Initiative is a little like creativity in that both require curiosity. Not the search for the “right” answer, as much as an insatiable desire to understand how something works and how it might work better. The difference is that the creative person is satisfied once he sees how it’s done. The initiator won’t rest until […]
Starting doesn’t mean controlling. It means initiating. Managing means controlling, but that’s an entirely different skill.” – Seth Godin in Poke the Box I’m no longer surprised when people who’ve spent their lives around driving people to change (i.e., forcing change upon others) assume the worst intentions of these new people driving change (i.e., choosing
This afternoon I devoured Seth Godin’s new book, Poke the Box. As an activator, someone accustomed to starting things, I found much to love in this rant, as Godin calls it, devoted to encouraging all of us to start things, lots of things. As a Guiding Coalition practitioner, I found a lot to enjoy relative
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“Many are stubborn in pursuit of the path they have chosen, few in pursuit of the goal” Friedrich Nietzsche
There are few days where you will receive strong, immediate feedback that what you are doing truly matters. Though they are few, celebrate them, treasure them, and keep remembering them in your mind. On your roughest days, remember them again. Keep driving change.
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Here are a few things you could do this week to hone your driving change skills: Be fiercely urgent Collect your friends Create a transformational vision Tell your story Remove their obstacles Claim a win Build on the success Permanently change the culture
But lots of success. There was no training then! And all I could do was learn by experience. And Christ what an experience. The plaque says, ‘L. Logue, Speech Defects’. No Dr., no letters after my name. Lock me in the Tower.” – Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) in The King’s Speech These lines of dialogue
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I’m a rule follower; I admit it. Yet there is a whole class of rules that I find offensive: Simon Says rules. A rule is a Simon Says rule if the only reason offered for the rule’s existence is Simon (or Bob or Kevin) says. Simon Says rules grate on my nerves for at least
Last year I wrote about submitting a paper for the Theory of Constraints International Certification Organization (TOCICO) conference (“Do you fear success?”) and one about not getting selected (“Making a ruckus while failing”). This year I have better news to report. I received word today that I’ve been selected to present my paper in a
Groupthink: A mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members’ strivings for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action.” – Irving Janis When you don’t share your opinion with your team because you fear that they will not like you
