Celeste Headlee on Conversations

I didn’t know Celeste before. This link provides a quick introduction. She talks about the value of conversations and how to create valuable conversations.

Among the great content does Celeste mention some really good quotes. My favourites are:

  • “Everyone you will ever meet knows something that you don’t” (Bill Nye)
    I saw this quote before, but this time it struck a cord. Clearly, everyone is worth listening to!
  • “No man ever listened himself out of a job.” (Calvin Coolidge)
    “Speech is silver, silence is gold”, but somehow more colorful.
  • “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” (Stephen R. Covey)
    Guilty

The 10 tips in short:

  1. Don’t multitask – be present
  2. Don’t pontificate – be humble and learn from others
  3. Ask open-ended questions – start with who, what, when, where, why or how
  4. Go with the flow – whatever you think of, let it go
  5. If you don’t know, say that you don’t know – have integrity
  6. Don’t equate your experience with theirs – all experiences are individual – it is NOT about you
  7. Try not to repeat yourself – it’s condescending and boring
  8. Stay out of the weeds – don’t get stuck in details
  9. Listen – this is the most important one 
  10. Be brief!

The Dancing Guy, Second Interpretation

I already posted this video earlier as an example course in leadership. But now I found a second interpretation around consumer adoption. 

Some background to this version: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_adoption_lifecycle (Moore’s Chasm version is an adoption of Rogers’s version)

Which version do you like better? And now we need to think, is the guy with the green shirt the first follower or the first customer? If he is the first customer then what did he buy? Or is there no real difference between first follower or first customer. 

Did you find a 3rd interpretation? 

Please let me know…

Steven Covey: The Big Rocks

Today I got an email with another great video I would like to share. This time it is Steven Covey, maybe best known for his book “7 Habits of highly effective people”. Watch, laugh and learn.

I referred already several times to the blog of JD Meier. He is a big fan of Steven Covey teaching. Have a look at his blog, e.g.

The “Why”

Sometimes, so see/hear/learn something that immediately connects with some loose ends that you have in your mind. During my MBA did “learn” about the importance of strategy. How everybody needs to understand the connection between the current work and the overall direction. Every now and then you can extend your understanding. On a conference in June about EA and BPM for example, did I learn about the “Business Motivation Model” which can be used to describe the main concepts like vision, mission, goals, and strategies. And now, on my “Leading Others” course, this video was shown. Another tidbit, that connects some pieces of the puzzle. Enjoy.