I'm spending a lot of time right now working with a couple different non-profit organizations on restructuring projects (not Connor's House in case you were wondering, we are still working on structuring...too soon for restructuring). One of the people I am working with sent me this quote by Peter Drucker on managing change which I thought was worth sharing.
“One cannot manage change. One can only be ahead of it. In a period of upheavals, such as the one we are living in, change is the norm. To be sure, it is painful and risky, and above all it requires a great deal of very hard work. But unless it is seen as the task of the organization to lead change, the organization will not survive. In a period of rapid structural change, the only ones who survive are the change leaders. A change leader sees change as an opportunity. A change leader looks for change, knows how to find the right changes, and knows how to make them effective both outside the organization and inside it. To make the future is highly risky. It is less risky, however, than not to try to make it. A goodly proportion of those attempting to will surely not succeed. But predictably, no one else will.”
I wonder...
I wonder...what is God thinking about today (for those of you not familiar with the judeo-christian calendar today is the first night of passover which is also the night Jesus was betrayed and the day before he was crucified)?
I know what I think about around the anniversary of Connor's death. I replay the events in my mind over and over and over. Wondering. Questioning. Crying. The memories are so vivid. The emotions are so intense and raw. It feels like it happened yesterday.
I wonder...does God still replay the events of those fateful days, almost 2000 years ago, over and over in His mind? Does He still wonder, question and cry; wishing it could have all ended differently for His son?
I wonder...
I know what I think about around the anniversary of Connor's death. I replay the events in my mind over and over and over. Wondering. Questioning. Crying. The memories are so vivid. The emotions are so intense and raw. It feels like it happened yesterday.
I wonder...does God still replay the events of those fateful days, almost 2000 years ago, over and over in His mind? Does He still wonder, question and cry; wishing it could have all ended differently for His son?
I wonder...
Asking the right questions
The following is a real interchange that I witnessed this morning at breakfast:
If they only had cheese danish why in the world would she ask the customer what type of danish they wanted? Instead when the customer asks for a danish simply say: sure would cheese be OK?
If you want to keep your customers happy learn how to ask questions that make them feel like they are in control while steering them toward selections that you can accommodate.
Waitress: What can I get for you?I'm sure the waitress meant well but somebody needs to teach her how to ask questions that keep customers happy instead of questions that result in unmet expectations.
Customer 1: Do you have danish?
Waitress: Yes, what type would you like?
Customer 1: How about cheese?
Waitress: OK
Waitress: And what can I get for you (to the next person at the table)?
Customer 2: I would like a danish also.
Waitress: What type would you like?
Customer 2: Apple.
Waitress: I'm sorry we only have cheese danish today.
Customer 2: (a little quizzically) um, OK, cheese is fine.
If they only had cheese danish why in the world would she ask the customer what type of danish they wanted? Instead when the customer asks for a danish simply say: sure would cheese be OK?
If you want to keep your customers happy learn how to ask questions that make them feel like they are in control while steering them toward selections that you can accommodate.
The service you didn't know you needed
Even after working in the IT field for so many years I am typically a late adopter of new technology. Partly because I try to keep my life simple and I am not at all convinced that technology always helps with that. Also because over the years I have started using too many new technologies that have eventually been discontinued and then I have to find a replacement so I now wait to see who the survivors are going to be before jumping in. Well Twitter is one of those technologies. It seems like it is likely here to stay but I am still not convinced it is going to improve my life. The following is an interview from the Colbert Report last week with the co-founder of Twitter. It is hilarious and Colbert does a brilliant job of pointing out all the issues I have with Twitter.
Simplicity - Part 3
There are lots of different areas that the concepts of simplicity can be applied to: Organizational Design, Systems, Product Design, Architecture, Personal Life (including: finances, belongings and behaviors), etc..
For many years simplicity was out of vogue. For most of the past decade bigger was better and shiny and new were the rule. However over the past twelve months simplicity is making a comeback driven largely by the current economic crisis. Why? Because complexity is costly and inefficient so people are streamlining their lives both personally and professionally.
What are you doing to simplify?
Simplicity - Part 1
Simplicity - Part 2
For many years simplicity was out of vogue. For most of the past decade bigger was better and shiny and new were the rule. However over the past twelve months simplicity is making a comeback driven largely by the current economic crisis. Why? Because complexity is costly and inefficient so people are streamlining their lives both personally and professionally.
What are you doing to simplify?
Simplicity - Part 1
Simplicity - Part 2
I'll Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse
I recently finished I'll Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse by Micheal Franzese for the Thomas Nelson BRB project. What can I say, being from New Jersey how could I refuse the opportunity to review a business book written by an ex-mobster.
I actually listened to the book instead of reading it because it was published under the Nelsonfree imprint (and I spent six hours in the car last weekend). More on that here.
In I'll Make You An Offer, Franzese effectively relates extremely practical business and leadership lessons learned through his life in the mob, using engaging stories and cautionary tales, all without glorifying the life of crime he led. In fact, in contrast to all the get rich quick schemes that fill the business shelves today, Franzese was refreshingly straight forward about the consequences of taking shortcuts in business or life.
Unlike most business and leadership books on the best seller list there were no quick fixes offered or 10 step processes to follow. Instead Franzese focuses on the hard work and dedication required to prepare you for success. Rather than quoting Welch, Gates, Buffet, Jobs or any other modern day business titan, Franzese reaches much further back for his business and leadership wisdom.
Listening to Franzese compare and contrast Solomon with Machiavelli causes you to see these men in a different light and think outside the box regarding where you look for leadership lessons.
If you like to be entertained while you learn, I'll Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse is worth the read (or listen).
I actually listened to the book instead of reading it because it was published under the Nelsonfree imprint (and I spent six hours in the car last weekend). More on that here.
In I'll Make You An Offer, Franzese effectively relates extremely practical business and leadership lessons learned through his life in the mob, using engaging stories and cautionary tales, all without glorifying the life of crime he led. In fact, in contrast to all the get rich quick schemes that fill the business shelves today, Franzese was refreshingly straight forward about the consequences of taking shortcuts in business or life.
Unlike most business and leadership books on the best seller list there were no quick fixes offered or 10 step processes to follow. Instead Franzese focuses on the hard work and dedication required to prepare you for success. Rather than quoting Welch, Gates, Buffet, Jobs or any other modern day business titan, Franzese reaches much further back for his business and leadership wisdom.
Listening to Franzese compare and contrast Solomon with Machiavelli causes you to see these men in a different light and think outside the box regarding where you look for leadership lessons.
If you like to be entertained while you learn, I'll Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse is worth the read (or listen).
Little Details - Part 2
Little details are not just for hi-tech companies.
For two years my son Connor had a double lumen broviac catheter through which he received medication and IV nutrition. The two ends of the catheter were color coded blue and yellow to signify the size of each lumen. Over time Connor became VERY protective of his central line and gave each side a name. Thomas was the blue lumen and Ben the yellow. They were named after two of the trains in the Thomas the Tank Engine series.
On multiple occasions Connor needed his line replaced due to infection. Sometimes he required a temporary line to be placed to allow the infection to clear prior to the new broviac line being placed. One time, during the procedure to insert the temporary line the intensive care doctor, Dr. Chopra, recognized that the temporary line had blue and white ends instead of blue and yellow ends like his regular line. Having spent enough time getting to know Connor to understand that this would be a problem, Dr. Chopra took the time, while Connor was still under sedation, to wrap surgical tape around the white end and color it yellow so when Connor woke up he would have his Thomas and Ben. I cannot tell you how much that meant to a sick 8 year old boy and his parents. The Little Details make all the difference.
For two years my son Connor had a double lumen broviac catheter through which he received medication and IV nutrition. The two ends of the catheter were color coded blue and yellow to signify the size of each lumen. Over time Connor became VERY protective of his central line and gave each side a name. Thomas was the blue lumen and Ben the yellow. They were named after two of the trains in the Thomas the Tank Engine series.
On multiple occasions Connor needed his line replaced due to infection. Sometimes he required a temporary line to be placed to allow the infection to clear prior to the new broviac line being placed. One time, during the procedure to insert the temporary line the intensive care doctor, Dr. Chopra, recognized that the temporary line had blue and white ends instead of blue and yellow ends like his regular line. Having spent enough time getting to know Connor to understand that this would be a problem, Dr. Chopra took the time, while Connor was still under sedation, to wrap surgical tape around the white end and color it yellow so when Connor woke up he would have his Thomas and Ben. I cannot tell you how much that meant to a sick 8 year old boy and his parents. The Little Details make all the difference.
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