Explaining the Wall Street mess:Here’s how I use motivation to explain the Wall Street mess. Can you motivate others? No. Motivation is an internal desire, not an external force.Yes, it is possible to ‘get’ ...READ»
Meddling with mentoring:Are you mentoring or meddling? Here’s how you can tell.You are a mentor if you are using your experience to guide someone who is less experienced. The aim is to help the less experienced person ...READ»
Expect robots if profit is your purpose:With every job loss, business fails to do its civic duty. After all, the real business of business is to keep people busy and off the streets.For centuries, businesses have been quite good ...READ»
Positive affirmations trigger negative mood:I’ve always wondered why those happy-clappy people annoy me so much. You know the type I mean – always smiling and drooling at the joys of life. To them, every day is a ...READ»
The business of business is busy-ness:What exactly is the business of business? After all these job losses, I hope you see it as clearly as I do. The real business of business is to keep people busy and off the ...READ»
Swept along out of context:Whenever I witness rabble rousing, I think ‘context’. Context forms the setting, the backdrop, for an event. It enables you to make sense of the event, to clarify its meaning, and to ...READ»
New job category - Professional Responsibility Officer:Are you still looking for a job? Well, here’s a brand new one that is ideal for people who have been kicked-out of the workplace. By now you have surely developed ...READ»
To fail at networking, don’t buy, don’t ask:When it comes to networking and business development, here is my golden rule. Don’t waste my time by taking your time.Yes, I do know that it takes time to build meaningful ...READ»
In the land of the free, workers are not:In the land of the free, workers too often are not. Even the Department of Labor knows this, hence their new campaign called ‘We Can Help’.The problem is that abused workers are the ...READ»
Pay attention to the expected:(Radio piece begins with paper ripping sound.)Were you surprised by that noise? If so, you’re probably paying attention, because something unexpected has happened. That’s natural. We ...READ»
Believing differently creates insight:A long, long time ago two shoe-salesmen went to Africa. Soon the one wrote to his boss, “Coming home. People don’t wear shoes.” The other telegraphed his office, ...READ»
From good to great to bust:A man once slept under a tree until an apple fell on his head. Then he jumped up and shouted, “What goes up, must come down!” That shout became Newton’s Law of Gravity.Sadly, Newton got it ...READ»
It’s the idea, stupid:As a manager, you must pay attention so that you don’t misinterpret reality. Here’s a game that will help you practice your focus on what matters. For one week, listen to the message, not the ...READ»
You can have it if you don’t need it:Did you hear about the South Carolina teenager with H.I.V. who had his health insurance policy revoked? That got me thinking about Henry Ford and three big industries in the USA.Wait. ...READ»
Perceptual errors create nonsense at work:Socially, our consensus about how we interpret our environment seems to work well enough. But at work, well enough is often not good enough.Because we rely so much on our agreement of ...READ»
Dirt at work:As I have explained before, nonsense is just waiting to happen. Why? Because it is an abundant, natural, renewable resource. I realized this when I watched two dung beetles at work in the African ...READ»
Responding to the responsibility breakdown:Is it my imagination or do we have a responsibility breakdown? It seems to me that some people in power don’t understand what it means to be responsible.Here it is in simple ...READ»
The way to being all rightNonsense has taught me many useful things. Here’s one that has helped to reduce my stress levels dramatically. Listen carefully. The way to be right is not to make others wrong. The ...READ»
Too creative to work:All these books and seminars and training videos on creativity and innovation at work really annoy me. Creativity and innovation are a complete waste of time. Unless . . . But first, have you ever ...READ»
Keep the customer passionate:Customer satisfaction is only the start of the customer relationship. Customer loyalty is where the serious money is made.Let me explain using two examples. I had a problem with my phone ...READ»
When success means escaping the bucket:I do hope this economy improves soon else we will experience what I call the lobster syndrome. This syndrome surfaces in a group when one individual is more successful than others and it ...READ»
Don’t keep the customer satisfied:Simon and Garfunkel were wrong about ‘keeping the customer satisfied’. Customer satisfaction can kill your organization.This happens when you spend more on keeping customers satisfied than ...READ»
Making your second million:Here is a little known fact about myself. I am working on my second million. That’s right, my ‘second million’.My first million was a complete disaster.Many so-called experts will tell you ...READ»
Customer service begins at home:When it comes to customer service, who should you focus on first? The one with the fattest wallet? The one who always comes back? The one with the biggest network? Or the one you ...READ»
Are you losing your memory?Did your organization let people go last year? If so, chances are that it also lost some of its memory. Is this good or bad?Corporate memory is the collective body of knowledge of how we do what ...READ»
