ChangeThis RSS
"I don't want to do anything to deter anyone from believing there is power in the group, in the network. But it also seems like there is a lot of rhetoric the last few years against the power of one person, against 'hero worship.' Don't get me wrong—I'm not a fan of false, egotistical, self-centered 'heroes' either. But I do believe that the positive social impact one person can create has never been clearer, stronger, and more urgent. Let me explain... "
Continue reading
"Unfortunately, most of us can't be above average—the math just doesn't work. Now clearly, some people are aware that we're below average in some areas of our lives, some may even believe that we're below average on the whole, but overwhelmingly, human beings are a little delusional when it comes to their conception of their own competence.
[...]
This translates to the expectations we place on other people too. In our experience, every CEO or leader we work with extols the virtues of their team. 'We've got the best team in the industry,' they'll often say. Of course, this is pretty unlikely. What they might have is the best team they could afford given the time and budget they've invested in finding them and developing them.
So our delusion is wide spread and for most of us, invisible and unconscious.
So what drives this delusion? What does it cost us? And how can we avoid it?"
Continue reading
"Marx and Engels wrote in their Communist Manifesto of 1848 that 'A spectre is haunting Europe—the spectre of Communism,' which 'the Powers of old Europe' were determined to 'exorcise.' This dogma was exorcised in Eastern Europe in 1989, only to be replaced by another one. Today the world is haunted by the spectre of an 'economic man' and his form of capitalism, seen as the be all and end all of human existence. We shall have to stop the be all before it becomes the end all—of our planet and our progeny."
Continue reading
"70% of people in the workplace in the United States are either not engaged, or are actively disengaged. This results in $450-$550 billion dollars annually in lost profitability, growth, productivity, customer satisfaction, and employee retention. [...]
In spite of the millions of dollars now being spent by companies on improving engagement, and the hoards of consultants who have 'the answer,' whether that is better employee selection or better managers, the reality is that none of those are really making a dent in the problem.
There has to be a better way. I believe there is a better way."
Continue reading
"In the high country of Guatemala, you'll find a self-proclaimed 'Social-preneur' CEO with degrees from Notre Dame and Wharton Business School who is on a mission to solve perhaps the biggest problem Guatemalans face in their everyday lives: unsafe drinking water. And, to accomplish that goal, this modern thinking business leader is using technology used by the ancient Romans, Egyptians, and Mayans, who laboriously used large clay water receptacles that were used to store fresh drinking water. These early versions of the modern filter took a terribly long time to manufacture and it was virtually impossible (and certainly impractical) to replicate on a large enough scale to solve a countrywide water filtration problem. But, after a Guatemalan professor discovered how to efficiently build a modern version of those receptacles and turn them into effective and culturally accepted water filters in a fraction of the time, opportunity came knocking for Ecofiltro CEO Philip Wilson and his company."
Continue reading