Happy Friday, Happy September, and Happy Back-to-School, 

 

Many years ago, on a Friday evening at 8 pm, I was standing in my kitchen eating crackers and cheese. 

 

My cell phone rang. 

 

It was one of my clients.

 

“We accidentally deleted our test system,” he said.

 

“The entire system?” I asked, incredulous. “As in, it's. . . gone?” 

 

“The entire system,” he said. “It's gone.”

 

I had no idea that this was possible, but, apparently, it was.

 

I set down my wheat thin and slice of sharp cheddar, opened my laptop, and started reaching out to the rest of the team to collaborate on a plan.

 

We rallied together virtually, and by 10 pm, we had restored the test system.

 

This was healthcare, and this was truly an emergency. 

It was urgent, and we treated it as such. 

 

Working closely with healthcare systems around the country gave me an appreciation of issues that are truly time-sensitive and things that are truly an emergency. 

 

Deleting the test system was one of those things. 

 

This also gave me an appreciation for the many things that are not truly time-sensitive and that are not truly an emergency —especially the fire drills we sometimes create for ourselves internally, or the “emergencies” that we co-create within our teams, simply due to a lack of preparation or not giving ourselves a realistic amount of time to get something done. 

 

At Zing Collaborative, one of our core corporate values is Calm.

 

This means that we aim to work in a way that is calm versus chaotic.

We aim to be discerning with what is truly urgent, to allow ample time and energy for what is important.

We partner with our clients to do the same. 

 

Over the past couple of years, nearly every member of our team has navigated something significant, whether planned or unplanned. 

 

And because of our value of Calm, we have been able to roll with these changes, adjust accordingly, and continue to focus on what matters most: serving our clients. 

 

In a world that constantly pushes us toward urgency, we’re committed to pausing, discerning, and focusing on what actually matters —even in a world that often feels chaotic. Upholding our value of calm allows us to serve our clients more fully, our teammates more sustainably, and ourselves with greater care. 

 

What do you think?

Any instances of calm (or chaos) that you've navigated recently?

Please feel free to hit reply and share, if you'd like.  

 

From here, we will move to our list of favorites below.

 

Thank you, as always, for being part of this community and for reading. 

Wishing you a wonderful weekend ahead! 

Loved this list of life lessons/reflections from Amelia Wilson, and resonated with a number of them. 

While this article is about parenting, I found the line below to be thought provoking, especially if applied to a professional context, as well. Are we “standing reserve” as a stand-in for actual connection? 

 

TLDR: when it comes to happiness, longevity, and overall life satisfaction, close relationships matter. 

“I like your shoes. . .” 

A number of good strategies within, especially at this time of year when items on the to-do list often start stacking up. 

A few recent favorites: 

 

Partnering Together To Elevate Your Leadership

If you're interested in talking more about what it could look like to work together elevate the leadership capacity of your organization this fall, please feel free to drop me a note. Here's how we often work with organizations: