Contemplations

As regular readers know, I like to both quote people and opine on these quotations. This week I am going to do something a bit different. I have four pieces of wisdom for you to contemplate without any help from me. I found these in the pile of things I...

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Victoria Kabange is on Fire!

“I’m on fire! There is something burning inside me. When I remember where I came from and where I am now, I feel a fire!” Victoria Kabonge, Masanafu Uganda. What lit the flame for Kabonge? Street Business School, an organization that teaches women in poverty (less than $3.10/day) the skills...

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True Responsibility

“She possesses qualities which I—and I suspect the majority of my readers—wish we, and especially our leaders, possessed. The greatest of those is that Honor Harrington takes responsibility for her actions, yes, but it goes further than that, because she assumes the responsibility of fixing other people’s problems, not...

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“You’re Fired!”

Why did Dillon Reagan hear these words from his boss at Home Depot? He ”broke a safety regulation by leaving the store to assist police while he was still on duty.” And why did he do this terrible thing? He witnessed a man assault a woman, snatch her child from...

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Blood Money

A recent article in Axios described a CEO who was “pressed to resign” who “thought about resigning” but who ultimately “didn’t see ‘running away from a challenge’ as the “right solution”. On the face of it, this sounds like a leader buckling down and deciding to try and fix a...

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The Phone Test

One evening a few months back, I was sitting in an audience listening to a famous person share his wisdom on how we could create a fantastic user experience for our clients and customers. And he was boring me to death… He had me tapping my feet and daydreaming as...

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Appreciative Inquiry

Some time ago I met with Daryl Travis, founder of the research and strategy firm Brandtrust. It was an enlightening experience. I came away with a deeper understanding of how organizations build a powerful brand and what they must do every day to strengthen it. Some of you have...

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Beware Unintended Consequences

China aims to dominate the production of electric vehicles, and the battery industry that powers them. It already has the world’s largest domestic electric vehicle market. For some people, China’s coming out on top of two such huge and important industries is a scary thought. But others, like me,...

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