Search:
Recent Posts
Categories
Archives
Bucking conventional wisdom
I’ll give you the end at the beginning: conventional wisdom is more guidelines than rules. Make your own rules. Here are some examples:
Don’t rock the boat
Rocking the boat has been the sole reason behind starting so many successful ventures including Apple and Playboy (no I don’t endorse pornography but thanks for wondering). If you rock the boat at work with a new idea and lose your job over it then consider yourself lucky.
Hire slow, fire fast
I guess you think you’ve got all the time in the world to hire? I guess you think people don’t deserve a second chance? Think about it.Â
Write a business plan
Only if you think you need to or if an investor is requiring it. I recommend it (at least a summary) but I don’t think its a rule.
If you don’t have a destination, then you’ll never get there
Sometimes the best part of the trip is getting there. Think about that in terms of business. Trust me, you will find the destination even if you leave without knowing where you’ll ultimately end up.
Don’t burn bridges
Generally a good rule to follow but there are times when you are completely justified in telling someone to @#$% off. Proceed with caution.
Don’t judge a book by its cover
If you’ve got the experience to back it up then you can judge a book by its cover and be right about it 99% of the time.
Don’t talk bad about your competition
When following this rule make sure you don’t give your competition a good endorsement, which I’ve seen bad salespeople do on numerous occasions. Don’t talk bad about your competition but also make sure you don’t become a salesperson for them.
Work is not supposed to be fun, that’s why its called work
Then don’t call work “work”. Change the dynamic.
Don’t do business with family
If Uncle Bob could help you land a sale would you not do it because he’s family?
Hire only the most “qualified” candidate
Hire the right guy for the job. That person may not be the most qualified. There is a difference between being the right guy and the most qualified.
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it
If you think it ain’t broken then you’ve got problemsÂ
Question authority
With caution - “authority” didn’t get to where they are by being wrong.
Bad managers micro-manage
Sometimes bad employees need it.
Treat others the way you would want to be treated
Treat people the way they want to be treated not the way you want to be treated.
Believe in yourself even if no one else does
If no one else believes in you then you ought to figure out why that is.
Go with your gut
Only if you have the experience. This is one of my major issues I have with Gladwell’s Blink.
I could go on and on here but you get the point. Be careful what advice you follow. You should even question the advice I’ve given in this post.
What conventional wisdoms are you bucking?
Well said.
Left by Rand on 07/17/2007Great post.
I didn’t know you had issues with “Blink”. Have you had a chance to read “Your Gut is Still Not Smarter Than Your Head” by Kevin Clancy and Peter Krieg? It’s billed as “the antidote to Blink”. I’d be interested to hear your take on this book vs. Blink.
If you haven’t read it, here is a link to a sample chapter.
http://www.useyourheadnow.com/you_gut_is_still_not_smarter_than_your_head_chapter_2.pdf
Disclaimer: The book was sent to me by BzzAgent. However, the purpose of this post is not to promote it, but to solicit discussion.
Left by Marty M. Fahncke on 07/18/2007@Marty:
I’ll check it out - its something that’s been on my mind lately.
Thanks
Left by Chris Knudsen on 07/18/2007