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We expend effort. We create value. It’s easy to get confused about which one we’re going to ultimately be compensated for.
2 months ago

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More from Seth's Blog

The ghost in the machine

When a system becomes complex and our knowledge peters out, we’re tempted to assert, in the words of Gilbert Ryle, that there’s a ‘ghost in the machine.’ “How does the stoplight work?” “Well, it knows that there’s a break in the traffic so it switches from green to red.” Actually, it doesn’t ‘know’ anything. Professionals […]

4 hours ago 1 votes
After you make a strategic error

Of course, we make strategic errors all the time. Not enough time. Incomplete information. A fast-changing system. Sooner or later, a significant strategic error occurs. Don’t beat yourself up. Now what? The real problems occur after the error is made. Don’t follow a strategic error with an investment error, or an effort error or a […]

yesterday 2 votes
In theory…

Anything that works in practice can work in theory. When a theory tells us something that is working is impossible, we’ve either measured wrong or the theory needs updating. Theories exist to explain, predict and understand. They are supposed to help us see and improve the world around us, and they’re never finished, just ever […]

2 days ago 4 votes
Mostly unreasonable

It’s tempting to go to an extreme. Unreasonable design standards, quality or hospitality are an effective way to gain share, delight customers and spread the word. To be unreasonable in service of your customers is a practice and a commitment. Along the way, though, reality sets in. The boss has multiple priorities. The uncompromising edges […]

3 days ago 6 votes
The menu

A while ago, I ate in a restaurant that had no menu. The waiter simply walked over to the table and said, “what do you want?” As bold as statement as this is, it made many diners uncomfortable and often led to people ordering without much imagination. Around the same time, I found myself in […]

4 days ago 5 votes

More in creative

The ghost in the machine

When a system becomes complex and our knowledge peters out, we’re tempted to assert, in the words of Gilbert Ryle, that there’s a ‘ghost in the machine.’ “How does the stoplight work?” “Well, it knows that there’s a break in the traffic so it switches from green to red.” Actually, it doesn’t ‘know’ anything. Professionals […]

4 hours ago 1 votes
Hundreds of Medieval Medical Manuscripts with Strange Cures Get Digitized & Put Online: From Leeches to Crushed Weasel Testicles

If any discussion of medieval medicine gets going, it’s only a matter of time before someone brings up leeches. And it turns out that the centrality of those squirming blood-suckers to the treatment of disease in the Middle Ages isn’t much overstated, at least judging by a look through Curious Cures. A Wellcome Research Resources […]

yesterday 3 votes
In theory…

Anything that works in practice can work in theory. When a theory tells us something that is working is impossible, we’ve either measured wrong or the theory needs updating. Theories exist to explain, predict and understand. They are supposed to help us see and improve the world around us, and they’re never finished, just ever […]

2 days ago 4 votes
Hear the Pieces Mozart Composed When He Was Only 5 Years Old

A preternaturally talented, precocious child, barely out of toddlerhood, in powdered wig and knee-breeches, capering around the great houses of 18th century Europe between virtuoso performances on the harpsichord. A young boy who can play any piece anyone puts in front of him, and compose symphonies extemporaneously with ease…. Few scenes better capture the mythos […]

2 days ago 4 votes
Mostly unreasonable

It’s tempting to go to an extreme. Unreasonable design standards, quality or hospitality are an effective way to gain share, delight customers and spread the word. To be unreasonable in service of your customers is a practice and a commitment. Along the way, though, reality sets in. The boss has multiple priorities. The uncompromising edges […]

3 days ago 6 votes