Reading Time: 2 min There’s an old quote from Tim O’Reilly that I really love, and it seems to be getting better with age. Tim simply said: Obscurity is a far greater threat to authors and creative artists than piracy. While you can worry about people copying your content or stealing your ideas, your far bigger concern is having […]
Leadership
Show people their super power
Reading Time: < 1 min In his book “Nothing you don’t already know“, author Alexander den Heijer shares a simple but powerful statement: You don’t inspire people by revealing your super powers; you inspire people by helping them reveal their own super powers. This applies to inspiration, but I also think it can apply to your website and marketing. As […]
Clarity of Purpose
Reading Time: < 1 min Going into the altMBA a few months ago, I had two very similar goals. To develop better: Clarity of thought Clarity of purpose Clarity of thought is a big reason why I’m writing every day. Each post comes from a small idea, which could just go out as a Tweet or something, but instead I […]
Thoughts on taking the altMBA
Reading Time: 3 min I recently finished taking the altMBA, described as “an intensive, 4-week online workshop designed by Seth Godin for high-performing individuals who want to level up and lead.“ Intensive is a great word to use. Throughout the four weeks, you work through 13 separate writing prompts. They ask us not to reveal the nature of the […]
“Good job” isn’t all that good
Reading Time: < 1 min I’m trying to work on how I give thanks to those around me. I feel like I’m pretty good about giving frequent thanks when it’s appropriate, but I’ve realized (in part from books like Thanks for the Feedback, and in part from other conversations) that my “thanks” isn’t all that good. It’s not that giving […]
A quick agenda beats no agenda
Reading Time: < 1 min It’s been true for decades, and with everyone forced to switch to Zoom for the past year it hasn’t changed much — meetings without a clear agenda are often a complete waste of time. While we have solid agendas for many of our meetings, there are times when we don’t have a chance to put […]
Calling someone “talented” is kind of an insult
Reading Time: 2 min While I’ve certainly called people “talented” over the years, and meant it as the highest kind of compliment, it might be taken differently than that. As Seth Godin says in The Practice, “talent is not the same as skill.” He goes on to define each word: Talent is something we’re both with: it’s in our […]
Be selfishly selfless
Reading Time: < 1 min The idea of being selfless is great. Constantly putting others ahead of you seems like an admirable way to live. It is, perhaps, but it won’t work. In order to serve others, you need to take care of yourself first. If you’ve been on a plane, you know the safety drill, and a big thing […]
We did it ourselves
Reading Time: < 1 min There are some professions that tend to be underappreciated until something goes wrong. Take the I.T. department at a large company, where many people will think one of two things: “Things are running smoothly, so why do we need I.T.?” “Things are a mess, what is I.T. doing wrong?” You could say the same about […]
Praise and criticism are both vapor
Reading Time: < 1 min In listening to a recent meditation track from Headspace as part of a recent clarity break, the focus of the clip was on this: Praise and criticism are two sides of the same coin. If we believe in one, we believe in the other. Better not to get attached to either. A similar thought was […]