Resilience is one of the great puzzles of human nature. Whether in the cancer ward, the battlefield or the boardroom, it determines who succeeds and who fails. During my recent hiatus from blog writing, it struck me that the ugly events of the past two years – the pandemic, humanitarian crises, increasing division, anger, violence […]
Read MoreBias is the crutch our brains use to simplify our lives and keep us happy. We like to believe we’re in control of our brains and that we act rationally based on our self-interests. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our brain has a mind of its own and the focus of neuroscience is […]
Read MoreWhat is wisdom? We often use the word but are hard pressed to define it. Like understanding the true meaning of quality or excellence, it’s a mystery for many – one that inspires both awe and trepidation. Perhaps the confusion arises from seemingly conflicting connotations. It’s certainly a lot more than possessing knowledge. Indeed, most […]
Read MoreSmart leaders solicit and accept good advice from those they trust to provide it. They understand no one is bright enough, objective enough or experienced enough to consistently know what to do or how best to do it. (Intellectual humility is a sine qua non of leadership.) While many sources of counsel are readily available, […]
Read MoreRemembering and forgetting pervade and enable everything we do. Without this involuntary capability we wouldn’t know who we are or what to do next. But our memory is notoriously inaccurate, incomplete and fallible. Some recollections last a few seconds; others last a lifetime. Our brains just aren’t built to remember a lot of important stuff […]
Read MoreCourage. Some equate courage with those who make the ultimate sacrifice. I do not. That is valour. Courage is different. It’s a quality of mind that enables one to confront fear with calm focus and resolve, like getting up every day with the determination to do better. Trying to understand and reconcile beliefs that run […]
Read MoreWe are born with insatiable curiosity. In our youth, everything was a question as we tried to figure out a world filled with mystery. Paul Harris, an authority on early childhood education, says that between the ages of two and five, children pose over 100 questions an hour – two-thirds of which are efforts to […]
Read MoreFailure is inevitable. It’s the distinguishing feature of economies, businesses, governments and relationships. Almost 98% of all new products fail; 97% of all patents never make money; 90% of oil wells drilled are dry; 80% of venture-capital funded firms go under; 80% of corporate mergers and acquisitions add no new value; 70% of new drugs […]
Read MoreRecently, I was interviewed about “the games people play” for an Australian television production. The host was well informed and his questions well researched. Watch below if you have an interest in my answers. Hope you find it enjoyable. Jim You can get your copy of The Game of Life by visiting our Books page, or […]
Read MoreTo achieve their unscrupulous objectives, skillful manipulators prey upon our fears, sense of obligation to those we admire or feelings of guilt about what we’ve done. They’re usually quite friendly, sometimes even intimate, when they get what they want. But they use their familiarity with our vulnerabilities to shape their strategies for seeking advantage. That […]
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