It’s Leap Day. A whole extra bonus day! And, yet, it doesn’t feel that way. Here I am finishing my newsletter instead of doing something unusual on this gift we receive only once every four years. Why? Because I didn’t recognize the gift, protect it, and plan ahead to savor it. I could have made this a celebratory day shared with good friends. I didn’t. There is an important lesson in this.
Recently, a colleague called me after reading one of my articles where I introduce my concept of cognitive objects and cognitive processes. The result for me was quite the scolding! “Why aren’t you screaming these concepts from the rooftop?!?!”
Let’s get one thing straight right off the bat. This is not a partisan article. This article is about process. I’m very much a process person and if there is one process I care about, perhaps more than any other, it is our democratic system of government that has kept us safe and prosperous for an impressive number of years.
I had a wonderful time with clients in California recently. We were working on anticipating and preventing problems, a frequently neglected skill that can save companies millions and millions.
If you were striving to walk 10,000 steps, what happened to your motivation when it was reported that the 10,000 step goal was arbitrary, that women who walk 4,000 steps were 40% less likely to die, and that longevity benefits maxed our around 7,500? Did you reduce your goals?
If you think this is an article about finding meaning in your life, you would be wrong. This article is about the companies and organizations where you devote your precious time and energy, and maybe your money as well.
I often help clients make complex and important decisions. Strategic planning, significant changes, and sensitive issues are the main situations where I am brought in. Inevitably, this includes working with a group of leaders who are the decision-makers and whose buy-in is critical to success. My clients are often amazed at how quickly I can extract significant insights and guide a group to critical decisions that they all support with great enthusiasm and commitment. Want to know my secrets?
Every few weeks McKinsey tries to sell me a packet of materials to improve my meetings. These guys are big and ubiquitous. If they were really offering a great solution, I don’t think most meetings would still be so awful. I don’t think people would still be complaining constantly about meetings – both too many meetings and unproductive meetings. Especially from all those companies that have hired McKinsey in the past!