Newsletter
Subscribe to the Newsletter
Subscribe to RSSPrevious Newsletters
- October 2011 — The Four Horsemen of Business Failure
- September 2011 — The Illusion of Control
- August 2011 — Goof Gas Change
- July 2011 — Sir CEO and the Green Knight
- June 2011 — The Efficient Lightbulb
- May 2011 — When Trees Attack
- April 2011 — What Big Picture?
- March 2011 — Blofeld School of Management
- February 2011 — Real Science Fiction
- January 2011 — Why Do They Keep Doing That?
- Suggestions
If you have a particular topic you would like to see addressed in a future newsletter, please email your suggestions to steve@7stepsahead.com.
January 2012 — For the New Year, Create a Bigger Problem
"What happens when you can't break the problem down?"
I often work with businesses to help them break complex problems into smaller, simpler problems that can be solved. Sometimes, though, that doesn't work. Sometimes, the problem just won't break down in any useful way. Sometimes, the problem simply appears intractable. At times like that, I find it's often helpful to remember the advice of President Dwight Eisenhower: when you can't solve a problem, make it bigger.
December 2011 — Make a Decision
"Daddy, can I have that?"
As the holidays approach, a familiar refrain is heard. More common than Jingle Bells or other traditional Christmas music are the unending requests from children for various toys. Even for those who do not have young children, there is the pressure of deciding what gifts to get for family and friends. Indeed, in one sense, the parents of young children have it easy: their kids are at least telling them what they want. Of course, if all the kids got all the toys they asked for, we'd be able to pay off the national debt about fifty times over. Since very few people have that sort of money, a certain level of decision making still needs to take place.
Although web-based retailers have certainly removed a great deal of the terror normally associated with holiday shopping, nonetheless it remains an oddly exhausting activity. An hour of shopping on Amazon.com may not leave us battered, bruised, or pepper-sprayed by over-eager shoppers, but it can still leave us feeling like our brains have turned to jelly and are dripping out our ears. Not only does this lead to some very odd looking stains on our shoulders, it can also be very hard to focus on much of anything else. Attempting to put off the e-shopping is even worse. In many cases, the effort of not shopping can be more exhausting than the shopping itself! When it finally happens, the shopping experience is all the more, let us say, poignant.
So what is going on here anyway? How can a few mouse clicks be so draining?
November 2011 — Force of Nature Change
"What are the odds of a snow day in October?"
This was my response to my kids telling me how wonderful it would be if school were to close on Halloween. Not only would they have more time to finish their costumes, but they were imagining the fun of an extended afternoon and evening of trick-or-treating.
While it may not be nice to fool Mother Nature, the converse is apparently not true. Here in the northeast, we got a Halloween snowstorm. Not only did schools close on Halloween, they closed for the next two days as well. So much for the odds.
But Mother Nature's little treat quickly revealed itself as a trick: due to downed trees and power lines, Halloween was postponed, and ended up being the evening of a school day after all.
If you are interested in reprinting one of these articles or having a new article written for your publication, please contact us for more information.
