Thinking through the “paradigm shift” to a hybrid workplace

Nine months ago—when talking about a return to the office within the calendar year was not such a ridiculous idea to entertain—my firm went ahead and formed a committee to explore what that reality would look like. Casting about for a committee name, the first stab was the "New Normal" committee, which, I suppose, lacked … Continue reading Thinking through the “paradigm shift” to a hybrid workplace →

What “box” are we talking about when we “think outside the box”?

Think outside the box has to be one of the most overused pieces of business jargon out there. In my less than decade-long career, I've lost count of the number of times someone has encouraged me to "think outside the box." In researching a separate post about metaphor, I was reading a blog post on … Continue reading What “box” are we talking about when we “think outside the box”? →

Is the ideal RFP/Q response a “crystal goblet”?

There's a wonderful metaphor from Beatrice Warde, one of the foundational figures in 20th-century typography, about the use of typography, that really resonates with me. Warde published an entire book on this idea, but here is just a taste: Imagine that you have before you a flagon of wine. You may choose your own favourite … Continue reading Is the ideal RFP/Q response a “crystal goblet”? →

The benefits of conducting “premortems” for new business pursuits

Those who work in the A/E/C space know about about the postmortem (or debrief): a glum meeting where the pursuit team attempts to hash out the reasons we didn't win a project. When the client is willing, we get to actually have the meeting with the client and quiz them on our failure. (As useful … Continue reading The benefits of conducting “premortems” for new business pursuits →

If interviews don’t work, shouldn’t we get rid of them?

In my role as an A/E/C marketer, one of my responsibilities is to help teams prepare for project interviews—even though clients would probably be better served by not conducting them at all. In fact, research has shown interviews to be a poor barometer for actual on-the-job performance. In fact, clients would be better served avoiding … Continue reading If interviews don’t work, shouldn’t we get rid of them? →

Accumulating skills instead of knowledge

Knowledge is relatively easy to accumulate quickly, but it also depreciates quickly. Skills are hard to win, but keep their value a little longer. David Maister Knowledge is easy. Crack open a book, peruse your New York Times app, hop over to Wikipedia—all you need is attention and retention. Easy enough! In the workplace, though, … Continue reading Accumulating skills instead of knowledge →

Modern life and the scope creep of shadow work

Each of us is doing the work of others and not getting paid for it. [Shadow work] is responsible for taking away a great deal of the leisure time we thought we would all have in the twenty-first century. Daniel Levitin Since I learned about shadow work, I have started seeing it everywhere. The above … Continue reading Modern life and the scope creep of shadow work →

Second-guessing “Chesterton’s Fence”

"We have to close the gate, because you always leave things as you found them." I must have been eight or nine years old, and we was headed to "the ranch"—a dude ranch in southern Arizona that my family had been vacationing at for going on four generations. The road to the ranch was a … Continue reading Second-guessing “Chesterton’s Fence” →

Don’t forget about your future self

Sometimes—well, every day in fact—I do something that affects my future self. Sometimes, these things are small and rather straightforward, like leaving dirty dishes in the sink for "future me" to deal with the next day. Big deal! I think. That guy can handle it. But other times, these things are not so straightforward; they … Continue reading Don’t forget about your future self →