Maps, Models, and Filters: There’s an old admonition that “The map is NOT the territory.” I say (and I’m sure others before me have said), “The economic model is NOT the economy.” We all view the world through our mental filters. We can certainly get ourselves in trouble if we do too much visualization of the territory based on a …
Embrace Doubt: Often, I will start out with a new client, project or endeavor with a considerable amount of conscious doubt. What makes me think I can do this? What makes me think I will be the best coach for this person? When will they find out I’m really an impostor? Frankly I can’t think of a time when I …
Reality: On a recent flight, I was listening to Sam Harris interview Eric Weinstein and Ben Shapiro. One of the (many) topics they touched on was reason. According to my notes, the comment was made that:“Reason maps onto reality. Which is why it’s reason.” Sam HarrisThat comment made me go down the age old rabbit hole of how we discern …
Optical Filters The optical filters with which I am most familiar are those that photographers use to enhance their images and videos. These particular filters screw into or clip onto the camera lens. I’m not going to bore you with examples of how the filters are used. Suffice it to say that filters modify the images recorded. Sometimes they are …
A Surprise We were at a breakfast meeting when I happened to mention that earlier in the week, a colleague had a need for a ride home. Of course, I offered to help. I was feeling empathy for the fact that he had “lost” his keys somewhere in his office. I lose my keys from time to time, too. He …
We “See” What We Believe I’m not saying we are wrong. And I’m certainly not saying we should plan to be wrong. But what if . . . ? [I think this may well be an ongoing series of posts!] I’ve been thinking more and more about how we’ve gotten so much wrong. From the political realm to the business …
My Enthusiasm Can Be a Bit Much! I get excited about things—perhaps you do too. I find, however, that my enthusiasm can sometimes be received by others as “preaching.” I truly don’t mean it to be that way, but, well, that’s how it is sometimes (often?) received. What to do? Aware It’s a tough cycle to break. I study a …
Pushed Out of the Comfort Zone: Lately, I’ve observed a lot of folks being dragged out of their comfort zones. Some are finding a huge change in our political environment to be unsettling. And some are perplexed over the many issues around perceived changes in our social values. A great deal of discomfort is due to the disruption coming (and …
Here’s the story. I was fixing our breakfast when my wife asked why I wasn’t using the microwave egg poaching device she had recently purchased as a gift for me. Well, frankly, I had forgotten about it and had strong reservations about its efficacy. So I wasn’t all that interested in trying it out. Maybe I was hoping she’d forgotten about …
Existentialism: Oh boy! The “real” philosophers will get me for this. What the heck is existentialism? What does it have to do with leadership? First, a confession. I didn’t realize that I am an existentialist until my copy of Philosophy Now downloaded to my Kindle app. Guess what? It fits well. Yikes! So here goes. A very sketchy definition of …