How to Spread Kindness in Your Community
Many years ago I presented at the University of British Columbia’s Student Leadership Conference (it’s one of the largest conferences in North America). I focused on straightforward tips on how to spread kindness in your community at school, at work…
Total Football and Generalism
I’m reading Tribal by Michael Morris (it’s good) and the book begins with an analysis for “Total Football”. In the 1970s, the Dutch national soccer team transformed the sport with a philosophy where any outfield player could seamlessly assume the…
Two Cool AI Prompts that Support Collaboration and Development
Artificial Intelligence, particularly generative AI and large language models like ChatGPT and Copilot, have arrived. These chisels and calculators of their time are being met and used with curiosity, inspiration, worry, and pretty much all the gamut of sensation. I…
How Language Creates and Erodes Interdependence
I agree with Batman that our actions matter more than who we are underneath because actions reveal our true character. I also notice how much language influences who leaders are and what we stand for. I notice this the most…
How the Economics of Friendship Shape Work and Life
Friendship is a fundamental and universal human need. This form of social connection cultivates mutual affection, trust, interdependence, and joy. According to one of modern social science’s longest ongoing studies, the social connections of friendship enrich and even extend our…
Three Ways to Rebalance Power in Meetings
Meetings are a necessary evil in most workplaces. Even though meetings are supposed to enable information sharing, facilitate decision making, and foster meaningful connections, we probably feel the soul-destroying experience of poorly managed meetings at least once a week. According…
Five Professional Lessons from Captain America: Civil War
Last Friday night Kurt and I saw Captain America: Civil War. The summer’s hottest movie taught us a lot about international diplomacy, teamwork, spandex, friendship, and ourselves, too. Here are five professional lessons from Captain America: Civil War that you can…
Four Lessons in Interdependency from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
In their excellent book, Laziness Does Not Exist, Dr. Devon Price argues that the myth of the heroes journey highlights how individualistic problem-solving and world/galaxy-saving is wrongly elevated in pop culture. While I take issue with some of Price’s examples (the…
Five Ways to Cultivate Dissent on Your Team
Creating a culture of dissent on your team will enhance performance and effectiveness.
Five Ways to Connect Your Workplace
The purpose of so many organizational teams, like innovation labs, and startup ecosystems, like Silicon Valley, is to disrupt the status quo. I’ve written about why we need to disrupt our workplaces and how to do it. The thing is…