Spend decades being a good person: “Not sure about that person…” Drink too much at the staff Christmas party and say some dumb things (could be racist or sexist or political or religious etc): “Now we see their true colours!” As the saying goes: Reputations take a lifetime to build and an instant to lose. On one hand: We all say dumb things at times On the other:...
So what?
Chatting with Mal last week and he reminded me of the ‘So What?’ test – a good habit to implement when preparing a presentation, article, meeting agenda, proposal, etc. Essentially, just ask yourself ‘So What?’ when you’ve prepared the slide, or paragraph or bullet point. Does it add value to the conversation? If not, why is it there? (Not a new concept, and...
Resistance and Clarity
I’m reminded of this quote from Chip and Dan Heath
Resistance is created through a lack of clarity
This is a good tonic to my musing last month.
Looking back on the golden days
Remember a few years ago when ranking on Google was easy, buying clicks on Google Ads was cheap, Facebook ads were a bargain, and getting followers on social was just a matter of using the right hashtag? It’s easy to look back on those times and think about what we should have done at the time. What we should have taken advantage of. What we could have achieved. Before it all became so hard...
Detection Dogs
Who knew?
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have specially trained dogs that can sniff out electronic devices, mobile phones, SIM cards and USB sticks.
As well as drugs, currency, explosives and firearms (which you probably already knew).
Only found out about this after reading the latest news about the mushroom murders.
(via a daily email from The Sizzle)
How much profit are you making?
A reminder to myself to continue to focus on profit growth (as opposed to revenue, headcount, toys, etc).
So many companies doing it tough this year.
Small and large.
For example, I wonder if Atlassian will ever make a profit…
Understand big outcomes, solve micro problems
A reasonably useful rule of thumb when starting new consulting projects with clients:
Understand big outcomes, solve micro problems
You must understand the overall context and expected outcomes – broad and wide ranging as they are.
But focus intensely on solving small pieces, bit by bit.
Exceptions aren’t your playbook
A note to myself really… So many books, videos and social post threads focus on the rare exceptions (in business, wealth, fitness, etc) and pull out takeaways to apply in general. Seems a sure path to failure – since if it were really just a few principles that made the difference, then they wouldn’t be the exceptions. So, don’t study the edge cases as your playbook for...
Resistance
Sometimes I ask myself:
What should I be doing in this moment?
Why am I resisting it?
What is the discomfort I’m trying to avoid?
Can you relate?
Tim McDonald | The Cheap Seats
Whether you’re an Anthony Albanese fan or not, this interview by Tim McDonald is a masterclass in how to prepare, engage and cover (for a distracting co-host) when talking with a world leader (like it or not Albo is our country’s leader on the world stage). The interview coverage has been hijacked by the cohost’s antics (including dropping the F-bomb), which is a shame. Because...