I was invited to a meeting where the guy at the front of the room was trying to improve group performance by talking himself into a froth. He had invented a ratio and convinced himself that a three percent improvement would mean something, otherwise they were going our of business. When somebody loses it emotionally,Read… Read more »
Charles Murray introduced me to the idea in Human Accomplishment: The Pursuit of Excellence in the Arts and Sciences, 800 B.C. to 1950. Now that the Periodic Table is filled out, and so many overarching theories are proven, what’s a producing scientist to do? Ever since I read that, I’ve noticed how few scientists areRead… Read more »
I find that most people know something about most subjects. To have someone make a big “aha!” isn’t part of the daily routine. Yet the value is seldom in intellectual understanding, but in daily practice. Years ago, I was running a weekly Sales Lab for some legendary sales professionals. The program was sponsored by aRead… Read more »
Jack and I were comparing notes. We are working with several new companies, and a first step is to figure out what we have to work with. Early conversations tend to go on and not provide much direction, except to wear everyone out. However, recapping those conversations on a single sheet of paper sharpens everyone’sRead… Read more »
Last night we had a large crowd for The Final Frontier at theAssociation of Information Technology Professionals. One of my teachers had been reading ahead and brought a thought paper about reforming our economy. Last time around, we were building super computer environments for modeling complex technical processes, and the results were astonishing. Since thatRead… Read more »
We are living in a time of social and economic reinvention. I think it will be remembered as an internet powered renaissance. Jack and I spend a lot of time figuring out what is happening, exhorting each other dig further. Often when we are talking to clients and tell them what we have learned, theyRead… Read more »
There are a lot of management books published every year. Some are great, some are good, many are awful. Creativity, Inc. : Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration by Ed Catmull and Amy Wallace is not about organizational development, so much as organizational transformation. For many readers, that willRead… Read more »
I was working with an organization and ran into a strange situation. The head of their skunk works was a hero for doing things right. He was an inspiration for having his team working effectively, following the right order of build, making lists, all the stuff I treasure. The problem was nothing was coming outRead… Read more »
Who were the most important inventors and artists from 850 BC to 1950? How many are there? How would you choose? What could you learn from a list of these achievers and what they accomplished? Human Accomplishment: The Pursuit of Excellence in the Arts and Sciences, 800 B.C to 1950 by Charles Murray, answers theseRead… Read more »
Starting a company? Selling a company? Trying to resolve a thorny problem? Trying to UNDERSTAND a complex problem? Make a list. Seriously, start writing a list. In the last two days I’ve been amazed how half a dozen impasse situations were improved by somebody writing a list. Now because I’m a hotshot consultant, let meRead… Read more »