If you think the solution is more rules and less humanity, I fear you will be disappointed by the results. Organizations that can bring humanity and flexibility to their interactions with other human beings will thrive.
One day, I’d like to write a book about the worst ads ever run, but my fear is that it would be too long.
Organizations that can bring humanity and flexibility to their interactions with other human beings will thrive. Why.
Quitting is better than coping because quitting frees you up to excel at something else.
Sonder is defined as that moment when you realize that everyone around you has an internal life as rich and as conflicted as yours.
Focus is a choice. The runner who is concentrating on how much his left toe hurts will be left in the dust by the runner who is focusing on winning. Even if the winner’s toe hurts just as much. Hurt, of course, is a matter of perception. Most of what we think about is. We have a choice about where to aim the lens of our attention.
Or, more accurately, spend all day trying to avoid making a mistake? These are very different things. Defect-free is what people are often in search of. Meeting spec. Blameless.
The fact is, a bigger badge isn’t going to help at all. People aren’t going to follow you because you order them to.
They’re building an asset that has nothing to do with brand and everything to do with their relationship with you.
Amazon appears to be building a permission asset, not a brand asset.
Fear of living without a map is the main reason people are so insistent that we tell them what to do.
On the other hand, when was the last time you heard about someone who stuck with a dead-end job or a dead-end relationship or a dead-end sales prospect until suddenly, one day, the person at the other end said, “Wow, I really admire your persistence; let’s change our relationship for the better”? It doesn’t happen.
Multiply that scenario by one hundred or one thousand books a year. Using permission, Amazon can fundamentally reconfigure the entire book industry, disintermediating and combining every step of the chain until there are only two: the writer and Amazon.
You will fail at this. Often. Why is that a problem? In fact, this is a boon. It’s a boon because when others fail to be remarkable or make a difference or share their art or have an impact, they will give up.
The Dip is the long stretch between beginner’s luck and real accomplishment. The Dip is the set of artificial screens set up to keep people like you out.
I define a factory as an organization that has figured it out, a place where people go to do what they’re told and earn a paycheck.
When we recognize the fraud for what it is, we feel incredibly stupid. Something more than our bank accounts is damaged – our egos are damaged. As a result, it’s almost impossible for the marketer to regain our trust.
Don’t fall in love with a tactic and defend it forever. Instead, decide once and for all whether you’re in a market or not. And if you are, get through that Dip.
The market wants to see you persist. It demands a signal from you that you’re serious, powerful, accepted, and safe.
What They Should Teach in School Only two things: 1. Solve interesting problems 2. Lead SOLVE.