Here is a hint: your work might not be what you think it is. A doctor might think her job is to cure diseases. But in fact, thats not what gets and keeps patients. The cure is a goal, and its important, but its not sufficient. The technical tasks are important, but the work involves […]
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It’s a puzzle guys…
Succeeding in business today is like solving a living jigsaw puzzle. It is massively complex and complicated. You can approach the challenge in one of two ways. Employ a “top-down” design. Start with an image of what the solved puzzle should look like. Then use that image to decide which pieces to add. And, more […]
Newness as a form of hiding…
Every once in a while someone will say to me, “yeah, sure, I’ve heard that before… what do you have that’s new?” In contemporary art or movies, it makes perfect sense to be focused on the bleeding edge, on the new idea that’s never been previously contemplated. But when we’re discussing our goals, our passion […]
Competence vs. Opportunities…
As we get more experienced, we get better, more competent, more able to do our thing. And it’s easy to fall in love with that competence, to appreciate it and protect it. The pitfall? We close ourselves off from possibility. Possibility, innovation, art–these are endeavors that not only bring the whiff of failure, they also […]
Is It Just The Good Parts…?
“I want to be an actress, but I don’t want to go on auditions.” “I want to play varsity sports, but I need to be sure I’m going to make the team.” “It’s important to sell this great new service, but I’m not willing to deal with rejection.” You don’t get to just do the […]
Its Never Enough..
There’s never enough time to be as patient as we need to be. Not enough slack to focus on the long-term, too much urgency in the now to take the time and to plan ahead. That urgent sign post just ahead demands all of our intention (and attention), and we decide to invest in, “down […]
Fear of Public Speaking…
Why is it that a common,safe,and important task is so feared by so many people? In Iconoclast,Gregory Berns uses his experience running a neuroscience research lab to explain the biological underpinnings of the resistance.In fact,public speaking is the perfect petri dish for exposing what makes us tick. It turns out that the three biological factors […]
Are you good at listening ..?
Live interaction still matters. Teachers, meetings, presentations, one on one brainstorms–they can lead to real change. The listener has nearly as big a responsibility as the speaker does, though. And yet, Google reports four times as many matches for “how to speak” as “how to listen.” It’s not a passive act, not if you want […]
Fearless,Reckless,and Feckless….
Organizations seek out people who are fearless,but go out their way to weed out reckless.what is the difference? Fearless doesn’t mean “without fear.” what it means in practice is “unafraid of things that one should not be afraid of.”Being fearless means giving a presentation to an important customer without losing a nights sleep.It means being […]
Keep Learning or Die…
Why financial education is the key to prospering or perishing in a fast-paced world Everybody learns. For instance, in order to make bread, bakers follow a recipe they’ve learned, even if it’s in their head. Surgeons follow a recipe for complicated procedures, with certain steps and actions that must be taken to see a positive […]
3 Signs You Will Fail as a Top Leader…
Outwardly, you appear effective, dependable, on top of things. But look closer. Are you in danger of destructive behaviors? Here’s a statement of the blindingly obvious: strong, effective leadership is better than weak, ineffective leadership. Thankfully, it’s usually obvious which is which–most of us can spot a strong leader from a weak one with relative […]
Maybe this year…
Maybe this year… Your knowledge will reach critical mass.. Your boss will give you the go ahead.. Your family situation will be stable.. The competition will stop innovating.. The traffic jam will cease.. There won’t be any computer viruses to deal with, and Then… You can act, you can launch your project, you can make […]
The curious imperative…
Now that information is ubiquitous, the obligation changes. It’s no longer okay to not know. If you don’t know what a word means, look it up. If you’re meeting with someone, check them out in advance. If it sounds too good to be true, Google it before you forward it. If you don’t know what […]
Useful and believable promises…
That’s another way to think about marketing. We only sign up/pay attention to/pay for offers from marketers when: What’s promised is something we think is worth more than it costs and We believe you’re the best person to keep that promise. This applies to resumes, meetings and even the kid raking your lawn. If your […]
Do the (extra) work…
Do the extra work not because you have to but because it’s a privilege. Get in early. Sweep the floor without being asked. Especially when it’s not your turn. Not because you want credit or reward. Because you can. The industrialist wants to suck everything out of you. Doing extra work as a cog in […]
Waiting for all the facts…
“I’m just going to wait until all the facts are in…” All the facts are never in. We don’t have all the facts on the sinking of the Titanic, on the efficacy of social media or on whether dogs make good house pets. We don’t have all the facts on hybrid tomatoes, global warming or […]
Thinking about supermodels…
Models are fairly generic placeholders, attractive men and women who anonymously walk down the runway at a fashion show or stand up for a photo shoot. It’s surprisingly unglamorous and isn’t particularly steady or financially rewarding. Supermodels, on the other hand, are a relatively recent innovation, and they are in a totally different (financial) category. […]
Slightly rewarded (slightly punished)…
For most of us, it’s not the big traps that mess us up, it’s the little ones. Every time I break stride and distract myself by checking my email (a hundred times in a bad day), I get a small reward. I get the satisfaction of starting and finishing a project, on time and for […]
Most people…..
Most people don’t care enough to make a difference. Most people aren’t going to buy that new thing you’re selling. Most people are afraid to take action. Most people are too self-involved to do the generous work you’re hoping for. Most people think they can’t afford it. Most people won’t talk about it. Most people […]
It’s a long story..
Isn’t it always? Actually, the long stories are the good ones. About how you found that great job, or discovered this amazing partner or managed to get that innovation approved. If long stories are so great, how come we spend all our lives working for the short ones? The very act of seeking out the […]
Unanimous is not an option…
When you do important work, work that changes things and work that matters, it’s inconceivable that the change you’re trying to make will be met with complete approval. Trying to please everyone will water down your efforts, frustrate your forward motion and ultimately fail. The balancing act is to work to please precisely the right […]
Strategy matters more than ever…
When everyone is playing the same game, your execution is critical. Your store is like their store, your bread is like their bread, so we care very much about the care and skill you put into your product or service. Of course, that still matters, but the revolution of the web means that the way […]
Art fears business fears art…
The artist says, “that sounds like business, and I want nothing to do with it. It will corrupt me and make me think small.” The businessperson says, “art is frightening, unpredictable and won’t pay.” Because the artist fears business, she hesitates to think as big as she could, to imagine the impact she might be […]
Where does trust come from…?
Hint: it never comes from the good times and from the easy projects. We trust people because they showed up when it wasn’t convenient, because they told the truth when it was easier to lie and because they kept a promise when they could have gotten away with breaking it. Every tough time and every […]
Compared to magical…
The easiest way to sell yourself short is to compare your work to the competition. To say that you are 5% cheaper or have one or two features that stand out–this is a formula for slightly better mediocrity. The goal ought to be to compare yourself not to the best your peers or the competition […]
Silencing the bell doesn’t put out the f
Many big organizations have full-time employees who scan the social media, looking for people with a complaint. They swoop in and grease the squeaky wheel, solving the problem of the person who spoke up. The theory is that these loud complainers are a problem, and the easiest solution is to give them something to make […]
The unforgiving arithmetic of the funnel...
One percent. That’s how many you get if you’re lucky. One percent of the subscribers to the Times read an article and take action. One percent of the visitors to a website click a button to find out more. One percent of the people in a classroom are sparked by an idea and go do […]
Winning today (vs. winning tomorrow)…
Look around. You’re not number one on that bestseller list, or chosen for this RFP or invited to give that talk. It’s frustrating. There are engagements you ought to have, sales you ought to be making, clients that ought to understand you… One choice is to spend today frustrated that you’re not winning with the […]
Thriving in a wet environment…
If you’ve ever fixed any kind of machinery, you know that a device that’s exposed to the elements is incredibly difficult to maintain. A washing machine or the underside of a car gets grungy, fast. On the other hand, the dryest, cleanest environment of all is the digital one. Code stays code. If it works […]
You will be judged (or you will be ignor...
Those are pretty much the only two choices. Being judged is uncomfortable. Snap judgments, prejudices, misinformation… all of these, combined with not enough time (how could there be) to truly know you, means that you will inevitably be misjudged, underestimated (or overestimated) and unfairly rejected. The alternative, of course, is much safer. To be ignored. […]
The flipping point…
When people say, “The tipping point,” they often misunderstand the concept in Malcolm’s book. They’re actually talking about the flipping point. The tipping point is the sum total of many individuals buzzing about something. But for an individual to start buzzing, something has to change in that person’s mind. Something flips from boredom or ignorance […]
How to make money online…
The first step is to stop Googling things like, “how to make money online.” Not because you shouldn’t want to make money online, but because the stuff you’re going to find by doing that is going to help you lose money online. Sort of like asking a casino owner how to make money in Vegas… […]
Solving the problem isn’t the problem…
The problem is finding a vector that pays for itself as you scale. We see a problem and we think we’ve “solved” it, but if there isn’t a scalable go-to-market business approach behind the solution, it’s not going to work. This is where engineers and other problem solvers so often get stuck. Industries and organizations […]
Do you have a people strategy…?
Hard to imagine a consultant or investor asking the CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) , “so, what’s your telephone strategy?” We don’t have a telephone strategy. The telephone is a tool, a simple medium, and it’s only purpose is to connect us to interested human beings. And then the internet comes along and it’s mysterious and […]
When smart people work for big companies...
A good employee says, “I know that this is a serious problem, it’s hurting our customers and we can do better, but I can’t do a thing about it because it’s run by a different department.” A version of this might conclude with, “And I don’t even know the name of the person who’s responsible.” […]
Don’t give up (you’re on the right track
Wrestling with a puzzle, a project or a problem, the likeliest reason to give up is the belief that it can’t be done. What’s the point of persevering if it’s actually impossible to succeed? “It can’t be done,” we say, throwing up our hands. Not “I can’t do it,” or “It’s not worth my time,” […]