From the monthly archives:

October 2011

The era of substance

October 26, 2011

We live in a time of massive change. Major institutions from Wall Street to the Middle East are falling. And still, big consumer products companies are behaving as if time stopped 20 years ago. I’m not going to restate the litany of cultural changes that are upsetting markets. I trust you know these by now. […]

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On loyalty

October 21, 2011

Loyalty is held out by most people as a virtue. Let’s assume that it is. Still, it’s not obvious what loyalty actually is. Merriam Webster defines “loyal” as “unswerving in allegiance.” Unswerving? No swerves at all? How about a swervlet? Let’s consider this. This classic definition really means that when you are loyal, you subordinate […]

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Would you take the pill?

October 17, 2011

What if there was a pill you could take that would give you the feelings of being in a fully loving relationship? It wouldn’t actually change whether you had a partner who loved you but it would make you feel loved. Or what if you could take a pill that would give you the feeling […]

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Take my choice away

October 8, 2011

People do not really want choice. We want the right to make a choice. But we do not want to actually have to exercise that right. We want you to make it so damn obvious that whatever it is you’re offering is the only possible thing for us that no choice is required. This is […]

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On the folly of results

October 7, 2011

It’s common knowledge in the business community that effective leaders focus on results not on activity. But people once thought the earth was flat. Now we know better. I think there will come a time when we will see the focus on results for the silly simple-minded nonsense that it is. Think about it. Imagine […]

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