Below is an archive of every blog post shared through this site since 2010. For posts by topic, check out articles on marketing, leadership, and building new products.
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Most of us say we want feedback. That is, until we actually get it. Then we get a little defensive:
“Well, actually, what I meant was…”
“I see what you’re saying, but you misunderstood.”
“Really? Because you’re not great at that either!” (A classic.)
These are all ways of saying, “Thanks for your feedback, but you’re wrong." You know how to give feedback... But how good are you at taking it?
Read MoreA deadline doesn't really feel like a deadline until it's inches from your face. That's unfortunate--by that time, you're about to get punched. That feeling quickly spreading is called panic.
You should always feel like there is a deadline looming. "Looming" sounds ominous, but it's not. It's the realization that you'd better be moving forward each day.
There's always a deadline coming up. Even when you think there isn't, you'll soon realize there is--when you're grasping trying to make something happen quickly overnight.
Read MoreIf you’re immersed, will you learn by default?
It's easy to think we can absorb through osmosis, that we'll hum along and improve simply because we're present.
But immersion and proximity are not sufficient.
Learning is a result of deliberate thinking. Not osmosis.
Read MoreWhen you read great advice, it hasn't actually changed anything in your life...yet. There are dozens of times each day when you might notice something. You might think,
"I should try that."
In the moment, you're excited to learn something new. You think, "This is another tool in my toolbox. This is fantastic!"
Read More"If you could solve one thing about your business with a magic wand, what would it be?"
This question is usually asked in a list of other questions, so it seems harmless.
But let's take a look at the underlying assumption. The assumption is, "If this one thing were fixed, everything else would fall into place."
Read MoreI'm not good at holding my tongue when I sense that a train wreck might happen. If you've tried speaking up before, and no one listened, it's tempting to want to teach them a lesson.
Okay fine, well the train will crash. THEN they'll see why they should have listened to me all along...
You don't get to take the moral high ground there. If you sense that something might be wrong, speak up before it's too late.
Read MoreHave you ever eaten something because it was in front of you? Those cookies that you don't even like. The mediocre pizza place that's downstairs from your apartment. The yoga studio that's on your home from work. Understanding how proximity affects you means being more aware of your decision-making habits. You might be on autopilot saying yes or no to things. Without even realizing that you're on autopilot--that's the worst part.
I've found that it's surprising how much proximity affects what we choose.
Read MoreLast week, I spoke at the 2015 Lean Startup Conference in San Francisco. My topic: if you are iterating and trying new things, your new normal is to feel a bit anxious all the time. Here's a blog post that's based on my talk. Originally posted on the Lean Startup Blog. Here are event photos on Flickr.
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The truth is that I was attracted to the lean movement because it felt safe. Lean is a relentless march toward the right answer, an evolving process where we go from safe to safest, from new to tested to successful. Sign me up.
It turns out, though, that I couldn’t have been more wrong.
Lean is in our blood
Running lean is a core part of our approach at the altMBA. We don’t even call it lean — we just call it normal.
Read MoreThose of you who know me, know that I have many theories and philosophies on life. One of the philosophies is this: life is short, so you should trim the lukewarm parts and only leave room for the best.
Only eat food that you love, only do activities that you actually want to do, only buy things that delight you, and only hang out with people who you think are awesome.
Because of this filter, the people I spend any amount of time with, or attention on, are people who I think really highly of.
I realized, though, that many times I'm gushing about friends, acquaintances, distant heroes, or colleagues....in my head. I don't actually say some of it out loud. In my mind, I think I'm complimenting them all the time, but in reality they have no idea.
Read More"I quit."
Those words are dramatic.
I used to think that quitting your job was the craziest, bravest thing you could do. Then I did it twice, without anything lined up after, and realized that it's not that crazy or hard.
More importantly, over the years, I realized that walking away isn’t always the bravest option.
Our culture certainly glorifies the idea of a dramatic exit. We can confuse the act of getting up and walking out as being the hardest part.
Read More