Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Why We Need WikiLeaks

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Saturday, July 10, 2010

Studies Show that Carrot-Stick Incentives Don't Work

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Sunday, July 4, 2010

The Tree of Liberty Must be Refreshed


Thomas Jefferson said, after Shay's Rebellion,...

“I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical. Unsuccessful rebellions, indeed, generally establish the encroachments on the rights of the people, which have produced them. An observation of this truth should render honest republican governors so mild in their punishment of rebellions, as not to discourage them too much. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government.”
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Thursday, July 1, 2010

Ricardo Semler: Revolutionizing the Business Model

Ricardo Semler is a revolutionary in the business world. For centuries we have improved and evolved our government, technology, science, etc., but the structure of businesses has hardly changed at all. All of that changed when Ricardo Semler proved to the world that he could create a democratic business with record profits, record growth, and happy workers.





Favorite quotes:
"When you look at your past and my past and anybodies past and say, 'When did I actually learn something' it was when you were very interested at the exact moment and there was somebody who was passionate on the other side--never in any other situation."
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How Will You Measure Your Life?

I recently read this article by Clayton Christiansen out of Harvard entitled, “How will you measure your life?” It is what he tells his students on the final day of his class.

One of the items that he mentions sticks out to me. It reads as follows:

“One of the theories, . . . . . how to be sure we find happiness in our careers—is from Frederick Herzberg, who asserts that the powerful motivator in our lives isn’t money; it’s the opportunity to learn, grow in responsibilities, contribute to others, and be recognized for achievements. I tell the students about a vision of sorts I had while I was running the company I founded before becoming an academic. In my mind’s eye I saw one of my managers leave for work one morning with a relatively strong level of self-esteem. Then I pictured her driving home to her family 10 hours later, feeling unappreciated, frustrated, underutilized, and demeaned. I imagined how profoundly her lowered self-esteem affected the way she interacted with her children. The vision in my mind then fast-forwarded to another day, when she drove home with greater self-esteem—feeling that she had learned a lot, been recognized for achieving valuable things, and played a significant role in the success of some important initiatives. I then imagined how positively that affected her as a spouse and a parent. My conclusion: Management is the most noble of professions if it’s practiced well. No other occupation offers as many ways to help others learn and grow, take responsibility and be recognized for achievement, and contribute to the success of a team. More and more [people think] that a career in business means buying, selling, and investing in companies. That’s unfortunate. Doing deals doesn’t yield the deep rewards that come from building up people."

I’m sure you can see why it sticks out.