Daniela Aivazian is the author of today’s Tuesday Reading. She is an Organizational Effectiveness Specialist in Stanford University’s University IT organization. Her essay first appeared as a leadership program reflection earlier this year. [Dani may be reached at daivaz@stanford.edu.]
On any given day we will each need help from others in one or more of our life-circles – our work, our families, our church, and our social and community activities, etc. And, we also will have opportunities to extend our help to others. So, why then, do we have such a hard time asking for what we need and helping when and where we can?
Today’s Tuesday Reading turns again to focus on another aspect of bias, how to keep our minds from falling for bad advice.
Today, in the United States some four out of every five individuals age 5 and older have some type of cell phone. And, most of these have sufficient functionality to be called smartphones. This is in stark contrast to the time when I was growing up in a small rural southeast Texas town.
Sometimes we need to react fast, automatically. For example, as we see a large truck speeding towards us as we are standing in the edge of the street waiting for a traffic light to change. Or, as we observe the subtle cues of a very dissatisfied client. And, at a different time, we may find ourselves totally engrossed in the deep work1 of a seemingly intractable problem. And, then our thoughts and actions need to proceed at a slower pace.
Brian McDonald is the author of today’s Tuesday Reading. He is the president of MOR Associates an organization he founded in 1983 based on the belief that many organizations do not maximize the contribution most people want to make at work. More recently, he has led the development of the MOR family of leadership programs.
During the past two years there has been a more intentional focus on the leader’s responsibility to create a more inclusive environment in the MOR Leaders Program.
Brian McDonald is the author of today’s Tuesday Reading. He is the president of MOR Associates an organization he founded in 1983 based on the belief that many organizations do not maximize the contribution most people want to make at work. More recently, he has led the development of the MOR family of leadership programs.
It’s nine days into 2018 and most of us who made New Year’s resolutions still remember them. New Year’s resolutions are neither new nor unique to modern humanity. Babylonians made New Year’s Resolutions some 4,000 years ago. In their celebrations, they made promises to their gods to pay debts and to return borrowed objects. These promises can be considered the forerunners of our New Year’s resolutions.
