Identify Leaders by Giving People Assignments
Venture capitalist Brad Feld’s idea of sending specific questions before interviews: A while ago I came up with an approach where I could separate leaders from doers from everyone else. I’ve been applying this approach to the Boulder Startup Community, and a number of other things I’m involved in, since then and offer it to […]
Perfect Moments
Buddhist teacher and psychologist David Brazier writes in Zen Therapy: Transcending the Sorrows of the Human Mind (1997,) Modern life tends to destroy the sacred. Zen enhances it. Zen would have us experience the sacredness of breathing, of stepping on the earth, of standing still a moment, of sitting, of lying down. In Zen, getting […]
Embracing Uncertainty
Essayist and technology consultant Patrick Rhone writes about embracing uncertainty: In the midst of this time of great uncertainty, I’ve stumbled upon an observation: Those who are dealing the least well with the uncertainty are those who refuse to accept it.
Beyond Ideas and Beliefs
Vietnamese-born monk and writer Thich Nhat Hanh writes in No Death, No Fear (2003): We come to spiritual practice, to a church, a synagogue, a mosque or a meditation center, to find relief from pain and sorrow. But the greatest relief can only be obtained when we are capable of touching the ultimate dimension. In […]
Pleasure in Things That Can’t Be Bought
Sereno Sky writes in Lonely Traveller (2014,) Yes, I find pleasure in things that can’t be bought. That’s probably why I can’t really envy people with lots of money. Because if you don’t have much, then you are more easily inclined to find joy in things that can’t be bought, like in nature and the […]
What Gets You Up in the Morning? What Keeps You Up at Night?
Fast Company’s Alan Webber summarizes nuggets of wisdom from his Rules of Thumb: 52 Truths for Winning at Business Without Losing Your Self (2009.) Rule #23: “Keep two lists: What gets you up in the morning? What keeps you up at night?” This is simply a reminder to check in with yourself regularly. How are […]
Tesla Model 3 Rollout Problems
Ryan Cooper of The Week notes, The Model 3 rollout has been plagued with problems. A huge backlog of orders quickly piled up, and Tesla struggled to fulfill demand. The price turned out to be too low to make a profit at the base model—one analyst estimated $6,000 in losses per vehicle—and Tesla hemorrhaged money, […]
Actual Questions Asked in Microsoft Job Interviews
The Futility Closet notes, How are M&Ms made? Suppose you had eight billiard balls, and one of them was slightly heavier, but the only way to tell was by putting it on a scale against another. What’s the fewest number of times you’d have to use the scale to find the heavier ball? Why do […]
Conscious Breathing
The Majjhima Nikāya quoted in The Buddha Speaks, a Book of Guidance from the Buddhist Scriptures, Edited by Anne Bancroft (2010): Find a place where you are alone. Train yourself in the following way: When you breathe in, experience breathing in. When you breathe out, be fully conscious that you are breathing out. If you […]
Read Your Way to Better Leadership
Selin Kesebir, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour at the London Business School’s Leadership Institute writes, Reading is spending your time with the finest minds, alive and dead, at their most thoughtful. It connects you to distant times and places and gives you access to knowledge unattainable through personal encounters. If you read non-fiction, you will […]