Zǎoshang hǎo,    早上好

Greeting of the day in Chinese because on this day in 1972 Richard Nixon left on his historic trip to become the first US President to ever visit China.

Amazon again…

I’m including this article for 3 reasons.

1 – The info graphic is a powerful image.

2 – The concept that you should obsess over customers vs. obsessing over competition and the environment.

3 – The link embedded in the article is an 8-minute interview with Jeff Bezos.  It’s worth the watch.

Amazon vs. the world 

Are the tribes in your organization working towards the same desired end state? 

Is your tribe attracting talent or pushing it away unintentionally?  Some pretty funny and frank terminology is used to describe the different phases in a tribe lifecycle.

Organizations are the sum of their tribes

Language Matters!

This is probably one of the best articles on hiring that I have ever read.  I like the concept of assessing someone on “distance traveled” vs. “experience.”  Also, the idea of extending your network deliberately through who you hire is a valuable strategy.

A few thoughts on inclusive hiring

You as the Enterprise…

Steven Pressfield is one of my favorite authors.  His book “Gates of Fire”  is one of the books that I have gifted the most.    This blog post is slightly slanted towards authors or artists but has some very applicable information for anyone who considers themselves a professional.  The enemy is resistance and our internal self-sabotage.  If you find this article interesting I would encourage you to read his series on The Profession as well as his book “The War of Art”  (no that isn’t a typo)

You Inc.

Quote to bring out the fight in you:

“Victory or defeat are largely out of my control, but putting up a good fight… putting up the kind of fight that makes the earth shake and the gods blush… this I can do.”

– Daniele Bolelli

 

 

Magandang umaga po sa inyong lahat,

Greeting of the day in Tagalog because I recently reconnected with a college and Army buddy who has spent many years in the Philippines.

Amazon shaking things up once again

In a never ending effort to speed up the process of getting stuff to your doorstep Amazon is taking steps to control every touch point in the supply chain.

Amazon’s Expansion 

Where do you aim your rearview mirror?

A short article that I read multiple times to grasp the depth of insights that it holds.  How is your perspective different if you are in the car behind the author?

https://sivers.org/tilt

Eye opening graphical portrayal of TIME 

When you take this and apply it to your life does it change your priorities?  Will you do anything different today or tomorrow because you read this?  Maybe a call to your mom?

The Tail End

February Book Discussion

Many of you participated in the recent discussions about the book Creativity Inc. by Ed Catmull.  Thank you for your participation!

If you are interested in joining the next book discussion please let me know and I will be sure to include you on the invite (probably occurring on the 27th or 28th of Feb).

We are going to be reading a book by Ryan Holiday titled, Ego is the Enemy.  It is a relatively short read filled with historical anecdotes and sage words of wisdom.

I hope you enjoy the book and join the discussion.

Ego is the Enemy

Quote that was formed in the horrors of a concentration camp:  

“Between stimulus and response there is a space.  In that space is our power to choose our response.  In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”

Such a powerful concept, but it will not always be easy and there won’t always be a big space between stimulus and response.  What will you make of that space?

– Viktor Frankl

 

Habari za asubuhi,

Greeting of the day in Swahili because the citizens of Tanzania are anxiously anticipating the announcement and funding of a World Bank loan in the amount of Sh2.5 trillion (about $1.15B).  This loan will allow them to upgrade their electric grid and expand it to the rural areas of the country.

What does the future of automation mean for retail; for supply chains; for jobs? 

“Roughly 1/2 of all jobs will be lost to automation in the next 20 years.”

This thought provoking article touches on some traditionally taboo subjects like universal basic income.

Article: The jobless world and its discontents

Don’t be a Jerk!

I love the idea of assuming “that everyone is a volunteer and that all power is transient…”

Have you been the person Seth is warning against?  Are you that person right now?

Blog post: Long-term strategy: Don’t be a jerk

A documentary worth checking out:

The story of Enron and the downfall of the the 7th Largest Company in America.

Investors and employees lost everything.  The level of corruption will amaze you and disturb you.

Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room

Great analysis about a powerful book

“It is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it”

If you don’t know much about the Stoics, Seneca is a great place to start and this article is a great introduction to one of his books, On the Shortness of Life.

Note – Maria Popova is a fascinating woman to follow and her weekly email newsletter is full of goodness.

Warning – it is a long read, but if you set aside the time you will not be disappointed.

Article: Seneca: On the Shortness of Life

Quote that I love…

I had a buddy who’s philosophy was, “deeds, not words.”  The following quote from the author of The Alchemist is a similar reminder to live our values not just talk about them.       

“The World is changed by your example, not your opinion.”

– Paulo Coelho

 

 

Tip of the Top Hat to you,

Greeting of the day as a “gentlemen’s gesture” in honor of John Quincy Adams, who was the first President to wear long trousers at his inauguration.  Thus ending the era of presidential knee britches forever (hopefully).  Long trousers plus the top hat = classy look.

Who do you think of when you hear the word “successful?”

Mark Bustos is a very successful high-end hair dresser in NYC.  On his day off he cuts the hair of homeless people in New York and writes about their stories.  After a review of his social media accounts, I was inspired by the passion behind what he does and how it makes a difference.  What are you passionate about?  What can you give to those around you?

Check out Mark Bustos Story on Instagram or Mark Bustos story on Twitter

Ted Talk that you should watch!  

Sometimes I listen to Ted Talks on the app, but this one is worth watching because of the messages she delivers with her poses and eyes.  What can someone help you with?  Will you be brave enough to ask for help?

https://www.ted.com/talks/amanda_palmer_the_art_of_asking#t-804549

Good luck to those of you with tween girls in the house…

I have 2 girls in this age range so this article really spoke into my world in a deep way.

http://www.allprodad.com/how-to-understand-your-tween-daughter/?utm_term=playoftheday&utm_campaign=Play+of+the+Day+Daily+Email&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=38883271&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9Xm9ftf4gzSZcWuQVsRCDgcfql-vlRmj6liLDK5fd1eMqefaE94bqH2KQQ3AaJYcpLOwxE3Sl-y1N0NaibMUZ4hsXD9Q&_hsmi=38883271#skipintro

A book that survived my deep skepticism – The One Thing by Gary Keller

I set aside my prejudices against books with titles that are designed to catch the eye (4 Hour Work Week, I’ll Teach You to Be Rich, etc.) and picked up this book on the recommendation from a friend.  As I skimmed the book jacket and the Table of Contents alarms were going off in my head about how cliche’ and common the terms and thoughts were.  It seemed like I had seen LinkedIn headlines this very week covering every single chapter topic.  Despite all that baggage – this book delivers a crisp, clear message worth reading and putting into practice.  Each chapter could stand alone as a topic, but the power of the book is the way Gary ties it all together with powerful stories.  I really enjoyed the read and am glad I listened to my friend.

https://www.amazon.com/ONE-Thing-Surprisingly-Extraordinary-Results/dp/1885167776

Quote from the timeless wisdom of children’s books:      

“But those Woulda-Coulda-Shouldas all ran away and hid from one little Did.”

– Shel Silverstein

 

 

Aloha Kakahiaka,

Greeting of the day in Hawaiian to take you back to this day in 1874 when US troops landed in Honolulu to protect the King.

A Bloggers version of Lean methodologies….

What can you “Sprint Test?”  I’d like to try this with our on boarding process at Innovel.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2017/01/fixing-the-buffet-line.html

How’s Your Memory?

I really like the 3rd point.  This is similar to something a sharp Sergeant taught me early in my Army career.  His true test of whether one of his soldiers had learned something was if they could teach it to another soldier.  I also like the intellectual curiosity mindset that the 3rd point suggests.

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/224558

Get your “Hygge” on:  

For those of you who live in colder climates…I was in shorts and a t-shirt yesterday 🙂

http://lifehacker.com/how-to-get-through-a-miserable-winter-with-the-danish-c-1791001000

A book I am totally getting into when I really didn’t think I would…. – The Years of Lyndon Johnson: Means of Ascent by Robert Caro

My family visited the LBJ Ranch in the Texas Hill Country over the Christmas break and really enjoyed it.  The land and facilities were very impressive, but I was also struck by the legend of the man himself and his wife Lady Bird.  I wanted to learn more and picked up this book which is the 2nd in a series of books about LBJ.  The biography is cutting and takes any and all polish off of the power broker of a politician that I had believed LBJ to be.  It also shines a light on the amazing corruption in southern elections in the 30s, 40s and 50s.  Last night I finished the section about Governor Coke Stevenson who is a Texas legend and strikes me as a very impressive man.

https://www.amazon.com/Means-Ascent-Years-Lyndon-Johnson/dp/1501264346

Quote that you can interpret many different ways, but I like it!  

“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thouroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaim ‘Wow!  What a Ride!'”

– Hunter S. Thompson, The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955-1967

Bookkeeping note (pun intended)

I want to thank those of you have been participating in the discussions about the book Creativity Inc.  I have really enjoyed the dialogue and idea exploration that goes on in those sessions.  I’d like to execute a similar concept in the month of February and am soliciting ideas for a book to read and discuss.  We broke the discussions of Creativity Inc. into 3 sessions, but with the next book we will  have 1 discussion and give everyone a full month to read the book.  Let me know if you have a book that you think would be a good fit for the group to discuss.  Right now I am leaning towards Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday.

 

–. — — -.. / — — .-. -. .. -. –.

Greeting of the day in Morse Code to take you back to this day in 1838 when Samuel Morse demonstrated for the first time the telegraph device which used electric impulses to transmit coded messages over a wire.

The Future of Retailing…

It seems like there is a new article out every week on “the future of retailing.”  This one is a few months old, but I was doing some research recently in preparation for a client meeting and came across this article.  I share it now because I think that the themes are relevant, specifically this quote,

“Retail culture does not easily accept disruption. Resistance to change will be a major negative factor for many retailers who will not survive.”

How are we doing with this?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/walterloeb/2016/08/09/the-future-of-retailing-the-revolution-to-technology-is-now/#44fcd25f383e

Attitude is a Choice

What choice will you make today?

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2017/01/the-choice.html

A Ted Talk that you should watch/listen to:

Can you tell the story of who you are with your “whole heart?”  Are you authentic?  Can you be vulnerable?  For those of you who get a chance to see this – please send me any thoughts you have.    

https://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability

A book I recently enjoyed – The Art of Learning by Josh Waitzkin

Josh is a very interesting person:  8 time National Chess Champion before the age of 18; Martial Arts National and World Champion.  I heard him interviewed a while back and picked up this book as a result of being intrigued by his interview.  He is a little long winded in his “play by play” retelling of some of his chess matches and martial arts competitions, but the techniques he describes for increasing concentration and focus are worth the read.

https://www.amazon.com/Art-Learning-Journey-Optimal-Performance/dp/0743277465

Quote that I really like:

“Life is all about not knowing, and then doing something anyway.  All of life is like this.  All of it.  And it’s not going to get any easier just because you found out you love your job cleaning septic tanks or you scored a dream gig writing indie movies.”

– Mark Manson

Guid Mornin,

Greeting of the day in Scots (lowland Scots) in honor of the Scots poem, Auld Lang Syne by Robert Burns that the majority of you will probably attempt to sing tomorrow night, but not know all the lyrics.  If you want to brush up on the lyrics or impress/annoy your friends by singing it in the original Scots take a look here – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auld_Lang_Syne#Lyrics

Retail Checkout of the future?

This will be our reality soon.  How will this change things like selling add ons, security, and interactions between store associates and customers?

http://www.techgistics.net/blog/2016/12/7/amazongo/robot/machinelearning/jobs

5 Leadership Lessons

I really liked this article for its simplicity.  All five lessons are powerful, but I really love the parts about including everyone, making sure you are building the capability of your team and accepting that you may not have the solution to every problem.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/five-leadership-lessons-from-most-amazing-leader-i-have-pawel-motyl-1

Giving Feedback Advice

Giving feedback rates up there with public speaking on the “not fun” list for so many people.  Learning how to do it effectively is a critical skill to learn if you are going to excel and help your team excel.  This article isn’t a complete reference guide for feedback, but it does raise some interesting points to consider.

https://www.fastcompany.com/3066784/work-smart/to-give-better-feedback-follow-this-ancient-advice?partner=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feedburner+fastcompany&utm_content=feedburner

You can’t cram for the most important things in life. 

You can’t cram for a relationship to be there when you need it.  You can’t cram for trust and integrity in your business interactions.  You can’t cram for health and well being.

https://medium.com/the-mission/you-dont-control-the-outcomes-of-your-life-principles-do-a1ad5fcdae1c?inf_contact_key=3a546f2fdf02e051bb7c744eb01e8eb44bbf081dbfa3afa975109feb01efdce9#.4o0c6838j

Cheesy Quote to inspire your New Year Resolutions:

“There are no traffic jams along the extra mile.” – Unknown

 

Goedemorgen,

Greeting of the day in Dutch in honor of St. Nicholas Day.  Don’t forget to leave some hay and a carrot out in your shoes as a gift for St. Nicholas’s horse named Schimmel.  (Like the kids in the Netherlands)

What our competition is doing:

J.C. Penney is continuing to expand their foot print into things that folks once came to Sears for.

http://fortune.com/2016/12/22/jcpenney-hvac-air-conditioning/

Another Pending Amazon Disruption.  

There are other players trying to do similar, but they are mostly small Venture Backed startups.  I suspect Amazon will acquire them for their IP or just crush them.

http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-building-uber-for-trucking-app-2016-12

Brainstorming Is Dead.  Long live Brainstorming!

Its always fun to read some counter-cultural stuff to get you thinking.  I’m not convinced just yet, but I am willing to give it a try.

http://www.fastcodesign.com/3062292/evidence/brainstorming-is-dumb

Reminder to double check your priorities from time to time!

I’ve been the guy who relished my status on whatever airline, but somehow the love from the airline didn’t last.  The love from your family will though.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/my-switch-from-seat-3a-27e-joe-staples

Quote that reminded me that we shouldn’t take ourselves too seriously.   

“Don’t believe everything you think.” – BJ Miller (@zenhospice)

 

Boungiorno,

Greeting of the day in Italian in honor of Italy’s Parliament approving a new government under Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.

Manifesto on Culture, Quality, Leadership, Customer Service…

Fortune does a nice job of explaining what makes Costco, Costco.  Many of us work with folks from Costco on a daily basis.  Hopefully, this sheds some light on the environment in which they operate.

http://fortune.com/costco-wholesale-shopping/

A Supply Chain Consulting Firm is becoming a 4PL:

It’s always good to know what kind of consolidation, partnering, and maneuvering is going on in our industry.

http://www.dcvelocity.com/articles/20161212-in-unusual-move-supply-chain-consultant-forms-logistics-company-stocks-it-with-big-names/

The Other Person is Always Right!

You have to understand these tenants in order to ever hope to be an effective communicator.

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2016/12/the-other-person-is-always-right.html

Ted Talk worth watching:

Simon Sinek has written many books on topics that are near and dear to my heart.  A thought leader friend of mine recently reminded me of this video and I thought you all might enjoy it.

https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_why_good_leaders_make_you_feel_safe

Quote, that made me rethink my attitude. 

“If you run into an asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole.  If you run into assholes all day, you’re the asshole.”

– fictional character Raylan Givens from the TV Series Justified.

 

Oodgay orningmay,

Greeting of the day in Pig Latin because after last week’s feast I’m still feeling like a Pig.

Infographic of the Week: Amazon’s Expanding DC Footprint

The thing that really stands out to me is the data point that in 2015 Amazon’s losses on shipping surpassed $5 Billion.  That’s an impressive number!

http://www.scdigest.com/ontarget/16-11-30-1.php?cid=11601&ctype=content

The chatter in our industry:  Are Sales a Thing of the Past?

Online retailers want brick and mortar and traditional retailers want better online experiences for their customers.  Is the magic in the middle?  Is the millennial customer the goal?  A short read that raises some interesting questions in my mind.

http://www.cnbc.com/2016/11/29/ex-jcpenney-ceo-allen-questrom-sales-have-become-a-cancer-for-department-stores.html

A Reflection on a Birthday!

Brad is one of my favorite people to read and I feel lucky to have worked on a project with him once.  I share this article because I think it is a thoughtful review of what I call “being deliberate with your time and energy.”  Whether you use your birthday, the new year or some other trigger it is a great idea to reflect on what you want to be doing and making an impact on.  It may surprise you to learn what you are actually doing with your time.

http://www.feld.com/archives/2016/12/bfeld-v51-0.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+FeldThoughts+%28Feld+Thoughts%29

Book that I am reading:

How Will You Measure Your Life? by Clayton Christensen, James Allworth, Karen Dillon

I picked up this book because one of the authors, Clayton Christensen, wrote one of my favorite books for Entrepreneurs.  I have read his book, The Innovator’s Dilemma and referenced and recommended it often. His latest book is of a completely different sort, but oh so valuable.  Also – the second book in a row, that I am reading, that has a Sears reference – this time referencing the idea of selling Honda motorcycles in the Sears Catalog back in the ’60s.

https://www.amazon.com/How-Will-Measure-Your-Life/dp/0062102419

Quote that made me laugh! 

Be the person your dog thinks you are!

– Anonymous