Of course I remember you! You were that wunderkind in your early work days who plowed through tasks and got things done at an amazing pace. As an individual producer, you stood out among your peers. While you were a little narcissistic we looked past that back then. You later learned how to see the [...]
The previous post, and the one before that, demonstrated that the unrealized act of self-deception is one of the largest factors undermining relationships, teamwork, and performance. Self-deception puts us in a box that blinds us to the true cause of problems and leads us to focus on symptoms. Therefore, most “solutions” actually make matters worse. [...]
In my last post we looked at how self-deception can put us “in a box” and literally keep us from “thinking outside the box.” When we betray ourselves we seek to justify ourselves. We tell ourselves a story in which the wrong we are doing appears right, or at least not our fault. As part [...]
Most don’t. Oh, it's not because they’re not smart or that opportunities don’t abound. It’s not even because teachers, consultants and the like aren’t overflowing with lists, how-to’s, and tricks designed to “expand” our thinking beyond box boundaries. It’s because we’ve made the thing all about problem-solving or creativity and the like. The language has gotten [...]
Every generation seems to feel that it has the most complex and challenging of times. They’re no more or less right than we are. We observe, and believe, that our connected and digital world moves and changes at internet speed, is more transparent and secretive (at the same time), and is increasingly complex and more [...]
V.U.C.A. world or not, we still have to make a difference. We still have to contribute. We still have to deliver value. And that means taking action and getting results. Yet, action unfolds and results often come about in stages. Clarity is often lacking, especially to the degree that allows us comfort and confidence. V.U.C.A. [...]
The future is about change; both dangerous discontinuity and positive permutation. The future is very complicated. The whole of it is greater than the sum of the parts – you can’t really understand it by simply looking at it’s individual parts. And, as American writer George Will said, “The future has a way of arriving [...]
How would you decide? “The Lady, or the Tiger?” begins with a description of a “semi-barbaric” king who rules his kingdom with a heavy hand. For punishing criminals, he has built an arena featuring two doors. The criminal must choose his own fate by selecting one of the two closed doors. Behind one door is [...]
Listen for a word: absolutely (and its kin: exactly, precisely, of course, no doubt, without question, totally, undoubtedly, clearly, utterly). How often do you hear it used in daily speech? Probably more than in the past. Why? People are longing for a sense of control in – a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world – [...]
You have had problems. You currently have problems and you will have problems. Our world has always been characterized by some degree of uncertainty and complexity, highlighted by encounters with volatility and ambiguity (VUCA). Today it's just more so. As these characteristics ebb, flow and intermingle in the circumstances of our lives they create problems; [...]
