Staying agile in uncertain times

Keep moving, even if just a little

We learn the theory of momentum early. Sit on a stationary bicycle and it falls over. Pedal a little and it stays upright. Once you’re moving, you’ve got some control. You can go straight ahead or change direction. But go faster and the risk rises.

Uncertainty makes staying stopped or accelerating rapidly equally risky. To paraphrase Pink Floyd, no one tells you when to run. Do nothing and you miss the starting gun.

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'I' Vs 'We'

Why one works better than the other

It’s fashionable among motivational speakers and self-help books to push people to ‘own’ things. There’s nothing wrong with the idea. The problem is: exactly what is it they are supposed to ‘own’?

Take this conversation with an executive in a property services company. A customer had overstepped the line, setting up in premises ahead of time and prior to completion of certain tasks the company always required before occupation. Her responsibility was to oversee the transition.

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The case for agnostic management

Do you really know that you could be wrong?

How confusing is the outlook for this year? With so many odd predictions it’s impossible to identify reliable forecasts.  

History tells us most will be wrong. Early last year Amazon announced it would start selling groceries. Some say that’s why Amazon’s share price rose about 40% by Christmas. Yet if you were asked to name a stock that would do even better and you answered old-school grocer Walmart, you’d be right. Amazon had the hype but the facts were that Walmart wasn’t in too bad a shape either.

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The Power of the Near-Deadline Experience

Why accountability works

Accountability certainly gets results. People often complete tasks when they know they must, but even more so when they know someone is watching — whether it’s their manager, shareholders, customers or friends, not to mention spouses. 

It would be nice if we could always couple superior organisational skills with personal integrity and consistently deliver unwatched.

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The simplest growth strategy

Copy and paste

My feet are abnormal. They’re flat, wide, and aging. I use orthotics to ease the pain. Shoe shopping is difficult but I’ve narrowed my choice of stores to Athlete’s Foot and Skechers. There may be others but these two have what I want.  

What’s more, they're international. If I forget to pack my ideal shoes, I can buy them in most countries. My needs can’t be that abnormal because both chains are global successes. There are 1,700 Skechers in 160 countries. The equivalent numbers for Athlete’s Foot are 483 across 27 nations.

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