How to develop a startup culture

I found this article developed by the talented people at Netflix. It explains how to develop an effective startup culture. See Article: http://www.slideshare.net/reed2001/culture-1798664

Thanksgiving is the best time to network

There is no feeling that is more universal and that builds rapport more than the feeling of gratitude. I learned this lesson again when I received this email the day before Thanksgiving from my local Dale Carnegie chapter, reminding me to wish my collegues a very Happy Thanksgiving. I was amazed how much goodwill can be generated in so short a time with managers, customers, and collegues that are so important to my future.

This got me thinking about other optimal times to network. For example, at the end of the work day, do you race away from work without saying goodbye to your co-workers, managers? What about on Fridays when everyone else is eager to go home for the weekend?

I once heard that people are better at remembering what happens very first in the day, and what happens last, but the middle can be a blurr. This makes me think that Monday morning is a great time to market yourself...just as Friday afternoon is.

Also, what about networking at meetings, do you show up in time to do a little hob nobbing before hand? ...just some food for thought.

Enthusiasm!!!

Thomas Edison describes the ultimate bequethal.

"When a man dies, if he can pass enthusiasm along to his children, he has left them an estate of incalculable value."
~ Thomas Edison

Are you a Farmer or a Hunter?

I read this very interesting article on http://www.theladders.com/ and it got me thinking about the different kinds of personality traits that help a person excel in their career.

The opener question, "Are you a Hunter or a Farmer" is such a great question. I decided to think about that one for a while before reading the article. Then I read this article. I thought it provided a lot of insights into the kind of person I am and how my personality traits can sometimes help and/or hinder my career path. Read this discussion on Linkedin...

One who dares!!!

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by the dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat." -Teddy Roosevelt

Do good ideas have a minimum 2-week germination period?

I've noticed that many thought processes follow this pattern. For example, it takes 21 days to make or break a habit (ie build new neural pathways, muscle memory etc). I see that most of my breakthrough ideas in the past, I've stewed on for a couple of weeks before having that eureka moment when the ideas become actionable.

Secondly, if this theory is true, how many "seed" ideas do we need to plant in order to get a good harvest. Or what amount of nurturing is needed to get the idea to actually go through germination, and actually getting to the point of producing good results? Here's a few insightful answer that were gleened from my favorite Professional Network.

UPDATE: A friend pointed me to a found an interesting article today on Wall Street Journal talking about this very topic.

BOOK REPORT: Managing Oneself

Part of the Harvard Business Review series, Managing Oneself is an excellent and fast book to read packed with insights about how to understand your best skills and abilities using various tools. One key idea presented was the introduction of keeping a journal as a feedback mechanism to measure yourself in key performance areas and conducting some honest and introspective detective work. Doing this will help to you to play to your strengths and talents thereby promoting your career!!!

I love this little book. It was written by a very talented and acomplished HR professional, and consequently has a lot of information packed into just a few words.