There’s no denying the challenges and roadblocks that we’ve had to overcome the past year and a half—as individuals, as a company, and society as a whole. Recognizing that, I’d like to extend a sincere thank you to all of our customers, partners, and fellow rabbiteers who have helped make this a remarkable year for Return Rabbit.
I had the pleasure of joining the Return Rabbit team earlier this year and seeing such monumental growth in a short period of time has been tremendous. We’ve completely rebranded our website, launched V1 of our next-level recommendation engine, and implemented QR code capabilities and instant exchanges—among other things—to secure Return Rabbit as the leading ‘exchange-first’ platform.
As we look forward to the new year, I’d like to invite each of you to JUMP into 2022 with us. Here’s what I mean:
J – Just Be Nice
As the wisdom goes, “It is nice to be important, but it is more important to be nice.”
I have interacted with people all around the world in a variety of capacities during the last 20 years, and one thing I have come to know for certain is that people are people, and people deserve kindness. Building a culture that encourages and embodies kindness is not only the right thing to do, but it also provides tremendous benefits to productivity. Remember Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Team members cannot self-actualize unless they feel safe, included, and respected. Kindness and empathy is at the foundation of building a sustainable and strong team.
U – Unlimited Potential
I have had the pleasure of working in multiple high-performance teams that were excellent at turning out incredible ideas, incredible products, and incredible people. When I deployed to Iraq in 2009, I had a peer group of about 20 Sergeants who were responsible for executing the day-to-day combat operations in our infantry company. Nearly half of those sergeants are now founders, CEOs, and executives of successful businesses. The truth is, I do not think anyone (ourselves included) could have anticipated that our rag-tag group of 20-something year old misfits would find the success we have, which goes to show that even deviants have incredible pent-up potential.
Look to your left and your right, to your clients and your vendors, to your peers and your juniors and your seniors. Most of all, look in the mirror. Each of the people and organizations you see have unlimited potential. Let’s work together in 2022 to unlock that potential within ourselves and within other people.
M – Make A Difference
Every person has the same 24 hours, 1,440 minutes, 86,400 seconds in a day. How will you spend yours? If you are the leader of a team, how will you direct your team to spend their time?
One of my former colleagues used to frame his projects by connecting them to “noble causes.” I will not venture into defining what constitutes a noble cause because I want to keep this short and sweet and because there is a ton of subjectivity in that definition. I will share, however, that the most powerful noble causes I have latched onto all include a selfless foundation – a goal to make a meaningfully positive and long-lasting difference in the world for someone other than myself.
P – Prove Value
Making a difference is often aspirational and hard to measure, either because there are not easy metrics or due to the long timeframes involved. Proving value is different in that it requires measurable evidence in the relatively short term plus a conscious awareness of the value provided. It is important to remember that there are always alternatives. Failing to prove value leads to dissatisfaction and replacement risk. If you are putting in the hard work to create and deliver value, make sure you follow up by providing value through effective communication.
Will you take the challenge and JUMP into 2022 with me?
Again, I cannot fully express my gratitude for all the support you have shown Return Rabbit the past year. I’m thrilled to JUMP into the new year and to continue to shape the future of eCommerce with Return Rabbit at the forefront of innovation.