DrContrarian

I can't recall ever having met, or knowing someone who has not been diminished by participating in the being of a Corporation. Even as people are promoted... they are criticised in some way. Some type of change is always required, from everyone. And what is perfectly acceptable (even admired) behaviour today, is out of favour tomorrow. It is especially evident when you separate from the organisation. Those who are diminished the most often take the lead in unraveling your legacy. Who is there that has never hand 'an issue' to deal with? No one, methinks.

Be secure in the knowledge that all humans have insecurity in common. The two biggest money-making sectors on the internet (porn and self-help) tap into this limitless pool of opportunity. (And any business model that does this, will succeed.)

Societies that are homogeneous will tend to mediocrity. Conversely, the tensions caused by differences between groups of people in multicultural societies, is the force for growth and improvement. Ergo: multiculturalism might be the tough option, but it is the good option.

I thought I would shut this down. But since my official blog is pretty dry affair with lots of tips and hints on business/ retail productivity - I find that I miss the opportunity for the occasional rant. I think I will come back here from time to time. For no, this insight: Ignorance + Arrogance = Toxic workplace culture.

It really grates when people have to qualify what they say with 'to be honest...' I reckon you should just be honest, right? I wrote a review of a book (Selling: Powerful New Strategies for Sales Success) that I bought (on Amazon ) recently. It was written by Kevin Hogan et al - someone whom I follow closely on the net, and whom I admire for subject knowledge as well as marketing savvy. I gave it 2 stars. Seventeen other reviewers averaged 5 stars. Should I have been brutally honest? (See previous post.) Is that really what is wanted in 'comments' sections? Is that the right forum? If I can't write a better book, do I have the right to criticise? How many of the 5-star comments are seeded by friends and fans and how many are genuine? Having said all of that, I thought the book did offer a few nuggets that are worth the $20 -odd bucks spent on it. But then again, I think any book on the planet represents great value, because one sentence could change your life.

As part of the research that I am doing on a book that I am writing, I get to interview some really successful entrepreneurs. Today I conducted an interview at which I actually got a perspective on a very old concept - delegation - that I had never thought of. (Those of you who know me well, will know how rarely that happens :-)) We spoke about that hoary old notion of working IN the business vs. working ON the business. We shared a contrarian view - but he basically saw it as delegation. Then he raised the idea that when you (owner/manager) delegate a task, you are giving away a problem, but the person to whom you are delegating receives trust and respect and stature. WOW! Think about that next time...

Attended a session today on networking skills. I wanted to test whether my understanding of networking was the same as most other people. So it is only fair to say what I believe: Networking is not about selling. Networking is not about building your profile. Networking is not about gathering as many leads as possible. IMHO, networking should be about giving as much as you can. You attend these functions to meet other people – and try and help them as much as you reasonably can – if not at that moment, down the track. (Assuming of course they are worthy of your referral.) I believe the more you give, the more you will get in return. But here is the catch: you can not do so with the expectation of getting it back. (There is fine line between knowing you will get something back and expecting it.] To be fair to the presenter and this particular model, it was pretty close. Selling and lead-gathering was suitably de-emphasized. The whole approach was one of the least cynical ...