In 2005, I wrote a book about living a life without goals. Sort of. I’m not anti-goal by any stretch. But there are times that an obsession with goals can negatively impact your performance and happiness. In the book, I talk about setting themes rather than resolutions for the new year. Here’s an article I […]
Management gurus love to talk about the carrot vs the stick. Which works better, rewarding for positive behavior (the carrot) or penalizing for negative behavior (the stick)? The answer to this is not cut and dried. Both work in different situations.
Throughout history, people have had seemingly good ideas that didn’t work out as planned. These were good intentions that resulted in less than stellar results. For example, imagine that you are tasked with reducing pickpocket rates in an area known for this crime. You have millions of tourists from all over the world visiting your […]
Is it just me, or has every industry moved to a subscription/membership model for their services and products? This seems to be a new form of business model innovation, especially when it is married with online services. Of course the concept of memberships or subscriptions is not new. Gym and health club memberships have been around since the […]
Professional speakers are always trying to justify their fees. Admittedly, it can be a substantial investment for a one-hour keynote. With that being said, for larger events, the cost of breakfast is often times more than the cost of the speech. While that may be true, some professional speakers have the crazy idea that it […]
Over the years I have been to a lot of conferences – either as an attendee or as a speaker. At most events, the formal education portions ends by 7pm, usually quite a bit earlier. A banquet or gathering in the bar typically follows. I recently attended a magic convention with 700 magicians. Unlike most […]
In my last post entitled “When you are the best, you should be worried,” I talked about the importance of comparing yourself to the right people (or the right companies). The day after posting it, I saw this cartoon which advocates practicing (specifically for musicians, but it could apply to anyone).
Back in 1993, I started speaking. At the time I was a consultant with Accenture (then Andersen Consulting). By the mid 90’s, I was speaking 50 to 100 times a year at company and client events around the world. Invariably, after a speech, people would line up to shower me with accolades and acknowledge my […]
On December 31 each year, instead of setting resolutions, I set a theme for the following year. And for 2016 it is nothing new. That’s my theme: “Nothing New.” This year I won’t be doing anything new. Some of you reading this might be thinking, “Huh??? I thought you were Mr. Innovation. Nothing new. Really?”
It is that time of year. Many of you will soon be setting your New Year’s Resolutions. But did you know that only 8% of people are always successful in achieving the desired results. 92% fail!
