My summary notes: Intro: The effective executive manages and leads himself first. Systems, rules, delegation, leadership. The knowledge worker produces ideas and information that someone else has to act on. Working on the right things. Knowledge work is defined by its results. Four realities: The executive’s time belongs to everybody else. Executives are forced to keep operating (i.e. not strategising) unless he changes the reality in which he works. Changes the work flow. He’s in an organisation reliant on other people to make use of what he contributes. The results are outside the organisation. Unless executives work at becoming effective, the realities of their situation will push them into futility. Five practices: Time management Results oriented Building strengths Concentrate on a few major areas Make the right important decisions Don’t start with tasks. Start with time and allocate it. In … Read More
Highlights from the weekly Kurt bulletin
Here are a few excerpts from the bulletin I send every Friday. The bulletin is a collection of 5 things you may find helpful. If you’d like to see more, sign up! Thought of the week “In theory there’s no difference between theory and practice. But, in practice, there is.”-Jan L. A. van de Snepscheut, computer scientist What are you theorising about that you just need to put into practice to test? Turning an old laptop into a Chromebook Another project I’ve completed is converting an old Dell Inspiron Mini laptop into a Chromebook for the kids. I’ve had this laptop for about 10 years and eventually the Windows 7 starter edition it came with just wouldn’t boot up. So I erased it all and made it a simple Chromebook. You can surf the net, watch movies and do basic … Read More
(Book) Awaken the giant within – Tony Robbins
I wish I had read this when I was in my late teens or early twenties, as I think it would have had a greater impact then. A very useful tool to make you look at what you’re doing now. What you’re linking pain or pleasure to, what limiting or empowering beliefs you have, your value hierarchy, goals, frame of reference, and states. Attempts to help us master the five areas of life we need to master: Emotional, physical, relationship, financial, time. Awaken the Giant Within (highlights) Lasting change: Raise your standards, change limiting beliefs, change your strategy. Five areas of life we need to master: Emotional, physical, relationship, financial, time. What actions can I take today that will shape my ultimate destiny? The father of action is decision. “This is what I am. This is what life is about. … Read More
How to evaluate options and make decisions (a different method)
We’re pretty spoiled these days with the amount of options available to us, we’re called to make decisions every day. Sometimes though, there are so many options we can choose from, we end up choosing none of them. It’s called the paradox of choice. Sometimes we need a kick in the pants just to make a decision. Think back on your last few major decisions. How much easier or harder was it when that decision was made for you, and you had to go along with it? Suddenly, when that happens, you know with certainty whether you wanted to make that decision or not. As humans we don’t like being forced to do something we don’t want to do. My wife will often present me with two options that she can’t decide between. The blue dress or the black dress … Read More
What would life look like if it were simple?
Life can be complicated. We get that. We expect that. Do we sometimes make ‘complicated’ the default though? What if ‘simple’ was our default? What would life look like if our decisions were made with forethought and rationality? Less would be more. We’d carefully think before acquiring more possessions because more stuff means more worry and more complication. Each time we’d ask ‘do I really need this?’ We’d be more forgiving. Holding on to grudges or bitterness is a sure way to complicate and poison our own thoughts and lives. What people thought about us wouldn’t matter. If you spend your life trying to please people you’ll end up pleasing no one, least of all yourself. Consequently we’d spend less money trying to keep up appearances. We’d choose to work in a field we have an interest in, not one … Read More