Tag: Leadership
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It is the start, not the end.
This quote comes from the book The Field Guide to Understanding Human Error by Sidney Dekker. In it, Dekker explores the “bad apple theory”, whereby our operations and SOP’s are inherently safe except for those few unreliable people working within it. Dekker questions the idea that concluding “human error” is the end of a safety…
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He’s Dead, Jim.
In the original run of the Star Trek television show (1966-69), the writers had a nasty habit of introducing a new character in the episode, usually all part of the security or engineering teams who wore red uniforms. Our heroes would gallivant off to some dangerous planet or situation with these new friends, who subsequently…
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There’s a Rule for Every Conceivable Situation.
“Every Ferengi business transaction is governed by 285 Rules of Acquisition to ensure a fair and honest deal for all parties concerned… well most of them anyway.” It’ll take far too long to explain the Ferengi, The Grand Nagus, and The Rules. Go watch more Star Trek. But nothing says a fictional race of capitalist…
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…I busted him up.
The further I go into my leadership quest, the more I understand this quote from Jean-Luc Picard. Perhaps this is wisdom? “It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose. That is not a weakness, that is life.” Jean-Luc Picard, “Peak Performance” (Star Trek: The Next Generation S2E21) In the episode’s B-plot, the android…
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What I Read in 2024
Ranked in the most visually appealing fashion: Overall Best Read: The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova. This was by far my most enjoyable read of the year. Suggested by multiple freinds, it is now in my “instant recommendation” list. It’s got vampires, history, Eastern Europe, and a story spread over 3 generations. Don’t be scared by…
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Bullseye.
This quote is swiped from a cornerstone moment in the first season of Ted Lasso. Ted builds an entire soliloquy around this quote he attributes to Walt Whitman, using it to teach a life lesson to a series antagonist and to the viewer. It’s so in character for Ted that the quote itself is not…
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Actions speak louder than words.
Read enough books on leadership, listen to enough Ted talks, scroll enough LinkedIn posts, and a common theme appears. According to those sources, leadership is all about action! A sucessful leader is all about doing! Creating! Managing Change! Executing! Responding to things! The funny thing is, if you talk with leaders with strategy and vision…
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If we can’t imagine it, we’ can’t build it.
There’s a number of versions of this quote; I like the commanding tone of this one. When you have a grand idea, the first step is believing it’s possible. Everything after that is just an exercise in figuring out how to do it. If impossible things were fact, there wouldn’t be any innovation.
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Volcanoes are cool. And Hot.
A wonderful quote from Ms. Adventure, the aptly titled quarter-life memoir from geologist, explorer, and science evangelist Jess Phoenix. Go read her book and follow her on all the socials.
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SignPosts: Discord can sound beautiful
In a past life, we used to do weekly office hours meetings. You would open with a song, and then have a few minutes to deliver a message. This particularly week, the message I wanted to deliver was pretty simple: Even in the middle of Chaos, Talented People can produce Extraordinary Things. The song I…