Food for thought for the Weekend (24-Nov-2018)

Food for thought for the Weekend: My series where I present assorted collection of interesting blog posts, TED talks, podcast and articles I read/listened this week, some quotes that resonated with me, excerpts from my own reading.

6 tactics to turn arguments into real conversations

All conversations are an opportunity to engage and persuade. We can improve relationships and everyday discussions by bringing in formal debate tactics or "productive disagreement", to our own lives, claims the author.

5 ways smart people sabotage their careers

As a people manager for long, nothing is more painful to see smart people go down because of several misconceptions and undermining themselves. This is a great article to check, whether we have fallen into one of those. Good news is that the author has given some remedies too.

Thoughts on Flash - Steve Jobs

Technology enthusiasts will remember the furore Apple create when they said they'd not ship Adobe's Flash on their devices in favour of other technologies like HTML5. At that time time, perhaps 2008 or so, Steve penned this note to give Apple's point of view. Over the years I've read this post several times. It is written in a simple language and so persuasively puts out Apple's view while simultaneously rebutting the claims by Adobe and other pundits. Notice how easy it is for both techies and ordinary consumer to understand the arguments.

Some book recommendations

Though the article talks about these 11 books as an alternate to doing an MBA, I've read and most of them and they all are gems. Take a look.

What RamP's Reading: Nov'18

  

The Power of Now: (Re-read). To make the journey into The Power of Now you need to leave your analytical mind and its false created self, the ego, behind. Access to the Now is everywhere - in the body, the silence, and the space all around you. These are the keys to enter a state of inner peace. They can be used to bring you into the Now, the present moment, where problems do not exist. It is here you find your joy and are able to embrace your true self. It is here you discover that you are already complete and perfect.

So Good They Can't Ignore You: Cal Newport's clearly written manifesto flies in the face of conventional wisdom by suggesting that it should be a person's talent and skill - and not necessarily their passion - that determines their career path. Newport, who graduated from Dartmouth College (Phi Beta Kappa) and earned a PhD from MIT, contends that trying to find what drives us, instead of focusing on areas in which we naturally excel, is ultimately harmful and frustrating to job seekers.

Lateral Thinking: (Re-read). The first practical explanation of how creativity works, this results-oriented bestseller trains listeners to move beyond a "vertical" mode of thought to tap the potential of lateral thinking. This book is about lateral thinking which is the process of using information to bring about creativity and insight restructuring. Lateral thinking can be learned, practiced and used.

Leadership is an Art - A Leader, in summary

The book Leadership is an Art by Max De Pree, is the single book that has had profound influence on my leadership style. I'm fortunate enough to lead some of the most outstanding and humble folks and the ideas of the book has helped me to make a small difference in their lives. I'll share key concepts of the book in a few posts.



In summary, a leader:

• Has consistent and dependable integrity
• Cherishes heterogeneity and diversity. Is open to contrary opinion
• Searches out competence. 
• Leads through serving.
• Communicates easily at all levels. 
• Understands the concept of equity and constantly advocates it
• Is vulnerable to the skills and talents of others.
• Is intimate with the organization and its work. 
• Is able to see broad picture (beyond his own area of focus)
• Can be a tribal story teller
• Is a spokesperson and a diplomat.
• Tells why rather than how.

"Leadership is much more an art, a belief, a condition of the heart, than a set of things to do. The visible signs of artful leadership are expressed, ultimately, in its practice"

Leadership is an Art - Reviewing Performance

The book Leadership is an Art by Max De Pree, is the single book that has had profound influence on my leadership style. I'm fortunate enough to lead some of the most outstanding and humble folks and the ideas of the book has helped me to make a small difference in their lives. I'll share key concepts of the book in a few posts.

Reviewing performance is a time like that, a time to ask what we are trying to do, evaluate how we are doing, and then ask "What's next?". Both the people and the process should be directed towards reaching human potential.

Simply asking questions is another important part of performance reviews. Asking the right questions is a knack that needs working on. Here are some questions:

• Would you be willing to share your philosophy of management with your work team?
• What do you want to do (be)? What are you planning to do about it?
• Who are you? How do you see yourself personally, professionally and organizationally?
• Does need you?
• Do you need ?
• If you were in "my shoes", what one key area or matter you focus on?
• What significant areas are there in the company where you feel you can make a contribution but feel you cannot get a hearing?
• What have you abandoned?
• Do you have any feelings of failure in any particular area?
• What will you do to in the coming year to develop your three highest-potential persons (and who are they)?
• What are the three signals of impending entropy you see? What are you doing about it?

"Leaders, in a special way, are liable for what happens in the future, rather than what is happening day to day". 

Leadership is an Art - Elegance and Completeness

The book Leadership is an Art by Max De Pree, is the single book that has had profound influence on my leadership style. I'm fortunate enough to lead some of the most outstanding and humble folks and the ideas of the book has helped me to make a small difference in their lives. I'll share key concepts of the book in a few posts.

Lacking the last 5 yards of the race, makes the first 95 point-less. Elegant leaders always reach for completeness. Mark of Elegance:

• A complete relationship needs a covenant
• To give one’s time doesn’t always mean giving ones involvement
• Hierarchy provide connections, equality makes the hierarchy responsive
• Opportunity needs to be linked to accountability
• A whale is as unique as a cactus
• When rewards become our goals, we are only pursuing part of our work. Goals are to be pursued
• Rewards complete the process by bringing joy. Leaders are obligated to provide joy

“Our search for elegance, for completeness, for potential, is a search that should never end”

Leadership is an Art: Signs of Entropy

The book Leadership is an Art by Max De Pree, is the single book that has had profound influence on my leadership style. I'm fortunate enough to lead some of the most outstanding and humble folks and the ideas of the book has helped me to make a small difference in their lives. I'll share key concepts of the book in a few posts.

Everything has a tendency to deteriorate. One of the important things leaders need to learn is to recognise the signals of impending deterioration.

Here are some signs of entropy:

• A tendency towards superficiality
• Not having time for celebration and ritual
• Growing feeling that rewards and goals are the same thing
• When problem-makers outnumber problem-solvers
• When pressures of day-to-day ops push aside our concern for vision and risk
• When folks confuse heroes and celebrities
• Leaders who seek to control than liberate, rely on structures instead of people
• Orientation to dry rules, rather than value orientation that takes into account such things as contribution, spirit, excellence, beauty, and joy

“If you and your corporation are committed to being as good as you can be, beware of entropy"

Leadership is an Art - Communication

The book Leadership is an Art by Max De Pree, is the single book that has had profound influence on my leadership style. I'm fortunate enough to lead some of the most outstanding and humble folks and the ideas of the book has helped me to make a small difference in their lives. I'll share key concepts of the book in a few posts.

The best way to communicate common bonds and values is through behavior. Good communication is not simply sending and receiving. The best communication forces you to listen.

The right to know is basic. It is better to err on the side of sharing too much information rather than risk leaving someone in the dark. Communication must be based on logic, compassion, and sound reasoning
Plato said that society cultivates whatever is honored there:

• Communication plays vital role to pass on values to new members and reaffirm those values to old hands

“There may be no single thing more important in our efforts to achieve meaningful work and fulfilling relationships than to learn and practice the art of communication”