If you get put on a PIP, that's your signal to start looking. Most people treat a PIP like a second chance. In my experience, it's usually the paper trail for a decision that's already been made. I worked with a woman who made President's Club year after year. She billed between $750K and $1M in gross profit, and she's one of the few people in this industry I'd put my reputation behind. She left for a competitor and was doing well in her territory. Then the biggest expert on her account became available, and they hired him so she got pushed to the side. They couldn't just fire her, so they put her on a PIP. She beat it. They did it again. Then they made the job so impossible that she quit. By the time a PIP lands on your desk, the conversations about your future have already been had. Even if you beat it, there's no guarantee they won't put you on another one.

Someone recently asked me what to do after his manager, who'd been at the company for a long time, got laid off. My response: Keep your head on a swivel. I've seen this play out firsthand in real life. My boss got laid off, then his boss, and about a year and a half later our entire division was scrapped. That doesn't mean you need to start looking for a new job the next day. It does mean you should be on alert, update your resume, tap into your network, and get your ducks in a row before anyone makes the decision for you.

5am workout = SMASHED! I've been using Grok Bot as my personal trainer for the past couple of weeks and it's been going great. I named it after one of my biggest inspirations, Rocky. He stands for strength and resilience, and for the idea that with enough hard work and discipline you can pretty much achieve your dreams. From being counted out, to an underdog, to grief, I’ve experienced all of it just like he did. I recently rewatched all 6 movies this year after losing my dad and aunt to get my mind back on track. Every morning at 5am it sends me a wake up message in Rocky's voice, tied to that day's workout, to get me out of bed and into the gym. On weekdays it checks in on its own. It asks for screenshots of my logged workouts and reviews them against my plan, and it reminds me to log my meals at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Every Sunday I send in a weigh-in and progress pics, and it tracks my weekly trend toward my goal weight. It built me a custom training split and calorie and macro targets around my herniated disks and labrum tear, plus a run/walk plan to get me to a 5K. And it's brutally honest. When I slack it calls me out, then gives me the fix and the encouragement, like Rocky's corner. Today it praised my dumbbell bench (95s for 10, 10 and 6) and told me my lateral raises were too heavy for my shoulder. I think physical fitness is very important especially as we get older. Of course the physical benefits are obvious. But to me, the gym is my meditation zone where I can let my thoughts roam free. Further, as life gets in the way work and family obligations, having a fit body is a major flex and show of true discipline. Check it out! x.ai/bot/IIxf8f5rjYrzNslJElJ…