Here are some links to further describe in detail some of the models, concepts and thought leaders I presented. Please feel free to post any comments as to what resonates with your work, practice and clients.
Here are some links to further describe in detail some of the models, concepts and thought leaders I presented. Please feel free to post any comments as to what resonates with your work, practice and clients.
The Power of Less. The Fine Art of Limiting Yourself to the Essential … in Business and in Life
by Leo Babauta
Why Less Is More
Many people focus on time management to beat the hectic pace of modern life. You maythink you can fit more into a 24-hour day, but that approach never yields satisfactory results. You inevitably will get overstressed and will spend too much time performing relatively unimportant tasks. Living a more sensible life means setting limits and focusing on essential things. Follow the six principles of “simple productivity”:
Living without limitations leads to a chaotic existence.
• Successful people have the ability to focus.
• You can form good habits in 30 days if you follow the right steps.
• Resist the urge to multitask – it’s usually frustrating and nonproductive.
• Habitually checking your e-mail or surfing the Internet is a tremendous waste of
time. Check your e-mail twice a day.
• Staying in the moment allows you to find meaning in mundane tasks.
• Learning to say no will help you scale back your commitments.
• A cluttered work space or a messy home is distracting and energy-draining.
• Achieving your goals requires sustained focus, effort and motivation.
• A “Simple Projects List” will make your life more manageable. Start with three
things to do. Don’t add more until those three are done
Hyperion © 2008
Greatness starts with superb people.
Great groups and great leaders create each other.
The leaders of great groups love talent and know where to find it.
Great groups think they're on a mission from god.
Every great group has a strong leader.
Great groups are full of talented people who can work together.
Every great group is an island, but an island with a bridge to the mainland.
Great groups see themselves as winning underdogs.
Great groups always have an enemy.
Great groups are optimistic, not realistic.
Great groups ship.
The leaders of great groups give them what they need and free them from
the rest.
People in great groups have blinders on.
In great groups, the right person has the right job.
Great work is it's own reward.
Synthesized by Monica Sallouti.
Source: Organizing Genius: The Secrets of Creative Collaboration by Warren Bennis and Patricia Ward Biederman.
30 books you should read and put to use
From: Inc. Magazine, April 2009 | By: Inc. Staff
1. Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk, by Peter Bernstein (1996)
From the ancient Greeks' belief that the universe was divvied up in a game of craps to Keynes's assertion that uncertainty makes us free, this lively economic history helps readers understand why we think -- and bet -- the way we do.
2. The Art of the Start: The Time-Tested, Battle-Hardened Guide for Anyone Starting Anything, by Guy Kawasaki (2004)
The author has aptly described this book as the start-up version of What to Expect When You're Expecting. From his early exhortation to create a mantra (as opposed to a mission statement) through his final mandate to be a "mensch" (give something back), Kawasaki offers a broad, opinionated, often-shrewd blueprint for early stagers.
3. The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and the World Economy Bigger, by Marc Levinson (2006)
Next time you are shipping alarm clocks to Singapore without thinking twice about freight costs, thank Malcom McLean, the trucking entrepreneur who battled labor and government to make it possible. This excellent history proves that sometimes the simplest answers are the most revolutionary.
4. Brand New: How Entrepreneurs Earned Consumers' Trust from Wedgwood to Dell, by Nancy F. Koehn (2001)
The compelling stories of six admired companies (the others are H.J. Heinz, Marshall Field's, Estée Lauder, and Starbucks) remind us that great brands aren't clever marketing constructs. Rather, they emerge from founders' deep understanding of the worlds they and their customers inhabit.
5. The Dilbert Principle: A Cubicle's-Eye View of Bosses, Meetings, Management Fads, and Other Workplace Afflictions, by Scott Adams (1996)
Managers can learn more from the man with the antigravity tie than from a shelfful of books on organizational dynamics.
The journey of water as it flows upon the earth can be a mirror of our
own paths through life. Water begins its residence on earth as it falls
from the sky or melts from ice and streams down a mountain into a
tributary or stream. In the same way, we come into the world and begin
our lives on earth. Like a river that flows within the confines of its
banks, we are born with certain defining characteristics that govern
our identity. We are born in a specific time and place, within a
specific family, and with certain gifts and challenges. Within these
parameters, we move through life, encountering many twists, turns, and
obstacles along the way just as a river flows.
Setting Goals and Objectives
The difference between where we are (current status) and
where we want to be (vision and goals) is what we do (target objectives and
action plans).
As this statement shows, setting goals and objectives builds on the previous steps of visioning and taking stock. Goals are simply a clearer statement of the visions, specifying the accomplishments to be achieved if the vision is to become real. The target objectives are clearer statements of the specific activities required to achieve the goals, starting from the current status.
At this point, strategic planning
begins to produce lots of ideas and action steps. A common practice for keeping
individual workloads to a manageable level is to delegate different topics to
different teams. For example, there could be a curriculum team, a facilities
team, a budgeting team, etc. A useful tool for keeping track of ideas and
seeing how they relate to each other is the affinity diagram.
Setting SMART Objectives
Nothing happens until we plan and good plans have goals and objectives. Setting goals and objectives correctly provides the necessary support and aids in there achievement. Before we dive into how to go about setting SMART objectives, it’s important to understand that there is a world of difference between goals and objectives.
Goals relate to our aspirations, purpose and vision. For example, I have a goal of becoming financially independent.
Creating a Vision
When you begin the process of
strategic planning, visioning comes first. When visioning the change, ask
yourself, "What is our preferred future?" and be sure to:
Key Components for Your Vision
Incorporate Your Beliefs
Your vision must be encompassed by
your beliefs.
While we all "do a hundred things," we may not/should not/cannot have
more than 2 (or 3)
true "strategic" priorities at any point in time.
--Tom Peters
Thomas Homer-Dixon: The Upside of Down: Catastrophe, Creativity, and the Renewal of Civilization
Adam Kahane: Solving Tough Problems: An Open Way of Talking, Listening, and Creating New Realities
Margaret J Wheatley: Finding Our Way: Leadership for an Uncertain Time
John Briggs: Seven Life Lessons of Chaos: Spiritual Wisdom from the Science of Change
Pema Chodron: When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times
Sam M. Intrator: Leading from Within: Poetry That Sustains the Courage to Lead
Gerald Zaltman: Marketing Metaphoria: What Deep Metaphors Reveal About the Minds of Consumers
Chris Peterson: Leaping The Abyss: Putting Group Genius To Work
Barry Libert: We Are Smarter Than Me: How to Unleash the Power of Crowds in Your Business
Joseph Campbell: The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work (Campbell, Joseph, Works.)
Frederic M., Ph.D. Hudson: The Adult Years: Mastering the Art of Self-Renewal
Michael Watkins: The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels
Bobbi Deporter: Quantum Learning: Unleashing the Genius in You
C. Otto Scharmer: Theory U: Leading from the Future as it Emerges
Howard Sherman: Open Boundaries: Creating Business Innovation Through Complexity
Per Bak: how nature works: The Science of Self-Organized Criticality (Copernicus)
Margaret J Wheatley: Leadership and the New Science: Discovering Order in a Chaotic World
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
Michael J. Gelb: How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day
Christopher Locke: The Cluetrain Manifesto: The End of Business as Usual
Joseph O'Connor: The Art of Systems Thinking: Essential Skills for Creativity and Problem Solving
Peter M. Senge: The Fifth Discipline: The Art & Practice of The Learning Organization
Kevin Kelly: Out of Control: The New Biology of Machines, Social Systems, & the Economic World
Robert S. Kaplan: The Balanced Scorecard: Translating Strategy into Action