I had two conversations yesterday, first with Dimitri in Starbucks then later with my friend Al (his blog on improving web conversion) on the telephone where we spoke about how goals can actually damage effectiveness. Wanting too much = desperation = we push people away. Not wanting at all = we say no = people … Read more
A friend of mine, Roger, asked me “Why do you call the blog The Rhetorical Journey?”. I am a fan of U2. I have been since I was 10 years old. On the album “Rattle and Hum” there is a recording of an interview between a journalist and Bono and The Edge of U2. The … Read more
How can I get through the obstacles to something better on the other side? Aimee Mullins was born without her fibular bones, the smaller of the bones connecting knee to ankle. The doctor had to tell her parents that she was disabled, had to amputate what was left of her legs and tell her parents … Read more
This question is really a game. Here is how it works: Relate a story of a time when you’ve made a mistake. Retell the story while only relating the actual mistake (without justification). The question is, “Why might it be difficult to do just Step 2?” I read Leadership and Self-Deception and The Anatomy of … Read more
Warren Buffett gave a talk to a group of MBA students at the University of Florida in 2007. The video is at the bottom of this post (on the blog). He starts with an interesting question. He says [2:30] “Think for a moment that I granted you the right to buy 10% of the future … Read more
I was on the Air Europa flight back from Madrid sat with JC Duarte and Manuel Vidal-Quadras. At a certain point we watched as JC pulled up an impressive iPhone application that allows him to track his time. This led to a discussion about how to be effective with time. I feel that I am … Read more
Are some people born lucky? Richard Wiseman, author of Quirkology, describes a number of psychological experiements that he has conducted to understand the role and roots of luck in people’s lives. In each case, people were asked to self-evaluate their level of luck prior to the experiments, allowing Richard to create 2 groups – the … Read more
JK Rowling gave the Harvard commencement speech in 2008. I love the way she wins over the audience by speaking about her own life. She speaks powerfully about the greatest lessons that she has learnt – always from her failures. What would JK tell her 21 year old self? “Life is not a checklist; a … Read more
I was at the Sydney Cricket Ground yesterday and sat in the crowd with my friend Maurice. We watched Ricky Ponting and his Australia team score 267 runs against the Pakistan team on an overcast but warm day – perfect temperature for sitting outside. Maurice shared with me three pearls of wisdom that had been … Read more
Take a look around you. Take a look at the people you work with, the people you meet at parties, even the people you just casually pass in the street. How do they spend their days? Most of them work. They do some other activities as well. They sleep, eat, cook, hang out with friends, … Read more