An individual can only accomplish so much. No single person, no matter how well made up and dressed, will look as interesting and beautiful as a group of people performing a lovely dance. The same lesson is true for organizations that want to create ideal results for all involved. They need to act as one, but gain the benefit of combining the efforts of many in nearly flawless ways.
Clearly,...
What do you get when you combine the flavors of individual perfection with organizational flawlessness? It's a recipe for success made in heaven for performance improvements.
Capture this perspective and you'll soon be accomplishing beyond your wildest dreams . . . while working less.
Let me put this message in context: It's an important lesson for those who want to make lots of...
Everyone wants to get everything done that's needed with little effort. Stop fantasizing for a moment, and let's create that reality instead.
With focused effort on creating breakthrough solutions (ways of accomplishing 20 times more with the same time, effort, and resources), you can turn those daydreams into everyday results.
The steps for creating a breakthrough solution are listed...
Carpenters have a rule of thumb: Measure twice; cut once.
Careful carpenters take that one step further and measure three times before cutting.
However, either approach can be inadequate if the carpenter chooses to measure from the wrong plan. You can't make an eight foot door from a plan for a seven foot door.
In this essay, you'll find out ways to pick the right measurements, ones...
What do you do at the end of a long, trying work day? If you are like many people, watching television after dinner will be a way to relax and restore energy before another work day dawns.
Bill Kempen was having just such a peaceful evening of television watching when he suddenly realized that at 58 he was wasting his time with such viewing: He could surely be doing something more...
Master investor Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, has a simple test for making an investment: Would he buy and hold the whole business at that price for the next several decades? Using careful measurements of what a private investor would pay for such a business, he makes a judgment of whether there's enough of a bargain compared to the business's value to warrant an investment.
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If you fell off a boat, would you wait to decide what to do or would you immediately try to get back on board? I hope the latter would be your choice.
Let's look at how a bias for action works in a business setting. Here's a problem for you to consider:
Bill Gates has just checked into your hotel with his whole entourage. This is the publicity breakthrough you've been waiting for.
...
When I was in college, I worked for the university's alumni magazine keeping the mailing list current. There were so many rules for when something could or couldn't be done that it often took seven of us to figure out what to do. Even then, mistakes would occur.
It was nerve-wracking to say the least.
Later, I had a chance to oversee the process and limited the rules to one: Use...
Successful people feel like they are automatically understood. But they seldom are.
Here's an example: According to Hollywood legends, Mr. Cecil B. DeMille spared no expense to part the Red Sea for his epic production of The Ten Commandments. Actors, engineers, horses, and assorted other animals were everywhere. The dust, heat, and noise were ferocious.
Finally, everyone was ready to go...
For most people and in most organizations, dangerous beliefs destroy most opportunities for 20 times greater accomplishments. In this article, I will expose some of the worst beliefs to avoid and explain ways to avoid all dangerous beliefs.
When the CEO Speaks, People Take Action
Management authority Peter Drucker told me that one of the most dangerous beliefs in organizations is that an...
