Hello !

Each year (each day), we can reinvent and grow ourselves, our team, and our organization. We need the right mindset for that: antifragile. The opposite of fragile is not robust!

In our complex, rapidly evolving environment, I will show you why resilience is not what will help you to thrive. I'll also share how to build easy habits and mindsets to become antifragile.

"Sometimes when you're in a dark place, you think you've been buried, but you've actually been planted.”
Christine Caine

Get comfortable for your 5 minutes of sparks to hack.

✨ Spark

The concept of being antifragile comes from Nassim Taleb's book Antifragile: Things that Gain from Disorder. I fell in love with the concept, and since then (2021, when I discovered it), this has been my obsession with Bambooster—being antifragile.

✏ Antifragile definition

Antifragility is the property of systems, individuals, or entities that benefit and grow from volatility, randomness, shocks, and stressors.

Key elements of antifragility:

Benefit from Disorder: Antifragile systems gain from randomness and unpredictability, using these factors as sources of strength and growth (like my teenager would argue that he benefits from his bedroom chaos 😂).
Thriving on Stress: Unlike fragile entities that break down under stress, antifragile entities use stress to become stronger.
Positive Response to Change: These systems or entities evolve and adapt in response to changes, becoming better than they were before.
Adaptability: They can change and improve their structure or strategy in response to external pressures.

"Antifragile systems gain from volatility and chaos. Any unexpected event (to the extent that it is not lethal) will make the system better and stronger ". Nassim Taleb -

It goes beyond resilience: while resilient systems resist shocks and stay the same, antifragile systems improve and thrive because of these stressors. This is a fundamental mindset shift 💪.

✏ Antifragile living systems

So here are examples from nature.

Muscles: Muscles grow stronger under stress and tension and atrophy under lack of use. This is why we need to go to the gym 😅.

Immune System: Your body’s immune system strengthens by facing and overcoming challenges.

*Source : The Little Almanak Julio Froment*

Evolution: Species adapt and become stronger through environmental pressures and natural selection. Natural systems thrive on randomness and uncertainty, ensuring only the fittest survive, embodying the principles of antifragility.

✏ Antifragile in the economy:

Some industries, like the airline industry, can be considered antifragile.

Learning from Failures:

Safety Improvements: Each time there's an accident or a close call, the airline industry rigorously investigates the incident, leading to enhanced safety protocols and technology improvements.
Operational Efficiency: Disruptions such as financial crises, pandemics, or natural disasters force airlines to innovate and optimize operations, improving overall efficiency and robustness.

Market Adaptability:

Dynamic Pricing: Airlines use sophisticated algorithms to adjust prices based on demand, competition, and market conditions, ensuring better load management and profitability.
Route Management: They frequently adjust routes and schedules based on changing demand, geopolitical situations, and economic conditions, allowing them to adapt and thrive in various market conditions.

✏ My antifragile story: Covid

In 2019, COVID-19 happened and took control of many lives. Everything changes. Like many other parents here 😱, I had to

look after 3 children at home because we were locked down
teach German and supervise homework
and reinvent my business at night

These stressors forced me to :

Move my business from 100% face-to-face to 70% online
Build a team as I couldn't do it all alone (being a cook and a teacher).
Start to publish on social media (Linkedin) to be visible and find new business opportunities.

I had an exceptional financial year: 2020 is my second-best year since starting Bambooster. This exemplifies how you can gain from chaos and stressors and be antifragile.

But if we had the belief to be "resilient," we would undermine our ambition and potential.

So forget resilience; aim to be antifragile. If I could do it, you can as well. Here is how.

✨ Hack

So, now let me give you my top 3 tips for building an antifragile mindset and team. This is how I teach agile in health in my training and team coaching.

✏ Make hard things intentionally

Don't wait for chaos and hard things to come to you.

Choose your "hard". Sahil Bloom

It is hard to change course or stop an idea, and it is also hard to continue developing something that nobody will use.

It is hard to change roles or companies to try something new. It is also hard to spend years in reorganization in a big corporate environment.

It is hard to foster meaningful relationships and networks. It is also hard to succeed in life alone.

Once we understand that our real resume is the catalog of all our suffering, we can choose our "hard things" to do vs. the next role or job title.

✏ Never let a mistake go to waste.

Learn from every mistake to become better. This is an antifragile behavior.

"All men make mistakes, but only wise men learn from their mistakes." Churchill

Self-reflection: how systematically do you pause to reflect on past experiences and define how this stressor will make you better/stronger? I do it at least once a week.

Take a walk, a notebook, and use it as an excuse to do your steps, fresh air & sunlight.

Team's performance: When was your last team retrospective? Whether you work agile or with scrum or are just a regular "project team," this should be your goal number one to improve your team's performance.

After any moment of chaos, disorder, or stressor, ask yourself:

What recent challenges have we faced, and how did we respond to them?
How can we turn current obstacles into opportunities for growth?
Are there any risks we’re avoiding that could actually help us grow if we faced them?
How could we use this situation to make our team or process better?
How can we create a culture of continuous improvement and learning?

✏ Run, Rest, Restart.

One last part of antifragile is that it doesn't mean to be robust. It is ok to be tired. Remember, robustness is not what we aim for.

Be like a lion: alternates between intense bursts of activity and rest periods. Antifragile teams or individuals know the value of recovery and use downtime to recharge and innovate.

See you in two weeks. Keep the spark alive, and be intentional :).

Do you like this edition ? Do you have questions? I respond to every person who writes to me!

Spark to Hack ✧