You’ve heard the expression: ’What’s the definition of idiocy?’ It’s doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different outcome. Duh!!! This expression has a number of takeaways. First doing the same thing over again is a career killer. The old joke is that a person had 20 years of work, but …
It is better to bend than to break. Aesop, Greek writer I want to say that I respond to change. The reality is that I react to change. This is a major point that may alter your life and may even extend it by lowering your blood pressure. I have certain hot buttons, such …
Our friends call us tiger parents or even worse. What do they mean? Our daughter Margaux is 12. She went to a Montessori school that didn’t believe in homework. Well, my wife and I believe in homework. Margaux says it’s unfair because none of the other kids are doing it. Well, we say: “you are …
So, you’ve done a great job. But the client thinks or even asks: “What have you done for me lately?” You expect a promotion or a higher base salary! Guess again! There’s a good chance you’re going to be rewarded through recognition, a one-time bonus, time off, or another special project. Another special project you …
Sooner or later you’re going to face this new workplace reality – the give back. It goes something like this: Your boss or client says: “You’ve been doing great work, but… Times are tough. Margins have shrunk or disappeared. We can’t bill you out and make our desired profit margin based on our fixed costs, …
I’ve always been intrigued what people do for work and more importantly ‘why do they do what they do?’ Do they live to work or work to live? I think this question may be the defining question for many of us? Why? Just a few years ago, a lot of us were ‘living to work’. …
Your work should be an extended hobby. Richard Saul Wurman, writer and thinker I like Wurman’s quote. It distills my vision of work. But, things have changed. Schumacher about 30 years ago wrote a simple and paradigm-busting book called Small is Beautiful. This was a breakthrough book when the business world was thinking big is better. …
We’re in a global financial crisis. The pundits think it’ll last for 20 years. What happened? Conspicuous consumption. If you couldn’t afford it, just take an equity loan on your appreciating house. Well, we all know this life model. Madison Avenue’s messages over the last ten-year’s stressed the virtue of accumulating stuff. How many flashy …
I spend more and more time at home or in my car doing business. Now the workplace can be at home or in an automobile. Duties change depending on customer requirements of the moment. Work is no longer constrained by time and place. For example, work geography is changing dramatically and quickly. Your workplace was …
The productivity of a work group seems to depend on how the group members see their own goals in relation to the goals of the organization. Paul Hersey, Professor One of the effects of having fewer bosses is that more of us are self-managed or are part of self-managing teams. These are confusing and …