State of Venn

Most of us work in the beer industry out of passion, but that doesn’t make it easy. Working at a brewery will beat you up physically and test you mentally, not to mention the impact of being surrounded by alcohol as part of the job. To make this business or career sustainable, I want to introduce you to a strategy that I’ve implemented both personally and professionally that uses my favorite type of diagram to discover the epicenter of motivation.

Finding one’s State of Venn is the discovery of an intersection where many different points of pride overlap in an unconventional way leading to something fresh, unique, and most importantly, yours. It can be applied off hours as a creative outlet, as a bridge between career and personal time, or directly into the business.

Strictly Personal

I’m sure we all understand the benefit of unplugging from our professional lives during off hours, weekends, and PTO. That can certainly include common outlets like reading, exercising, or playing a musical instrument. If you’re anything like me, even those hobbies can be challenging to muster up the energy for when you’re surrounded by social media, streaming, or just extra sleep. For me, only my State of Venn can bulldoze through these temptations on a consistent basis.

Grab a notepad and head back in time to your childhood. This could be high school or ideally even earlier, and start writing down all of your old hobbies, interests, and anything that triggers nostalgia for you. These probably evolved as you shifted into different stages of life, so really dig back into each phase of growing up. Hopefully you’ve got at least 5-10, if not many more.

Here are some of mine: Sports Cards, Comic Books, Lemonade Stands, Drawing, Pittsburgh Sports Teams, Magic the Gathering, Disney, Doing Yard work for Neighbors, Video Games, Soccer, Professional Wrestling, Collecting, Backyard Football, Star Wars, Volleyball, Texas Hold’em, Working at a Golf Course, Flea Markets, Video Editing, Stand-up Comedy/Improv, Creative Writing, Ticket Stubs, Peleton, and of course Being a Husband & Father

Next I’d go through and *star* the ones that you miss the most and wish were still a [bigger] part of your life today. While certainly not necessary, I like to put them in a Venn Diagram and start to visualize the different connections that each has to each other. Some overlaps will be easier than others to discover, while certain combinations will seem impossible. Be patient with this process and don’t expect to come up with a magical combination in the first sitting, but look for an intersection between as many of these favorite past times. Start reading up on how these past times have evolved to today’s world and bring it back into your life.

Bringing Your Work Home, Or Home to Work

Sometimes we like our job, but dream of something of our own someday. Perhaps our job provides us with valuable life experience, but doesn’t scratch every itch we’re looking for in the long term. The State of Venn exercise can be a way of identifying the parts of your job that you enjoy, as well as the voids that need filled to achieve true happiness. Use these skills and experience, and pair them up with your interests outside of work to create a side hustle or hobby that can help you test the waters to see if you truly have the commitment to make this a full-time venture some day.

On the flip side, sometimes the key to falling in love or back in love with your career is figuring out a way to inject a personal passion into your role. Sometimes just the smallest connection that you helped initiate can provide the boost that makes you dread that alarm clock a little less each morning. This isn’t a strategy that I necessarily recommend on Day 1 on the job, but once you’ve established yourself as a committed and trustworthy member of the team, start fighting for a little bit more of YOU to be worked into the job or something the company does. I don’t know any brewery who is all set on ideas, especially if there’s an expert in the building willing to help connect the dots and make it successful.

At the Brewery

We’ve reached a point in craft beer where it’s nearly impossible to keep up with rising costs in this unusual economy, especially the wages that larger, more sophisticated industries can offer. Thankfully, there’s a lot of people who appreciate the potential of craft beer and prefer its mission over fully maximizing earnings. To help compensate, brewery owners and decision-makers need to put more effort into finding their brewery’s State of Venn, which includes leaning into the interests and talents of their most loyal employees.

Rather than a notepad, having open & honest conversations with teams about new ideas that tap into their own interests can be an incredible way to reinvigorate your workforce and fanbase. Take your existing brand and ethos, then find opportunities where it overlaps into the points of motivation for your team to provide a newfound connection to their job that helps inject a feeling of ownership. Even those without ideas at the time will appreciate the opportunity and likely feel more comfortable bringing an idea forward in the future.

Find Your State of Venn

Finding your State of Venn is about the journey and the process. It’s also about the destination and culture, which includes a sustainable happiness that’s achieved by putting more of you and your team into the product, brand, program, content, or event. It’s not a solution to all life’s problems, but it’s a way to simultaneously tap into multiple passions with a combination that unlocks a newfound sense of pride. Specific examples coming soon…