What if universities stopped giving exams? “Loony”, huh? How will we know how hard students have worked?
Smashing Paradigms
What makes a fish clever?
Everybody is a Genius. But If You Judge a Fish by Its Ability to Climb a Tree, It Will Live Its Whole Life Believing that…
There is no box
Think outside the box”. What if there is no box? What then might you think of?
A salutory tale of missing the boat
Sometimes if you fail to jump on an opportunity, you then miss that boat as the opportunity disappears.
To go for it or play the percentages
There is a time to play the percentages, to optimise for a good result, but sometimes you just want to go for it, to play…
The increasing irrelevance of nation states
As global trends continue, we must ultimately consider the relevance of nation-states.
I see no joy, I see only sorrow… and hope
The most powerful force in the world is Hope. I am hopeful in this space, I do find multiple leaders to work with that believe…
Do it NOW
Leave more space to “Do it NOW” as per the wondrous quote from the inestimable Paolo Coelho.
How do we make the business case for diversity?
The business case for diversity comes from embracing the commercial value of diverse teams to solve complex problems.
Be intentional with time off (or a sabbatical)
I used to think of a sabbatical as being for three months to a year. A Sabbatical Can Look Any Way You Want It To.…
Roe vs Wade, Lying Judges, and Hope
One example of what the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe vs Wade means.
Alchemy and Competitive Advantage through Flexible Working
Now that flexible working has also become publicly known, it has suddenly become a bargaining chip for employees.
Smashing Paradigms – the Five Day working week
Perhaps the standard of a five-day work week in the office will later come to be seen as a paradigm that was smashed as it…
What Paradigm could you Smash?
I encourage you to consider what paradigm you could smash, using a recent example of a smashed paradigm.
What does “Massive Impact” mean for you?
This week I updated the wording on the home page of my site, with a focus on supporting leaders seeking to make a “Massive Impact”.
How to shorten Airport Immigration queues instantly
Last week I flew into Cayman for the first time in 18 months. Impressively efficient through the entry process was, it did take two hours for one flight, as in addition to regular immigration and customs needs, there was covid test checking and entry procedures for us...
Innovation by linking the offline and online economies
Messi? Neymar? Mbappé - playing for? "Innovation is doing different things and doing things differently"Innovation is simple, as I wrote about here with this definition. How much do you think it would cost a company to be the main shirt sponsor of the very top...
A simple idea that could change so much
Ah, the joys of commuting Today I'm going to share with you one tiny and easily accepted change that has the ability to radically change and ease the way you and those you lead do your work. Why now? Well, we have known for years that there are so many entrenched...
Thinking beyond the Map
More on this in the post: "The map is not the territory" Today's post is inspired by a great conversation with the Piratical Alex Barker (I really look forward to her new book in September) around leading at the edges of the map, and follows yesterday's post advising...
Stop arguing with Zombies
Ready with beer for Paul Krugman at Tortoise Yesterday I wrote: "We’ve always done it this way", what I call "the six most dangerous words in business", where I talked about how stuck we can be in the familiar, despite the evidence. Yesterday evening I went to a...
What if life could be a Permanent Sabbatical?
noun noun: sabbatical; plural noun: sabbaticalsa period of paid leave granted to a university teacher or other worker for study or travel, traditionally one year for every seven years worked. Recently I was at an event and met someone I hadn't seen for...
Gravitricity – innovation can be simple
Innovation = Doing things differently and doing different things I coined this definition of innovation some time ago. Sometimes it is about technology, sometimes simply about changing opening hours of a shop. Recently I came across an idea to harness gravity in...
What do you see? What do you not see?
What we see and do not see is a matter of our perspective. How many pillars are there? The answer is seven. Or, how many women can you see? Most see pillars, only some immediately see beyond to the women. This has me thinking about seeing what others don't see. This...
Be world-class. You never know who is watching
Flowers Sea Swim Cayman - one of the world's top Open Water races While in Cayman this week, I spent time at an event looking to build awareness and reputation for a burgeoning global industry. As I entered the event, one of the organisers recognised me and came over...
Climate Crisis. Reduce, Rebel, Now.
Great Thunberg outside the Swedish Parliament starting her school strike, September 2018 Crisis One year ago this week Greta Thunberg sat, alone, outside the Swedish parliament, to begin her Climate Crisis strike. One year later, literally millions joined her across...
Lack of diversity is a major business risk
Lack of diversity is a major business risk. Do I have your attention? To truly connect people to an idea such that they will take action, it is necessary to frame it in a way that impacts something that matters to them and their business. Risk is a keyword for...
You cannot eliminate your biases
What are your biases? You might say: "I'm not biased". Don't believe me? Try answering these three questions, known as the Cognitive Reflection Test. (1) A bat and a ball cost $1.10 in total. The bat costs $1.00 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost? _...
8 Questions to Ask Someone Other Than “What Do You Do?”
Thanks to Dan Pink for sharing an article on Twitter that hits a topic I love to address. A while ago I wrote: "What do you do?", in which I noted: "..when you meet people in the UK, the first question they always ask is “what do you do?”. I know this is relatively...
The power of streaks
Streaks are their own reward. On September 20, 1998, Cal Ripken walked into the office of his boss, the manager of the Baltimore Orioles, and told him he wanted to be out of the line up for that evening's game. That night he chose, himself, to end "the streak"....
How to enjoy and have productive disagreements
Do you dread getting into disagreements? What if I told you that the highest performing teams have the most disagreements? What would it take for you to want to have more disagreements? What if I told you that you could actually look forward to disagreements, even...
You are what you measure – so what do you measure?
"..the objective of economic policy should be collective well-being: how happy and healthy a population is, not just how wealthy a population is." ~ Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister of Scotland, TED Summit, Edinburgh, July 2019 As UK government and politics, in...
Do you shut down your office when it gets too hot?
Should offices shut down when it is too hot? If your staff are going to work less effectively and have a miserable time getting to and from work and being at work in a city not designed for high temperatures, consider this. overheated trains in nearly 40c temperatures...
Don’t send emails after 5:30 pm
Do you send emails after 5:30 pm? Suggestions on business email from "It Doesn't Have to be Crazy at Work". "It doesn't have to be crazy at work" is a book full of nuggets of wisdom that can change your life and that of those who work with you. Seriously, every single...
The connectedness of meaning allows ideas to be scaled
Connect with others to add meaning and purpose, then create and build the impact of scale. A line from Nilofer Merchant's recent LI article: "Don’t Be The Lonely Only" reads: "when connected people can do what once only large organizations could; the connectedness of...
Intelligence is both Fluid and Crystallised
British psychologist Raymond Cattell introduced the concepts of fluid and crystallized intelligence in the early 1940s. Over 45? Feeling increasingly irrelevant at work? I recently read a wonderful long essay in The Atlantic by Arthur Brooks entitled: "Your...
Drawing one voice out of two separate strings
Today, some thoughts on the poem "Drawing one voice out of two separate strings" by Rilke, and how it relates to changing paradigms of leadership. Today's post comes from one of my usual wide-ranging conversations with my brilliant friend Bruce Peters. Our general...