The Casablanca Effect
Here’s a little story about something most of us don’t usually want: problems with our name on them. But let me make the case.
Several months ago, a contact reached out - someone who had previously sent me in to fix issues for one of her firm’s portfolio companies.
Like many calls of this nature, she asked me questions about my fluency in a particularly niche industry, with a deeper dive to understand my capabilities related to the size of the organization and the current struggle.
Some of her inquiries were the expected “CEO-fixer” stuff, but others painted a picture that posed a unique set of challenges - the kind that, as the conversation progressed, got me more and more interested in the mission. I sensed there was an interesting person behind this unconventional “problem” she’d presented and became increasingly inspired by the challenges she’d laid out.
By the end of our chat I knew this “problem” was right up my alley.
The tricky part was timing. The initial meeting had to be on-site, at the company HQ.
I was looking down the barrel of 17 straight days of travel, so I suggested we meet in about a month - not unreasonable when contacting someone with a sizable ask. But then she said something that triggered my recognition of The Casablanca Effect. This is more specific than being an “up my alley” kind of job.
Her response?
“No. A month is way too long. We need help now. And we need someone who can get up to speed in a day, give us some initial thoughts on moving forward, and then dive deeper prior to a board meeting in 30 days.”
When a need is urgent and the call comes to you, especially when the problem requires a unique set of skills that you happen to possess, there’s something alchemical at work. The equation has everything to do with odds, timing and chemistry.
So rather than just seeing conflict in my schedule and theirs, I looked for the smallest possibility - and found one. I miraculously wedged an 8-hour touchdown in Colorado after a meeting in Ohio.
As expected, the project was nuanced, tricky and full of trip wires. My favorite kind.
As I contemplated what drove my urgency at resolving the scheduling conflict, (because I wouldn’t have jumped through hoops for other projects necessarily,) it struck me - my expertise and circumstances precisely matched their need and circumstance, in an almost uncanny way. It was - so clearly - what I call The Casablanca Effect.
I’ll be turning the lens on you in a minute - but here’s what I mean:
The company size and structure was where I thrive. Check.
The niche focus was new (stimulating!), but the industry was familiar. Check.
The on-demand travel, something that would have been almost impossible five years ago, with two kids at home and an equally busy spouse, was now viable (despite the exact timing.) Check.
The challenge–much of it in the gray area of business, with many stakeholders–was one of my favorite types to solve. Check.
This alignment was as close to perfect as it gets.
I named situations like this after Humphrey Bogart’s famous line in the movie Casablanca: “Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.” These inverse marriages are so serendipitous because “chance” plays a starring role.
Have you ever noticed that, of all the problems in the world, some really have your name on them? The answer is probably yes. Have you ever thought about spotting - and welcoming them? I embrace my Casablanca’s.
Could I have used more sleep? Yes.
Was it ideal? Certainly not.
But, as it turns out, it was the “beginning of a beautiful friendship.” (And by that I mean client relationship.)
So the learning, and subsequent questions, are these:
Are you in a unique position to support and solve an incoming issue? Does your perspective, training or first-hand experience lend itself to the SOS of the day? Should you pull a rabbit out of a hat to make it work, because it may be the beginning of a meaningful project?
The answer won’t always be yes.
But!
Very often, magic happens when you’re the right person at the right time.
Relationships begin (or deepen) when you can move mountains to answer the call.
So, look for the crosshairs of where your gifts meet someone else’s pain point. Feel for Casablanca’s. There’s a reason it’s you who found the empty space, picked up the call, sat next to the investor - and so forth.
You may not hear from me for a few weeks as I’m headed out on another journey. But, I’m always in touch via my inbox, so share a Casablanca with me if you have one. Your stories and anecdotes keep me going when I’m at 30,000 feet drinking bad coffee and prepping client notes.
Hope to see you soon (hopefully in person.)
BG
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