My O-The Oprah Magazine Article

As readers of this blog know, back in November 2005, I was on the cover of O Magazine.  No, my face was not on the magazine. But an article talking about my Goal-Free Living philosophy was featured on the cover. The picture to the right is the actual cover from back then. You will notice an article titled, […]

eCornell and TrainingIndustry.com Webinar

I recently gave an hour-long webinar for eCornell and TrainingIndustry.com.  Over 3,000 people registered for only 1,000 slots, maxing out the system.  Thousands of people were unable to attend, so they made the recording available to everyone. I discussed some of the key concepts from my book, “Best Practices Are Stupid.” Watch this wildly popular […]

Why the Pyramids Are One of the Seven Wonders

Normally we don’t do this. We have not yet posted an entire tip to this blog.  Yet, at the request of one of my clients, the publisher has agreed to let us do it…just this one time. USAA is one of the coolest and most interesting financial services companies out there.  Every year they appear […]

Full Length NASA Speech

I recently spoke in Houston at NASA’s Johnson Space Center.  This is 81 minutes of talk on innovation and crowdsourcing.  

How to Listen Better

Friday evening, on JetBlue flight #1696 from Orlando to Boston, we had a bit of a problem. About an hour outside of Boston, the pilot got on the intercom and told us that the main braking system was not working.  Although the back-up system would probably work just fine, they were preparing us for the […]

Innovation Costs on $0.50

I saw this sign while driving in Orlando.  It caught my attention.  As it turns out, there is very little innovation going on at Innovation Way.  Maybe they need to raise the toll.

Reframe the Framework to Generate More Cash

This article originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum The way we frame our business world can significantly impact our success. Frameworks are useful, but they can also be limiting. Perhaps it’s time to rethink the way things have been done in the past. One useful framework is often called the product funnel or […]

The Three-Step Formula for Innovation Success

A lot of theories circulate on how organizations make innovation a reality. Over the past 20 years, I have found a very simple formula that helps a company transform the way it innovates. Here’s the key: Ask the right question, the right way, of the right people. Let’s break that down into the three core components. […]

Innovative Advertising

Today I received an email from the owner of a furniture store who read my “Best Practices Are Stupid” book. He asked (paraphrased)… In all my years of furniture advertising, I have been showing pictures of nice living room, bedroom, mattress, and dinette furniture on sale. In your book you suggest advertising pain. Should I change the […]

Be Your Own Fan

It is the Monday after the Superbowl.  While scanning the TV stations and flipping through the radio channels this morning, it seemed as though everyone was discussing and analyzing (and analyzing and analyzing…) the football game.  Everyone is a Monday morning quarterback. Come on, get a life!  Stop living your life through someone else. Tom […]