Authenticity is today's buzzword. And like most buzzwords, although it can make sense in many contexts, it is now overused, inappropriately applied, and often plain wrong. Everyone tells leaders to "be authentic". But what if you're a prize arsehole? A sociopath? A bigot? A despot? Will you still take the ...
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There is still a face-off between Purpose and Profit in much of the business press these days. This is counterproductive. If we're looking at businesses (not charities), then they need profit to achieve their purpose. Having a more than bucketload of purpose and less than a thimbleful of profit is ...
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I'm all about the team and the culture. That, to me, is what differentiates businesses, what makes some great, others mediocre, and yet others appalling. But that greatness doesn’t happen without sales, without revenue, without cash and without profit. Sales, profit, revenue and cash are like oxygen. Oxygen doesn’t make ...
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Knowledge is power. I still hear this all the time. Sure there's truth in it, but it's also simplistic and dangerous. Knowledge hoarders are often bottlenecks. Sometimes intentionally so, knowing that being the only people who can do certain things can make them indispensable. For a while at least. Those ...
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I'm always astonished by how many people decide to park their sense of humour outside the office. Work is a serious business. Or rather, work delivers serious results. But we don't have to be over-serious in the process of getting there. I can count on the fingers of one hand ...
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I read Tim Ferriss's 4 hour work week probably a decade ago, and met him when he came to do a reading in London not long after. It was a great book, which had a real impact on my life, including my wife and I taking our 4 kids out ...
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I’ve worked in places where making the numbers right on a spreadsheet meant playing with people’s lives. I’ve also worked in places where supporting people’s lives made the numbers right on the spreadsheet. If you run a business, it’s your choice which way you want to go. It’s your choice ...
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