Category: culture

Ranking opinions

FabrizioLeave a comment

A practical way to rank opinions.

  1. Opinions based on large datasets across similar situations. This is academic research or market research.
  2. Opinions based on limited datasets of the current situation. This is personal and direct experience.
  3. Opinions based on limited datasets across similar situations. This is personal and past experience or, typically, business books and good blogs, online courses, podcasts, etc.
  4. Opinions based on one or two datapoints across situations that might or might not be similar to the current one. This is anecdotical knowledge, and still where probably most online content nowadays fall into.
  5. Opinions based on beliefs and feelings. This is where most companies and teams die.

Aim for 1 or 2 when you have to make decisions that matter. Use 3 to broaden your perspective, but carefully understand how to filter through it. Entertain yourself with a controlled amount of 4. Run when people start arguing based on 5.

It would be fair to rank this post a 3.

A matter of responsibility

FabrizioLeave a comment

Feedback is not a command. Yet many, both givers and receivers, take it as such.

Feedback is a way to open the mind to a different approach, to something that had not been considered, to a new interpretation. Then, it is up to the receiver to filter it with their knowledge, expertise, purpose, to decide what to keep and what to let go.

Feedback is no judgement and no decision.

At any point, the receiver has the power to decide on the actions that will be taken. They are responsible for the final results.

Irrational

FabrizioLeave a comment

It does not tell much about our product.

What about talking about that feature we have spent all that money on?

We should probably play it safe.

I don’t think it’s going to work.

It’s nice, but it lacks appeal.

Why don’t we put a nice picture with a smart description of our product capabilities?

I am sure whoever is behind this genius campaign by 3M has heard some versions of this many times, as many marketers have. Some give up, some persist.

One way or the other, keep in mind that people are not moved by rationality.

Alert

FabrizioLeave a comment

You always have something to learn.

Even when you are on top of your game, even when you have been around for decades, even when you are the number 1. There is always something more, or something else.

Keep your senses alert. Not because you should not rest or because you should always stress, but because there are still opportunities to learn something new.

And that’s the essence of life.

Breath life into values

FabrizioLeave a comment

If you have company values and you don’t talk about them often, have them in company presentations, discuss them at company events, represent them with stories and examples, wrap them around basically everything your company does, then it’s better not to have company values at all.

A small example. We started our company event yesterday with a question about who would remember our company values. Not many hands went up. In the afternoon, we planned a game where the assigned scores were based on actions that reflected our values. In the evening, everybody was pointing at things and discussing events, stressing how this or that was indicative of a given value. Some for fun, some for real.

If you have company values, breath life into them.