On Leading Well

Year: 2011

  • Sabbath Manifesto

    One year ago this week I began my month-long sabbatical, summarized in this post. It was awesome. I still feel restored, energized, and eager to dig into life, relationships and work (most days).

    Success was gained in large part due to my learning how to take smaller, one-day Sabbaths on a weekly basis. One must learn to walk before learning to run. Yesterday I learned of a mini-movement called www.SabbathManifesto.org, that, you guessed it, promotes taking a weekly day off. Just in time, too, as the “National Day of Unplugging 2011” begins at sundown on Friday, March 4, and runs through sundown Saturday, March 5. You can download the unplugging app here.

    The Ten Principles of Unplugging, according to the site, are: Avoid technology. Spend time with loved ones. Nurture your health. Get outside. Avoid commerce. Light candles. Drink wine. Eat bread. Find silence. Give back.

    In general, I love the spirit which supports my personal Sabbath principle: It’s not about what you avoid, it’s about what you pursue. In our frantic culture it takes a lot of effort to rest well. The biblical author of the New Testament book of Hebrews captured this struggle: “Strive to enter God’s rest” (verse 4:11).

    I just hope they don’t unplug everything at sundown on Friday as I’ll be on a flight back to Orlando.

    Rest well.

  • Social Networking Is Not A Fad

    People thought Gutenberg’s press was a fad, until unschooled laymen learned to read.

    People thought the internet was a fad, until it became an integral part of everyday life.

    If you think social networking is a fad that will soon pass, you may want to take a look at the numbers in “The History of Social Networking” (courtesy of www.onlineschools.org).

    The History of Social Networking

     

  • Innovation, Hipmunk, and You

    Innovation is one of our biz culture’s buzzwords today, but is it overrated? More accurately, is our typical understanding of the term leading us astray?

    Innovation simply means the bringing of something new.

    Sometimes that something new is a killer app or product. More often, meaningful innovation occurs when we eliminate unnecessary steps in a process, resulting in work that is smoother, more effective and efficient, or just more fun.

    Enter www.hipmunk.com. If you’ve been using Travelocity or Orbitz to search for the best deal on airline tickets, try Hipmunk. Its interface is clean and simple, like Google‘s. No extra text or clutter. Just three required entries (from, to and date of departure) with an optional fourth (date of return). Hipmunk sorts results by “Agony,” based on factors such as ridiculously early or late flights, how many legs, how much time spent in layovers, and ticket price. Search results are laid out on a Gantt chart-like calendar, so you can instantly compare schedules visually. It also suppresses results for ridiculous four-leg combinations that are roughly the same price as a one-stop flight because it already knows that no one in their right mind would make that choice. You can still reveal those options if you so desire.

    Simple. Uncluttered. Fresh. Inviting. Innovative. Now that’s some practical leadership.

    What daily processes does your team use that could be streamlined by taking a fresh look at unnecessary steps and pruning them away?