spare, and what (if anything) will/ could I gain from working with this person. I found that with my experiences in leadership, grant finding, and tech the insights I had to offer best suited the needs of Mandip Kaur, the founder of The Hungry Orchid, and Shalini Krishnan, the founder of Kalpanadham. As a plus, I had a lot of questions revolving around design, Indian culture, and fundraising which they were able to help with along with the other fellows during our Mastermind sessions. With little time on each of our ends, and a major time zone differences, we set accountability meetings every couple of weeks where we checked on each others progress, asked/ answered questions, and went over next steps. The information sessions went a long way, so if there’s someone you want to help but you don’t have the time to do certain tasks for them. Simply setting aside times to meet or co-work can be very helpful.
The most valuable resource that the Berrett Koehler Foundation was able to provide was knowledge. As a book publishing company, they were able to supply books and authors to help us learn how to overcome our challenges as well as gain insights on other matters relevant to us. The first book I read in this fellowship was “Ice Cream Social: The Struggle for the Soul of Ben & Jerry’s” by Brad Edmonson. This book discusses Ben & Jerry’s throughout its growth and gave me an in depth look at business growth, distribution, dealing with competitors, exit plans, using your work for social impact, and so much more. I was able to do a lot of business modeling and thinking ahead thanks to this book. There was also the book “Help Them Grow Or Watch Them Grow, Career Conversations Employees Want” by Beverly Kaye and Julie Winkle-Giulioni. This book teaches you how to improve the retention of your business by simply letting your employees empower their own career development. This was an amazing book! My team and I were able to practice many of its techniques to build a happier team that takes the time needed for each individual to explore their own growth whilst still being efficient. They were also kind enough to provide “The Change Handbook” by Peggy Holeman and ”Lean Startups for Social Change” by Michael Gelobter.
A special thanks again to the program coordinators or Weavers as well as the other fellows! I’ve learned so much and that knowledge will continue to impact me as I continue to grow! I look forward to seeing what comes next with the Berrett-Koehler Foundation.