December 4, 2023
Good morning!
Welcome to December, the most unlikely of months to feature the most socialization.
Why not spread some of this around to February and March?
As you open this mail, what are your levels of health and happiness?
Anything we can do for you?
The #1 mistake we all make? Failing to ask for help before it’s too late.
The best decision the best leaders make? Surrounding themselves with people smarter than themselves — or at least with different perspectives.
- “An organization will only grow when its leaders grow, which is why great leaders prioritize continuous learning for themselves and their teams.” (Gifford)
- “You don’t have a career, you have a series of ways you work that suit who you are at the time.” (Feiler at Aspen Ideas, 2023)
- With all the hype related to the new Napoleon movie, here is something a propos (Will you go see it?):
- Napoleon was ready to depart for Moscow. He kissed his wife and whispered farewell. As he rode off to battle she shouted, “Don’t get blown apart, Bonapart!”
- (Stolen blatantly from Charles Schulz)
- Napoleon was ready to depart for Moscow. He kissed his wife and whispered farewell. As he rode off to battle she shouted, “Don’t get blown apart, Bonapart!”
- Venture capital investment in renewable energy has exploded by more than 1,000% over the last five years — now $7.75 billion. (Ballard)
- Still, in the grand scheme of things, isn’t that the teeniest, tiniest amount?
- Consumer debt and credit card usage are soaring to new heights, probably not a good thing, though it does (temporarily) fuel the economy. (Federal Reserve, Goldman Sachs)
- “Most business leaders have tasted what technology can do. They have done successful pilots and experiments, but these are not moving the needle.” (Lamarre, 2023)
- “Technology should start with a business problem you want to solve. When it starts that way there is usually a good ending because the problem eventually ties back to serving customers better and delivering more value for the company.” (Ibid.)
- “It feels like technology is in search of a problem; (because) when we try generative artificial intelligence it seems like a magical experience.” (Ibid.)
- “Traditional companies serious about digital transformations manage to get the right talent — and they have to be committed to a modern technology environment because the talent won’t stay if the resources aren’t there.” (bid.)
- You can have a brilliant plan for a problem you want to solve, but it has to address — and solve — each step and each process in the logistical line.
- Any misstep in the process can halt the entire process — and it’s often in the warehouse or on the front lines where the theory gets applied to reality.
- “Best to keep artificial intelligence in house; you can’t outsource your way to competitive differentiation.” (Ibid.)
- “If technology is going to play a role in driving competitive differentiation — i.e., better-served customer, lower unit cost — the company has no choice but to become good at software development.
- “No company would debate whether it needs to be good at finance. Well, if you want to be good at running a company infused with technology, you have to be good at software development.” (Ibid.)
- Rural Rochester is where I was born and raised about 12 miles from the towering skyscrapers of the Mayo Clinic.
- It’s astounding and inspirational to observe how that organization — and the city around it — has grown.
- It recently announced a $5,000,000,000+ expansion for “groundbreaking innovations in healthcare to benefit patients and staff.”
- This isn’t a half-bad vision — and kudos to the team at the Mayo Clinic whose predecessors, especially William and Charles, established a sustainable model and culture that thrive today.
- “Bold. Forward. Unbound. (their vision statement) will allow us to offer more cures, more hope, more comfort, and better outcomes to more people more equitably than ever before.”
- (That’s lots of more…)
- What’s in your vision statement?
- People are walking less, lots less.
- Researchers at Axios report a 48% drop in walking trips in Minneapolis over the last three years.
- Nationally, walking trips decreased by 36%. (StreetLight Data, 2023)
- New York City wins, no surprise, with 39% of all people completing at least one walking trip each day.
- How do they gather these data? Guess what?! From the device you carry on your person as you walk, or don’t walk.
- Don’t be caught on the couch with a device that rarely moves, except to the kitchen.
- “Being easy to work with is such an undervalued skill.” (Donnelly)
- “What the community wanted and needed — and what the customers wanted and needed — we responded and figured it out.” (Marvin)
- A conversation common to many organizations is promoting talent from within; e.g., we grow our own talent.
- Easier said than done.
- According to the American Opportunity Index, Coca-Cola, Smuckers, Grainer, Capital One, Bank of America, and Costco do it best among Fortune 500 companies.
- Among the giant work forces (2.1 million workers), Walmart is best.
- An algorithm was built using data related to promotion, pay, hiring, parity, and culture.
- The secret to happiness according to Justice Sandra Day O’Connor? “Work worth doing.”
