Category: Why

How to Live a Remarkable life in a Conventional World

Have you ever thought that a 9 to 5 job isn’t the right thing for you? Did you ever get impressed by all the stories about the really successful people and how they often didn’t study? Did you think that you should do something totally different, but for a number of reasons you are stuck with what you do?

I know, very pathetic. But I guess we all have similar thoughts from time to time. And some people are struggling even more with these thoughts. I met plenty of people with non-traditional CVs, not following the standard path of life. And I could imagine that they would especially like this document, but not only them: “A Brief Guide to World Domination* – How to Live a Remarkable life in a Conventional World *and other important goals” written by Chris Guillebeau. I like the style – especially the humour that is already shown in the title. But I recommend it for the content which is actually thought-provoking. In essence it’s a call for “start with the end in mind”, and then work against the end, based on your key strength.

I have seen most of the content before, but as we know a different presentation will lead to different results. This presentation triggered me to think about the two key questions of the document. Thanks Chris!

 

Business Motivation Model

I mentioned the Business Motivation Model earlier. The Business Motivation Model is a model that explains core terminology for an organisation. The model is an OMG standard.

I got aware of the model during a conference when one of the main authors (the Business Rules expert Ronald Ross) explained it briefly. It doesn’t surprise that he uses the model to explain how Business Rules fit into an organisation.

I used the model to define the strategy of our department. The big advantage is that it explains easily the difference between concepts like “Vision”, “Mission”, “Goal”, “Objective”, “Strategy”, and “Tactic”. Having the clear distinction of these terms facilitates discussions that allow focusing on the “why” behind your activities. The terminology and relationships between the concepts provided by the model make it simple to see the bigger picture and how everybody’s work relate to our goals.

The model includes further related concepts as can be seen from the diagram on the right side. 

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.