How (And When) to Motivate Yourself
I woke up this morning to pouring rain and temperatures in the low 40s. I had planned on going for an early bike ride in Central Park but now I wasn't so sure. I like to get some exercise every day and given my commitments for the rest of the day, this was my only opportunity. But did I really want to get so wet and cold? I decided to go for it, though I continued to question myself as I put on my biking clothes and got my bike out of the basement.
A Story About Motivation
I was walking back to our apartment in Manhattan, the hood of my jacket pulled tight to keep the rain out, when I saw an older man with a walker struggle to descend the slippery stairs of his building. When he almost fell, I and several others went over to help. There was an Access-A-Ride van (a Metropolitan Transit Authority vehicle for people with disabilities) waiting for him. The driver was inside, warm and dry, as he watched us straining to help his passenger cross the sidewalk in the pouring rain
How to Make Solving Problems Fun
When my friend Richard asked me to join him in training for a triathlon, I carefully considered his request. For about a second. "No way." "Oh, come on. Why not?" "Because I've raced triathlons before. They're painful.
Use Salesmanship to Energize Your Organization
What do Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, and Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, have in common? Not only are both shrewd businessmen who have increased the net worth of their respective organizations substantially, both serve as de facto CSOs, "chief sales officers." Jones personally makes sales presentations to prospects interested in the luxury suites at the brand-new $1.2 billion Cowboy Stadium. During one pitch, Jones punctuated his spiel with a combination of charm and Cowboy lore . Ballmer is the relentless sales leader for Microsoft who once exhorted his sales staff so vigorously that he injured his vocal chords. Today he is more subdued, but is always pushing the Microsoft brand at conferences, media events, and to customers.
Ask Three Questions to Clarify Expectations
Leave it to a comedian to invert perceptions of the leader-follower dynamic. Jon Stewart recently asked chief White House economic adviser Austan Goolsbee "Is [the President] going to impeach us?" After all, Stewart mused, might the unpopularity of the President's health care reform be due to people's failure to follow rather than the President's ability to lead? While Stewart, as host of Comedy Central's The Daily Show , was being funny, there is truth in his comments about the leader-follower relationship; both sides have roles to play. Leaders must work hard to explain their initiatives and create conditions for people to succeed when they implement them.
How to Manage Your High-Performing Team
The fire chief is clearly displeased. He angrily upbraids his firefighting team for disregarding his direct order to evacuate a building that was on the verge of exploding. The firemen had their reasons for doing what they did, but in overriding direct orders they put themselves and their unit in added danger. Notably as the chief is chastising the team, he makes it clear that he considers the unit to be among the very best at what it does.
Don't Live in a Half-Built House
There is something curious about a group of houses in Utah. They're falling apart. Windows covered with wood. Roofs patched with blue tarp, blowing in the wind. Walls simply missing.
Free comedy for out-of-work
Oddly coiffed US comedian and Tonight Show host Jay Leno has shown his heart of gold by putting on a free stand-up performance in an area particularly badly hit by the recession. Leno took his distinctive brand of 'humour' to Wilmington, Ohio, as part of his 'Comedy Stimulus' tour
