You’re making me sad
"You're making me sad," my son said accusingly last night as I refused him a cookie before dinnertime. With a three-year-old, it's easy to see that I had no intent to upset him, nor could…
Agency life
Five ways to fail a job interview
I’ve interviewed hundreds of job candidates. Going into an interview, I want the interviewee to get the job, to be ‘the one’. But the law of averages says that’s unlikely. Most candidates make the same…
The eight words managers should use most often
As a manager you’ll have to deal with a wide variety of situations. Here are the words you should find yourself using most often: Well done – give positive feedback often. Be generous with your…
Do the things you hate
We hear a lot about following your passion. Doing what you love. And why would you do anything else if you want a satisfying and successful life? At the career-level this is good advice. But…
Do the hardest thing first
What's the first thing you do when you sit down at your desk in the morning? If you are like most people, it's fire up your email and get to work on the priorities it…
Most of what you do is pointless
In 1906, Italian sociologist and economist Vilfredo Pareto discovered that 80% of Italy’s land was owned by 20% of its population. This Power Law, which later came to bear his name, is now a common…
The role of brute force in project management
Sometimes the only way to get the lid off a jam jar is through brute force. Sure, you can hold it under hot water or use a cloth to get better purchase, but ultimately what…
The power of No
The only way to grow a business, to reach a goal or to make something important happen is to say 'Yes'. 'Yes' is one of the most powerful, affirming words in our vocabulary. Everything that…
Meet your own standards
One of the side-effects of multitasking, is that we end up with too many tasks. We take on more than we can deliver to a high standard. Instead we skim across the top of each…
Do performance incentives really work?
In his excellent book, Drive, Daniel Pink suggests that performance rewards do not work for creative activities. Our motivation for tasks we find intrinsically enjoyable is actually decreased by the presence of a reward for…