The Problem with Positivity (Negative Embedded Commands)

Imagine you’re at a party. You stop in the kitchen to refill your beverage. You find yourself drawn into a conversation. As the evening (and the conversation) progresses, the kitchen fills with more and more people.

Soon it seems as though the rest of the house must be empty! Everyone is in the kitchen!

People gather where there is food. "Cake!" by Kate Russel, Flickr, CC-By-2.0
People gather where there is food and warmth. “Cake!” by Kate Russel, Flickr, CC-By-2.0

I’m sure you’ve noticed — people love to gather in the kitchen at parties. The hearth is the symbolic center of the home, where food and warmth are found. Continue reading “The Problem with Positivity (Negative Embedded Commands)”

10 Things I Learned from “The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive” by Patrick Lencioni

My interest in Persuasion and getting people moving, getting them working and improving, overlaps with business and leadership.

I follow a number of successful entrepreneurs on Twitter. Many of them know that reality is flexible, that we create (and live by) our own limits.

Image "Put your hands up in the air" by Thomas Leuthard, Flickr, CC-By-2.0
Image “Put your hands up in the air” by Thomas Leuthard, Flickr, CC-By-2.0

Inspiring people to push past those self-inflicted limits is one view of Persuasion, and important for any self-starter like yourself.

Another aspect of persuasion, especially in larger businesses, is change management. Continue reading “10 Things I Learned from “The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive” by Patrick Lencioni”

Good Luck? Bad Luck? Who knows?

Once there was a farmer whose frail old horse ran away. The farmer was unable to plow his fields without that old horse. All the people in town were concerned for the old man and his family, asking how he’d be able to handle his bad luck.

The farmer responded, “Bad Luck? Good Luck? Who knows?”

Later in the week, that horse returned with a pack of wild horses. The townspeople were excited for the old man’s fortune.

The farmer responded, “Good Luck? Bad Luck? Who knows?”

The following month was spent breaking the wild horses to work the farm and to sell. During this time, the farmer’s son fell off a horse and broke his leg.

By then everyone knew the farmer’s answer. “Bad Luck? Good Luck? Who knows?”

While the son was healing, the nation went to war. Every able-bodied male was conscripted to fight. The son with the broken leg was allowed to stay home while the neighbors’ sons went off to war.

Good Luck? Bad Luck? Who knows?

Is a flat tire Good luck or Bad luck? Photo "Changing a Tire" by Don O'Brien, Flick, CC-By-2.0
Is a flat tire Good luck or Bad luck?
Photo “Changing a Tire” by Don O’Brien, Flick, CC-By-2.0

We often see life’s events in terms of Good or Bad (or maybe even Good vs. Evil). Continue reading “Good Luck? Bad Luck? Who knows?”