Thoughts on people, teams, organizations, communities, effectiveness and success
The problem from the client was common.
His boss had agreed to something the CEO had asked to be done, and now it was being passed along to him to execute.
The problem was that the idea was flawed – “a turd on the table” as a former colleague of mine might have said – and his boss had already committed to it.… Read the rest
John Molloy’s 1980’s classic Dress for Success spawned a generation of workplace climbers who fashioned their work wardrobe around his advice. While 30 years later his advice lingers: some of it unfortunately (e.g. yellow power tie, or manlike power suits for women ) and some of his advice that is spot on. The gist of Molloy’s advice? If you want to be more effective in the workplace, think about what you wear.… Read the rest
The title is a crib is from the 1960’s film Dr. Strangelove (“Dr. Strangelove or: How I Stopped Worry and Learned to Live with the Bomb” but the sentiment is the same. Sometimes you just have to “get over it” and move on – learn to let go and stop thinking about whatever preoccupies you.
“Get over it.” Now that’s a peach of phrase – as if mammals – including humans – can automatically switch things on or off at a moment’s choice.… Read the rest
Marshall McLuhan coined the phrase “the medium is the message” and advanced a number of prophetic ideas – all from the vantage of the 1960’s. McLuhan’s thoughts apply to you – including predicting the over extension of technology, and the intensification of the world community to its present expression as a “global village.”
McLuhan’s quip regarding message and medium was the thought of my morning at WordCamp San Francisco – an event for blogging geeks that is akin to baseball fans attending spring training – and experienced how presenters such as Scott Berkun, Vanessa Fox, Matt Mullenweg, et al.… Read the rest
Corporations make decisions for all sorts of reasons. You may benefit from some of them, but it’s unlikely you will benefit from all of them. And because of that it’s important that you manage your career and your life rather than hope that someone else will manage it well for you.
And that means you need to think of any job where you work for someone else as a temporary job.… Read the rest
Almost every exec and manager hires people – even in the flat organizations common today. Yet few do it well, and many put it down low on their list of favorite things to do. This post is the last of series of four on how you can – with some simple, common sense practices – hire well, get a great return from your hiring activities, and frankly enjoy a reputation for hiring brilliantly.… Read the rest