lessons-learned
I recently read a longform article High Agency In 30 Minutes by George Mack, which was an incredible ride! In a world of infintite entertainment, so much of it so tempating (see Cal Newport's concept of Ultra-Processed Content), Mack's article was an emotional rollercoaster with an
lessons-learned
When you're asking for help (e.g., looking for career advice, asking for recommendations/referrals for a new job, asking to borrow something from a friend), make it as easy as you can for them to help you. For example: * If you're looking for a new
data
To become better at visually communicating (e.g., creating diagrams for technical documents, facilitating a meeting with a whiteboard or digital whiteboard), you should expose yourself to many different people visually communicate. This allows you to build a mental library of visual concepts you can use. Some examples: * Lucidchart has
lessons-learned
While we live in an era of impressive Generative AI capabilities regarding graphics (ChatGPT and other GenAIs have some capabilities here and Napkin looks impressive regarding diagram creation), my recommendation when you're trying to think through a conceptual graphic is still to use PowerPoint to explore different diagram
lessons-learned
Way back when Netflix would mail you DVDs (I'm sure my children have no idea what a DVD is), there was a research study (Mixing Virtue and Vice: Combining the Immediacy Effect and the Diversication Heuristic) that illustrated procrastination well -- people had to select movies to watch,
leadership
I used to have a star employee, who I, and other senior leaders, kept adding more and more to his plate, but he was such a strong performer -- he ensured things were done well, and on time. I used to half-jokingly comment that he was a victim of his
leadership
New leaders often struggle in holding people, especially when they were recently peers, accountable to perform at a certain level. This is especially hard in organizations that don't have clearly defined success criteria for a role or specific leader. As a new leader, it's important to
leadership
The idea that bad news doesn't age well is likely obvious to everyone -- if you're a parent, you want your kids to share the failed test ASAP, and not a month later. "Bad news isn't wine. It does not enhance with age&
leadership
Veteran Institute for Procurement (VIP) is a great organization that teaches leadership, management, and Government Contracting best practices to Veteran-owned small business leaders. They are a great organization helping Veteran entrepeneurs, and I always enjoy supporting their great mission. I attended a VIP course way back in 2010 (on behalf
books
My kids are still young, so I have a few more years before I'll be recommending adult-level non-fiction, but I was thinking recently about what books will be at the top of my list to recommend to my kids. My current list of top recommendations for them are:
career
I teach a class to some of the Veteran entrepreneurs in the Veteran Institute for Procurement (VIP) programs, and I'm starting to review the structure I use to teach a class on scaling your business (see my How to Grow Business Value presentation slides from last year for
lessons-learned
After hearing Oliver Burkeman on a podcast last month, I listened to his Meditations for Mortals audiobook and was blown away -- it felt like he was talking directly to me through the book. As I listened to the book, I was struck with the (incredibly rare for me) desire