Tag Archives: Dag

David Greer

The devil made me do it

How many times have you been in a meeting and someone says those words: “Can I play the devil’s advocate for a minute?”

What certainly follows is a litany of reasons why something won’t work, or why it’s a bad idea or why that grain of innovative thinking needs to be squashed flat before it has a chance of working.

And you can’t be mad at people like this, right? After all, it wasn’t them. They aren’t pessimistic, idea-killin’ pontificators of doom. No, no – it was just the devil. By using the ol’ devil’s advocate approach, people have granted themselves criticism-whiner immunity. They claim to be among your staunch supporters; they hear what you’re saying; they believe in you; they thrive on innovation; but, they “owe it to the cause” to play the devil’s advocate.

 
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David Greer

Sometimes, you gotta go old school

The car is packed the night before. Snacks. Luggage. Winnie the Pooh and Home Alone DVDs that I will soon be able to recite line-by-line from hearing them nonstop for eight hours.

Our destination? Nickelodeon Hotel in Orlando. Nope, not Disney, Sea World nor Universal Studios. No, my little girl’s dream was simply to get slimed at The Nickelodeon Hotel. The Nick Hotel gleamed in her mind as worthy as any of the theme parks and well, it’s all the same to me.

We leave in the “middle of the night,” as Gracie would say. In adult time, that’s really five in the morning. We head southward, enjoying the dark quiet time while it lasts. We know that all too soon “are we there yet?” and “how much longer?” will interrupt the soothing melodies of “Winnie the Pooh, Winnie the Pooh…Willy nilly silly old bear.” Makes me wonder why anybody thought DVDs in the car were a good idea.

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David Greer

The Kid Will Eat the Middle of the Oreo First

Innovation, ingenuity and vision are often the cornerstone of entrepreneurial businesses. Countless hours spent in pursuit of the better mousetrap. If only we could think of one of those million dollar ideas. If only we could come out with some product or service that took off like wildfire and made us rich. If only we too could come up with that one great idea we’d be set for life. Right?

I’d argue that the world is full of great ideas. Opportunities lie on every corner. More ideas than you can comprehend. I also think for every great idea you see on the market there are thousands and thousands that never made it out of the minds of creators. They just never got traction. Never made it to fruition.

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David Greer

What’s the Mantra for 2011?

From the Publisher

Is it gonna be more of the same? Are things gonna get better this year? Will the economy have a miraculous rebound? Who can know, but all indications are that it’s time to re-up your focus on perseverance and determination for what could be another challenging year.

My sense of the world right now is that folks are tired. It’s been a long run of pressure for employers and employees alike. Folks doubled up their efforts to work through tough times and hung onto the hope that easier times were just around the corner. I don’t know about you, but I haven’t talked to many who’ve seen – much less rounded – the proverbial corner of hard times to Easy Street. But alas, the new year is upon us.

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