Former Google Chief Innovation Evangelist Shares His Greatest Life Lessons

Twelve years at Google have changed the way Frederik Pferdt approaches his job and his day-to-day work.

As tech giant Google's first chief innovation evangelist, Felt sought to create a more cohesive structure to foster creativity across departments. He created the company's innovation labs and co-founded the Google Garage, where he encouraged thousands of employees to work together to try out novel ideas.

He told CNBC Make It that he learned some important lessons from co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, among others, before deciding to leave Google in 2022.

Felt says the philosophies and daily habits he developed during that time helped him and others “build a culture of innovation” at the company, and he expands on those philosophies and daily habits in his recently published book, “What's Next Is Now: How to Live Future Ready.”

But his top three lessons aren't just useful for tech workers: They can help anyone “live a more meaningful life,” he says.

1. Embrace the “Yes, and” mindset

Felt says that too often people choose a more negative perspective and “look for reasons why something isn't working.”

“We spend so much of our time saying, 'No, but,'” he says. “If you flip that and have a bit more of a 'Yes, and' mindset and are inspired by improvisation, then obviously it really changes the dynamic of the conversation. [and] of the team you work for.”

In his book, Felt writes that a “yes, and” philosophy, based on curiosity and a willingness to constantly experiment, has been key to the company's technological advancements, like its Street View technology.

“Larry Page wondered if it was possible to photographically map the entire Earth (Yes, and)” [so] “He attached a camera to his car and drove around the streets of San Francisco, taking video,” Felt writes in the book, noting that Page's initial idea, and work by Stanford researchers funded by Google, quickly encouraged others to join in, leading to the addition of new features like spatial awareness and data collection.

2. Take time to reflect

Meditation and mindfulness are popular ways to reduce daily stress and anxiety. Research suggests these practices can even improve sleep and boost productivity. Google has long encouraged its employees to meditate and even offers mindfulness courses.

Daily meditation can help you become more receptive to new ideas and keep negative thoughts at bay, Felt says.

“It's important to take some time to look inward from time to time,” he says. “If we don't, we're on autopilot and reacting instead of reacting to ourselves. Our reactions are usually negative, closed-minded, unempathetic and full of hate. [and] Detaching from these is only possible through mindful practice.”

Experts believe that negative reactions to new ideas are usually emotional and stem from anxiety, while meditation and mindfulness techniques can help us slow down, think logically, and respond more thoughtfully.

3. Visualize yourself in the future

Google's leaders promote the idea of ​​vividly painting a picture of your ideal version of success and then identifying the realistic steps and choices you need to make to get there.

“Try really hard to visualize where you want to be in the future,” Felt says. “This is super effective because it really helps you understand where you really want to go and it influences the choices you make in the moment.”

Felt, who also served as an adjunct professor of design thinking at Stanford University for 10 years, has spent much of his career teaching people how to better reflect on and shape what happens to them, recommending cultivating traits like “radical optimism” and “extensive empathy.”

While it might sound like pure wishful thinking, his approach is based on science: Research shows that visualizing future success makes you more optimistic, which in turn breeds self-confidence and leads to success, psychologist Michelle Borba told CNBC Make It last year.

Experts say visualizing success can help you kickstart a plan to reach your goals and can even influence the decisions you make to get there. “You don't need to have it completely understood,” Rainer Strzok, a senior partner at Boston Consulting Group, told CNBC Make It in January. “But you do need to have a little bit of direction.”

Want to be a confident communicator? Take CNBC's new online course, “Becoming an Effective Communicator: Mastering Public Speaking.” We'll teach you how to speak clearly and confidently, ease your nerves, what to say and what not to say, and body language techniques to make a great first impression. Sign up now and use code EARLYBIRD to receive an introductory discount of 30% off through July 10, 2024.

Plus, sign up for the CNBC Make It newsletter to get tips and tricks to succeed in work, money and life.

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