Sometimes I’m convinced that the most successful businesses have no idea what they’re doing. Oh sure, if you asked an executive about their strategy, he or she would probably give you whatever is in their planning document verbatim, but I think that’s crap. I think they’re telling you what they believe to be the truth but in fact may only be accurate in their minds for that moment. Instead, I think the most successful companies are masters of dealing with the utter chaos of the business world and not being too anchored to any one detail of a plan. Yes, planning is important, but so is reality, and that often means dealing with something for which we had no plan. So why bother planning? Continue reading
Category Archives: Thinking Aloud
Creative Thinkering
One of the nice things about writing the daily screed is that sometimes I get asked to read new books and offer my thoughts about them. I received a copy of a book called “Creative Thinkering” by Michael Michalko, who has written another book – Thinkertoys – which has been listed as one of the “100 Best Business Books” of all times and which I enjoyed.
Since looking at business from a different perspective is one of the things we often discuss here, I thought you might find what he has to say of interest. Here are a few points he makes in the book for your consideration: Continue reading
Filed under Helpful Hints, Thinking Aloud
Nanny’s Matzoh Balls
This Foodie Friday, I want to share something I discovered from my grandmother, who knew very little about cooking and even less about business. Nevertheless, I came upon something the other day which is instructive in both areas. We bought a GroupOn to have some videotapes transferred to DVD and are in the process of going through the old stuff to make sure that what we’re sending isn’t just hours of babies laying about (which a lot of it is, not surprisingly). At one point during some family gathering, my grandmother is asked about making matzoh balls and how she did it. The answer? Continue reading
Filed under food, Growing up, Thinking Aloud
Consult Keith 