22nd Jun2011

Sweat, pant and 2x your heart rate

by Rick Amos

When it comes to exercise, doing a little is worth SO MUCH MORE than doing nothing.

This month I am taking a break from the fitness center and trying to ride my bike or jog 5 times a week. Even though it is hot and muggy here in Orlando, there is something life-giving about getting out there to sweat, pant and double my heart rate.

Regular exercise helps me to sleep, eat less junk and sore muscles make me feel like I’m 21 years old again.

If you’ve read this far and you are feeling ashamed… don’t give up! It only takes 15 minutes outside to sweat, pant and double your heart rate. Once you are out there I bet you will stretch it out to 30 minutes.

What is your exercise plan for this month?
Where can you fit 30 minutes to sweat, pant and double your heart rate today?
How would you feel four weeks from now if you exercised regularly?

Post your comments about your fitness below.

Category : Health for immortality
1 Comm
20th Jun2011

Death by meeting re-visited three ways

by Rick Amos

How much time, energy and money do you waste each week in meetings?
We can’t do without them, but we can redeem them.

Death by Meeting
I love Pat Lencioni’s book Death by Meeting. Not only is it great content, but the title is captivating.
Go here for outlines and dowloads related to this important book.

Seven Rules for More Effective Meetings
Michael Hyatt has re-visited this theme with his own list of ways to make meetings more effective:

  1. Establish hard edges.
  2. Create an agenda.
  3. State the desired outcome.
  4. Review the minutes and action items.
  5. Take written minutes.Clarify action items.
  6. Determine the next meeting date.

Ten Commandments of Meetings
Dave Patchin provides a cheeky list of 10 ways to make meetings better.

Why do you hate meetings?
What would your subordinates say about the meetings you lead?
What tools do you use?
Post your comments below.

Category : Leadership
0 Comm
19th Jun2011

Organization vs. Movement vs. Philosophy

by Rick Amos

Seth Godin makes some important simple distinctions:



Organization vs. movement vs. philosophy

An organization uses structure and resources and power to make things happen. Organizations hire people, issue policies, buy things, erect buildings, earn market share and get things done. Your company is probably an organization.

A movement has an emotional heart. A movement might use an organization, but it can replace systems and people if they disappear. Movements are more likely to cause widespread change, and they require leaders, not managers. The internet, it turns out, is a movement, and every time someone tries to own it, they fail.

A philosophy can survive things that might wipe out a movement and that would decimate an organization. A philosophy can skip a generation or two. It is often interpreted, and is more likely to break into autonomous groups, to morph and split and then reunite. Industrialism was a philosophy.

The trouble kicks in when you think you have one and you actually have the other.

Which of the 3 is most like your enterprise?
Are you confused about what you are?
What aspect do you need more of?
How would your next generation leaders answer these questions?

Post your comments below!

 

Category : Excellent Organizations
0 Comm
17th Jun2011

Doing a Mistakes Audit

by Rick Amos

Mac Lake just posted a great encouragement to bask in our mistakes:,

How are things going? Really, how are they going?
Have you stopped lately to ask yourself this question?

Or are you running so hard and fast that you know things aren’t going like you want, but you don’t have time to think about why.

Pull over, take a break and do a Mistakes Audit.
I’m not talking about being self-critical or negative.

I mean stop, take some time and think ask yourself some important questions:

What mistakes am I currently making that is hurting the progress of my organization?
Why am I making these mistakes?
What do I need to do differently?
Who can I get to help me?
What can I learn from the mistakes I’ve been making?

If you really want to benefit from this exercise make sure you put your answers in writing.

Here are four benefits I think you will discover when you do a Mistakes Audit:

  1. You can make some necessary adjustments that will improve your performance and results.
  2. You will add to your leadership wisdom. Don’t just look for what you might be doing wrong but ask the questions: Why? What do I need to change? What I am learning from my mistakes?
  3. You will be able to teach others from your learnings and strengthen their leadership as a result.
  4. Your team will gain a greater level of respect because of your authenticity, (If you share it with them!).

Don’t forget one of the best ways you can gain leadership wisdom is by learning from your mistakes.

Post your comments below:

Category : Execution - Vision to Reality
0 Comm
15th Jun2011

Social Media: What Most Companies Don’t Know

by Rick Amos

Social media has arrived, but companies still aren’t sure what to do with it.


Meghan Ennes provides a summary as well as a Harvard Business Review white paper on the current status of Social Media in business.

Fifty-eight percent of companies are currently engaged in social networks like Facebook, microblogs like Twitter, and sharing multimedia on platforms such as YouTube – but research from the Harvard Business Review Analytics Services report “The New Conversation: Taking Social Media from Talk to Action” finds that much of the investment in social is future-oriented.

Category : Marketing for growth
0 Comm

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