The local dump was so overflowing that it had to refuse refuse. If you’re like most people, that sentence looks wrong. After all, it has the same word repeated twice in a row. Most of us assume it can’t be proper grammar. While it’s true that repeated words usually are bad grammar, in this case…
Archive | writing
Quotes on Saying No
Over the years, I’ve compiled multiple lists of quotes about performance management, technology, and failure. Lately I’ve been thinking about prioritization and how to deal with the unending requests for my time. As I blogged about last year, I’ve had some luck using Tim Ferriss’ advice on 9 habits we all should stop — although I admit…
Is The Glass Half Empty or Half Full?
The pessimist believes the glass is half empty and the optimist sees it as half full but the insomniac stays up all night trying to decide the answer. This is an amusing twist on the classic expression normally used to show that any given situation can be looked at optimistically (half full) or pessimistically (half…
Word Cloud for MBWA, 2015 edition
More than six years ago, I created a wordle of my 10 most popular blog posts. Back then, word clouds were relatively new and I thought it was an interesting way to explore what I had been writing about. Some words were expected – performance, scorecard, objectives, strategy, metrics. Others were a bit more surprising –…
This Ain’t My First Rodeo
A few weeks ago, I asked a co-worker to take the lead on a complex situation involving a partner. When I asked him whether he was comfortable being on point, my co-worker replied: This ain’t my first rodeo. If you’re not familiar with the expression, it’s a colorful way of telling someone you’re prepared for…
If you lose, don’t be beaten
On a recent transatlantic flight, I watched the movie Forever Strong which was “inspired by” incidents surrounding the Highland Rugby team in Salt Lake City, Utah. While the movie gets mixed reviews, I was intrigued enough by the story of Larry Gelwix, Highland’s head coach, that I decided to do a bit of research into…
Quotes about Technology
In the past, I’ve compiled quotes about performance management and about failure. Here are some of my favorite ones about technology: “But they are useless. They can only give you answers.” Pablo Picasso, 1964 conversation with William Fifield about computers (source) “We tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate…
Should you care about ‘I could care less’?
I could care less if you read this blog. Of course, I’m being partly sarcastic and partly ironic when I write that. Since words matter, language purists often point out the phrase ‘I could care less’ is illogical and even an “an ignorant debasement of language”. If you don’t care about something at all, then…
Banished Words for 2015
For 40 years in a row, the LSSU-Nation folks at Lake Superior State University have been curating a cra-cra list of “Words Banished from the Queen’s English for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness”. During last week’s polar vortex, I hacked the entire 800+ word list to understand if the authors should swag for their skill…
18 Minutes to Higher Productivity
A few weeks ago I read “18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done” by Peter Bregman. 18 Minutes is a business self-help entertaining book based on his blog and weekly Harvard Business Review columns. The book suggests a process for prioritizing your day in 18 minutes over a nine-hour…