When you have something deep to discuss, or you have something hard to say, and you have an overwhelming sense of relief because you realize the current situation hints that it might not be the best time to bring things up, chances are it’s just an excuse–only in your mind–to avoid the subject. If you frequently assess the situation, with…
Category: Contemplations
Organizational purpose
The purpose of an organization is not to consume human resources to produce a product. The purpose is to amplify the investment of individuals. In other words, an organization shouldn’t be 1+1+1+1=4, it should be 1+1+1+1=100. If you take the amplification approach to business, you’ll find yourself valuing a whole different set of beliefs, habits and actions as a result.…
We don’t need an app for that
Computers have been pervasive in our lives for almost 20 years now. Many people find intrinsic value in digitizing every aspect of their life. But after at least 20 pervasive years, here are two things I can think of that no digital technology has been able to replace.
Overhead projector
Whiteboarding
Perhaps augment, but not replace. In the rush to find or create an app for that, sometimes we should step back and realize that doesn’t mean we need an app for everything. And ask what we lose in translation.
Don’t Neglect Weaknesses
Many people talk of focusing on improving strengths and not trying to improve your weaknesses. Peter Drucker is the person that sticks out in my mind as the most stringent supporter of this mentality. It is true that it’s easier to make a competent performer an excellent performer, as opposed to making an incompetent performer competent. But, incompetency alone is…
You need regular downtime
If you miss meetings, always feel rushed, don’t know where the time goes in the day, or experience other indications of being overwhelmed, consider scheduling some slack during your day. If you book your day 100% every day, you’re always going to be overwhelmed. Or, worse, if you treat yourself as a worker attached to a queue of never ending…
It’s never enough to be good at what we do
If all we have in work is excitement about what we do, the skills we’re applying, eventually we’ll get good at what we do. And, bored with it, because then we’ll realize we’re not doing anything good with it.
Being productive with negative emotions
On my way back from New Jersey this week, two individuals from some religious organization approached me. They were polite and inquisitive about my religious affiliation. It had been a while since someone approached me to discuss religion so I found it rather interesting to reflect upon what they were saying. They got to the inevitable discussion of right/wrong, good/bad,…
Life is either…
It’s a shame to go through life thinking that life is simply what happens to you. There are many pressures and influences that might make you think that life is out of your control. But it’s not. Life is either what you let happen to yourself, or what you make happen to yourself.
IBM Reveals Lack Of Confidence In Their Own Management
You can’t make this stuff up, IBM Researchers Try to Measure Employee Well-Being Using Technology. This is why it’s so important to think about what you’re doing before you start doing it. You don’t need to wait to see what will happen. You already have countless humans that are adept at detecting nuisances in their environment, they’re called employees. Perhaps,…