Leaders, teams, and decisions
Reading Give me spark today at 37signals I was reminded of some of the lessons I learned reading Patrick Lencioni’s business books. If you haven’t read any, his most famous is probably The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.
When you start discussions with a group around an issue for which a decision must be made, there’s a lot that can go wrong. Tempers flare, politics arise, quiet people get really quiet. It’s easy for the real issue to get lost. It’s easy for the wrong decision to be made in order to appease the group.
Losing the Past
Every person, every profession, every nation, every generation bemoans the loss of its past, condemns its lot in the present, and praises the unseen glory of its future.
Those Flagging Ads on Craigslist
If you ever get flagged for an advertisement on Craigslist, do yourself a favor. Just delete the ad. Throw away whatever you were trying to sell. Get a divorce. Give away your children. Move to Siberia. Grow a beard. Shave your head. Knit yourself a scarf made from wolves’ tongues. Change your name. Lock the door and throw away the key.
Or just try to figure it out for yourself.
But for God’s sake, don’t ask for help in the Craigslist Flagging Help Forum. The absolute best that will come of it is that you will know, without a doubt, how much you absolutely suck as a human being. And there are at least 500,000 users waiting there to jump on your thread and tell you, as quickly as possible, how much of an asshole you are for trying to sell your stupid shit.
“That stuff you wanted to sell was probably stolen. Did you go to college? You probably didn’t go to college. Your parents were never married. They found you in the garbage. And no one likes you. Or your face. Certainly not your stuff. Did you try to use prose in your advertisement? Oh, that’s why it was flagged. Prose is strictly forbidden on Craigslist unless one of the literary scholars who joined back in the 90s likes your post and puts in on the best of Craigslist. But it’s all who you know, isn’t it? I mean, these days, it’s all about the network. Sorry, dude, no rest for the weary.”
I’m paraphrasing. Well, except for the dude part. You can’t make that up. At some point in a useless argument, the lesser of two evils will bow out by saying, “Okay dude, whatever.” The final insult. The conversation ends because there’s no more wit to be spit. But you need to know, when people say “okay, dude” on Craigslist, they’re really saying “Fuck off, Dicknose.” They don’t really think you’re a dude.
You know that old meme about how many 5-year-olds could a person take on in a fight? I think they were talking about Craigslist, because the forums are full of them.
The Criterion Collection Top 10 Lists
Are you a film buff? You want to have your best laugh of the day? Go to the Criterion Collection Top 10 Lists and pick any five or ten from the available lists, starting at the top. I liked Alec Baldwin’s list in particular for the eloquent reviews. Skip around, get a feel for it. Some reviews are better than others. All the films look interesting, assuming you haven’t seen them already.
Okay, done? Now go down to the very end and read Adam Yauch’s list. Adam Yauch, aka MCA, of the Beastie Boys, has apparently started a film distribution company. As I read his thoughts on the films, I could just imagine his input to his staff on which films to acquire for his company.
I was crying I laughed so hard. Really, I haven’t had such a good, hearty laugh in a long time. Thanks, Criterion, and thanks, MCA.
More Facebook Hyperbole
This is about Facebook. I think they’re going to win this one. In fact, I think they’re going to win all of them for the time being. It doesn’t matter what you believe their current problems are, they’re going to win.
