In meetings, we can have the tendency to want to state our point of view first, with enough conviction and with a strength of argument that then shapes the course of the remaining discussion and ultimate conclusion.
Postscript: Don't Ask The Customer What They Want
In my last post, I discussed the importance of not asking your customer what they want, specifically if the goal is to disrupt the market. It was meant as a provocative post to get us thinking about when it makes sense to gauge customers for your next idea versus when it doesn't.
In response, i received some interesting feedback.
Stop Asking Your Customers What They Want
In business today, we are told to believe that the customer is always right.
So surely it makes sense to to ask their opinion, listen to them, and actively respond to their advice with new products, adjustments and enhancements.
Are You Recruiting Your Replacement?
The kind of team you build says a lot about you as a leader. Are you recruiting bodies, performers or the next generation?
If you're recruiting bodies, then you're simply filling seats in order to get people to push paper...
Can You Act Small When You're Big (Part 2)?
In my last post, I asked whether large companies can have the agility of start-ups and smaller companies, if they can operate with the speed and flexibility needed in changing market environments. I also said I had my doubts and that the central driver of this inability to move is risk mitigation.
Can You Act Small When You're Big (Part 1)?
Is it possible to act like a small company within the context of a big company? Is it possible to operate with the agility of a start up when you're team is ensconced within an organization that numbers in the tens of thousands.
Leadership, EQ and Elon Musk
I wanted to share something I read recently, that I found fascinating. In response to an advocacy group report that Tesla's injury rate at one of its plants was higher than the industry average, as well as various initiatives and actions Tesla itself was taking to ensure safety was their number one priority, Elon Musk...
Brass Rings and People Who Don't Matter
I remember, in my early twenties, speaking with a friend of mine who said she was thinking of going back to school. She'd been out for a few years and beginning to rethink her career, so this would have been a big step for her.
Podcast #5 - The Expiry Date of High Performers
This month's podcast focuses on the topic of high performers and interestingly, whether they ever have an expiry date. Is there ever a time to let them go?
This topic was inspired by the debate that has raged on over the last few months around Arsenal Football Club...
Leadership Happens in the Small Moments
When we think of leadership, we often tend to think of it as this larger than life, grand personality characteristic that is essentially an intrinsically developed ability.
The nature of much of the public discourse on the subject is such that it tends to focus on the grand gesture...
Why I Love Bono
Saturday night, I saw U2 perform The Joshua Tree album (and a number of their other big hits) in Chicago.
A great concert from a great band - one that has endured for almost four decades. Not many...
Forget Everyone Else
I want to take on that assignment...but I'm worried my supervisor won't think I'm good enough.
I want to change my look...but I'm afraid I'll get laughed at.
I want to be more vocal about this issue...but I'm concerned that people will be offended.
A Day for Perspective
Memorial Day is not simply a three day weekend. It's a day to honor those who gave their lives in the defense of the United States and its ideals.
It's a day of remembrance. A day to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice.
Podcast #4-From Consulting to Corporate to Private Equity: An Interview with Brian Slobodow Part 2
Welcome back to Part 2 of the Omerisms Podcast and my interview with Brian Slobodow.
In this episode, Brian and I continue our conversation around his experiences in the management consulting industry and where it is headed.
Podcast #4-From Consulting to Corporate to Private Equity: An Interview with Brian Slobodow Part 1
Welcome to Episode 4 of the Omerisms podcast, where I interview interesting people and discuss, explore and debate interesting business, career and personal development topics.
The Waste of Worrying
"I have been through some terrible things in my life...some of which actually happened" (Mark Twain)
How much time have we spent worrying about things that haven't happened, that have little chance of happening, that may never actually happen?
Fight Cynicism - Be an Optimist
I'm an optimist. I'm an idealist. I still believe that we (all of us) should operate from a central basis of doing good, helping others and changing our worlds for the better.
I've been this way all my life and I believe it to be one of my core strengths.
Build On Your Strengths
We tend to spend a lot of time thinking about the things we don't do well. From a young age, we're taught to round out our skills, our capabilities, our abilities.
As we get older, though, we tend to get fixated on our weaknesses. What we don't do well, what we wish we could do better.
Accepting Our Own Private Madness
It probably is illogical to stretch the boundaries of your comfort when you're almost 40, 50, 60, when conventional wisdom says you should stay focused on the sane, straightforward path laid out before you.
Language: "The First Weapon Drawn in a Conflict"
"Language is the foundation of civilization. It is the glue that holds a people together. It is the first weapon drawn in a conflict." (From the movie, Arrival)
Language carries weight and meaning, no matter who we are or what we do.