Creating a Giving Culture at Work

You’ve all been asked to support various causes at work. Maybe it’s been your co-worker’s child’s softball team or the current company cause. These are all great, assuming they are in alignment with the company values and policies and truly assist someone or some organization … Read more

Is America Out of Ideas??

I have seen a couple of interesting articles recently about innovation and whether or not America is “tapped out” in the realms of creativity and invention. The first was “Is America Out of Ideas?” by Daniel Gross. The second was, “Cultural Revolution,” from The Economist. … Read more

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

On a recent business trip to the East Coast, I was struck with how each company involved was successful but in very different ways from one another. While on the trip, I also ran across this article that basically throws out a lot of commonly … Read more

Disruption: Good or Bad?

When thinking about disruption, I think we automatically associate “bad” with the term. We believe a disruption is something out of the ordinary, or something that requires attention or change. When we look at dictionary.com, one of the definitions is: “ e.g. The news disrupted … Read more

Why Stories Work in Business

When trying to explain your product or service to someone, do you rely on a conversation about features and benefits? Conventional marketing wisdom says this is important to do. However, a recent Lifehacker article explains why this might NOT be the best way to engage … Read more

What’s In a Name?

It turns out, quite a bit. Just look at all the excitement this week about the name of the new royal baby. More than $2.4MM+ was bet in the UK alone about what it would be. In this case, history and continuity into the future … Read more

Strategy and Goals Before Culture?

Found an interesting read in Sunday’s Seattle Times about Steve Ballmer’s new strategy for Microsoft, a major reorg “designed to increase collaboration and speed innovation as the company transitions to a devices-and-services company.” Ballmer has identified collaboration as a priority, and that to get there … Read more

Productivity Cycles and Creativity

In a recent post in Fast Company, writer Drake Baer talks about 90 minute productivity cycles and why we need to unplug to be our most effective. He references the “rest-activity cycle” that researchers have found to be the basis for an optimum night’s sleep, … Read more