I heard an interesting point about analytics. Analytics and data are not the same thing. Data is objective, it can be gathered, it is factual. Analytics is the interpretation of the that data, the “analysis” of the facts. Simple, sure. But often confused these days. Data is absolutely valuable. But expecting data to create and… Continue reading Data + Story
Category: Work
Disagree and Commit
This is one of Amazon’s Leadership Principles. It’s also one of the leadership principles that I didn’t connect with when I was at Amazon. I think it had to do with my desire to bring about consensus. To bring about a compromise that would make multiple parties happy. But “Disagree and Commit” is definitely alive… Continue reading Disagree and Commit
You Are More Than Your Job
You are more than your job. But you are the way you do your job. Even if you’re in a job you don’t like. Whether you like that job or not, the way you do the job speaks to who you are. And the way you do your job, is what helps you get the… Continue reading You Are More Than Your Job
More than Your Job Description
Many people want to do more at work. They have ideas of what they would do if they had more time, control or authority. And when changes happen at work that disrupt their norm, when they are asked to do more, they get frustrated and upset that they aren’t getting paid for the extra effort.… Continue reading More than Your Job Description
The Minimum
Often we think in terms of minimums. What is the floor? The least amount of effort in order to get passable results. Results that help us get by. Not praise worthy, but also nothing to get us in trouble. Because, we tell ourselves, we need to save our energy for the things we actually care… Continue reading The Minimum
Driver’s Seat
Often times, in many organizations, groups, gatherings, and jobs we realize one day that there is no one behind the wheel. And so we hear people complain about the bumpy road, the swerving, the myriad of other things that are wrong with this journey but few actually step into the driver’s seat and take responsibility.… Continue reading Driver’s Seat
Convincing and Tipping Points
Getting anyone to do anything they aren’t already doing can be pretty difficult. Trying to get them to do something they don’t want to do, just like trying to convince them to buy something they don’t think they need, is nearly impossible. So selling in this case is going to be hard. Really hard. But… Continue reading Convincing and Tipping Points
Seizing the Opportunity
Seizing opportunities require putting ourselves out there. And sometimes it happens at a point where we’re not ready or not the right fit for the opportunity. But we still need to try. Even when it exposes some of our weaknesses and our shortcomings. It sucks to be told “no”, to get rejected. But the only… Continue reading Seizing the Opportunity
What is your superpower?
This is actually a question that gets asked at Amazon. They tried to have us incorporate this question in our interviews of candidates and also in performance reviews. It’s a simple question and on the surface might even seem a little silly, but is actually an important question to think about. The most obvious goal… Continue reading What is your superpower?
Busyness or Business
Writing out the title of this post, is the first time I actually realized how close the two words “Busyness” and “Business” are. And part of it occurred because I was trying to figure out how to properly spell Busyness, which led me to type Busi-ness. How do we spend most of our time? Especially… Continue reading Busyness or Business