The Laws of Subtraction: 6 Simple Rules for Winning in the Age of Excess Everything

2012-10-26
The Laws of Subtraction: 6 Simple Rules for Winning in the Age of Excess Everything

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  • Author: Matthew E. May
  • Publisher: McGraw Hill Professional
  • ISBN: 0071795626
  • Category : Business & Economics
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 241

Winner of a 2013 Small Business Book Award for Economics The world is more overwhelming than ever before. Our work is deeper and more demanding than ever. Our businesses are more complicated and difficult to manage than ever. Our economy is more uncertain than ever. Our resources are scarcer than ever. There is endless choice and feature overkill in all but the best experiences. Everybody knows everything about us. The simple life is a thing of the past. Everywhere, there's too much of the wrong stuff and not enough of the right. The noise is deafening, the signal weak. Everything is too complicated and time-sucking. Welcome to the age of excess everything. Success in this new age looks different and demands a new skill: Subtraction. Subtraction is defined simply as the art of removing anything excessive, confusing, wasteful, unnatural, hazardous, hard to use, or ugly . . . or the discipline to refrain from adding it in the first place. And if subtraction is the new skill to be acquired, we need a guide to developing it. Enter The Laws of Subtraction. Through a dozen of the most compelling stories of breakthrough innovation culled from 2,000 cases and bolstered by uniquely personal essays contributed by over 50 of the most creative minds in business today, The Laws of Subtraction outlines six simple rules for winning in the age of excess everything, and delivers a single yet powerful idea: When you remove just the right things in just the right way, something very good happens. The Laws of Subtraction features contributions by over 50 highly regarded thinkers, creatives, and executives. On Law #1: What Isn't There Can Often Trump What Is "When you reduce the number of doors that someone can walk through, more people walk through the one that you want them to walk through." -- SCOTT BELSKY, founder and CEO of Behance and author of Making Ideas Happen On Law #2: The Simplest Rules Create the Most Effective Experience "Keeping it simple isn't easy. By exploiting subtraction in innovation, we've been able to create an environment of freedom and creativity that allows us to thrive." -- BRAD SMITH, CEO, Intuit On Law #3: Limiting Information Engages the Imagination "Subtraction can mean the difference between a highly persuasive presentation and a long, convoluted, and confusing one. Why say more when you can say less?" -- CARMINE GALLO, author of The Apple Experience On Law #4: Creativity Thrives Under Intelligent Constraints "Here's the key to the conundrum for managers who want to stoke the innovation fire: That close cousin of scarcity, constraint, can indeed foster creativity." -- TERESA AMABILE, author of The Progress Principle On Law #5: Break Is the Important Part of Breakthrough "If you kill the butterflies in your stomach, you'll kill the dream. Embrace the feeling. Save the butterflies." -- JONATHAN FIELDS, author of Uncertainty On Law #6: Doing Something Isn't Always Better Than Doing Nothing "When we're faced with the greatest odds against us, often we need to edit rather than add." -- CHIP CONLEY, cofounder of Joie de Vivre Hospitality and author of Emotional Equations

A Beautiful Constraint

2015-01-07
A Beautiful Constraint

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  • Author: Adam Morgan
  • Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
  • ISBN: 1118899458
  • Category : Business & Economics
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 295

An inspiring yet practical guide for transforming limitations into opportunities A Beautiful Constraint: How to Transform Your Limitations Into Advantages And Why It's Everyone's Business Now is a book about everyday, practical inventiveness, designed for the constrained times in which we live. It describes how to take the kinds of issues that all of us face today—lack of time, money, resources, attention, know-how—and see in them the opportunity for transformation of oneself and one's organization's fortunes. The ideas in the book are based on the authors' extensive work as business consultants, and are brought to life in 35 personal interviews from such varied sources as Nike, IKEA, Unilever, the U.S. Navy, Formula One racecar engineers, public school teachers in California, and barley farmers in South Africa. Underpinned by scientific research into the psychology of breakthrough, the book is a practical handbook full of tools and tips for how to make more from less. Beautifully designed and accessible, A Beautiful Constraint will appeal beyond its core business audience to anyone who needs to find the opportunity in constraint. The book takes the reader on a journey through the mindset, method and motivation required to move from the initial "victim" stage into the transformation stage. It challenges us to: Examine how we've become path dependent—stuck with routines that blind us from seeing opportunity along new paths Ask Propelling Questions to help us break free of those paths and put the most pressing and valuable constraints at the heart of our process Adopt a Can If mentality to answer these questions—focused on "how," not "if" Access the abundance to be found all around us to help transform constraints Activate the high-octane mix of emotions necessary to fuel the tenacity required for success We live in a world of seemingly ever-increasing constraints, driven as much by an overabundance of choices and connections as by a scarcity of time and resources. How we respond to these constraints is one of the most important issues of our time and will be a large determinant of our progress as people, businesses and planet, in the future. A Beautiful Constraint calls for a more widespread capability for constraint-driven problem solving and provides the framework to achieve that.

The No Asshole Rule

2007-02-22
The No Asshole Rule

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  • Author: Robert I. Sutton
  • Publisher: Business Plus
  • ISBN: 0759518017
  • Category : Business & Economics
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 166

The definitive guide to working with -- and surviving -- bullies, creeps, jerks, tyrants, tormentors, despots, backstabbers, egomaniacs, and all the other assholes who do their best to destroy you at work. "What an asshole!" How many times have you said that about someone at work? You're not alone! In this groundbreaking book, Stanford University professor Robert I. Sutton builds on his acclaimed Harvard Business Review article to show you the best ways to deal with assholes...and why they can be so destructive to your company. Practical, compassionate, and in places downright funny, this guide offers: Strategies on how to pinpoint and eliminate negative influences for good Illuminating case histories from major organizations A self-diagnostic test and a program to identify and keep your own "inner jerk" from coming out The No Asshole Rule is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Business Week bestseller.

The Myths of Creativity

2013-09-26
The Myths of Creativity

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  • Author: David Burkus
  • Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
  • ISBN: 1118729889
  • Category : Business & Economics
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 225

How to get past the most common myths about creativity to design truly innovative strategies We tend to think of creativity in terms reminiscent of the ancient muses: divinely-inspired, unpredictable, and bestowed upon a lucky few. But when our jobs challenge us to be creative on demand, we must develop novel, useful ideas that will keep our organizations competitive. The Myths of Creativity demystifies the processes that drive innovation. Based on the latest research into how creative individuals and firms succeed, David Burkus highlights the mistaken ideas that hold us back and shows us how anyone can embrace a practical approach, grounded in reality, to finding the best new ideas, projects, processes, and programs. Answers questions such as: What causes us to be creative in one moment and void in the next? What makes someone more or less creative than his or her peers? Where do our flashes of creative insight come from, and how can we generate more of them? Debunks 10 common myths, including: the Eureka Myth; the Lone Creator Myth; the Incentive Myth; and The Brainstorming Myth Written by David Burkus, founder of popular leadership blog LDRLB For anyone who struggles with creativity, or who makes excuses for delaying the work of innovation, The Myths of Creativity will help you overcome your obstacles to finding new ideas.

The New Designer

2023-05-02
The New Designer

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  • Author: Manuel Lima
  • Publisher: MIT Press
  • ISBN: 0262047632
  • Category : Design
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 277

How to develop an ethical design practice and build a better world. The choices made by designers have a significant effect on the world. Yet so much of the discourse on design focuses on aesthetics rather than ethics. In The New Designer, acclaimed author Manuel Lima aims to change this by challenging common myths and preconceptions about what comprises good design. He argues that designers must take responsibility for the personal, societal, cultural, and environmental impact of their work, rather than simply following a standard template. As he covers fields ranging from graphic design to industrial design to user-experience design, Lima identifies the major steps that designers must take to be a force for good in the world. Rather than sticking to outmoded ideas about perfectionism and individual genius, designers must work together to tackle some of the most challenging questions of the twenty-first century. How do you make room for humanity, with all its wondrous variations, in a society increasingly driven by metrics, algorithms, and profit? How can ecologically responsible designers consider a product’s entire life cycle and look well into the future? And how can designers better respond to a community’s local needs while taking advantage of global networks? Blending approaches derived from ethics, psychology, economics, and ecology, The New Designer is a vital, field-changing treatise that will appeal to any reader who seeks to understand design’s massive influence on the contemporary world.

Talk Like TED

2014-03-04
Talk Like TED

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  • Author: Carmine Gallo
  • Publisher: St. Martin's Press
  • ISBN: 1466837276
  • Category : Business & Economics
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 289

Ideas are the currency of the twenty-first century. In order to succeed, you need to be able to sell your ideas persuasively. This ability is the single greatest skill that will help you accomplish your dreams. Many people have a fear of public speaking or are insecure about their ability to give a successful presentation. Now public speaking coach and bestselling author Carmine Gallo explores what makes a great presentation by examining the widely acclaimed TED Talks, which have redefined the elements of a successful presentation and become the gold standard for public speaking. TED ? which stands for technology, entertainment, and design ? brings together the world's leading thinkers. These are the presentations that set the world on fire, and the techniques that top TED speakers use will make any presentation more dynamic, fire up any team, and give anyone the confidence to overcome their fear of public speaking. In his book, Carmine Gallo has broken down hundreds of TED talks and interviewed the most popular TED presenters, as well as the top researchers in the fields of psychology, communications, and neuroscience to reveal the nine secrets of all successful TED presentations. Gallo's step-by-step method makes it possible for anyone to deliver a presentation that is engaging, persuasive, and memorable. Carmine Gallo's top 10 Wall Street Journal Bestseller Talk Like TED will give anyone who is insecure about their public speaking abilities the tools to communicate the ideas that matter most to them, the skill to win over hearts and minds, and the confidence to deliver the talk of their lives. The opinions expressed by Carmine Gallo in TALK LIKE TED are his own. His book is not endorsed, sponsored or authorized by TED Conferences, LLC or its affiliates.

What a Unicorn Knows

2023-02-21
What a Unicorn Knows

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  • Author: Matthew E. May
  • Publisher: BenBella Books
  • ISBN: 1637742827
  • Category : Business & Economics
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 259

What a Unicorn Knows is your company’s best guide to becoming a well-oiled, high-velocity machine for growth on its way to billion-dollar valuation. Why do some young companies become unicorns, while others don’t? What a Unicorn Knows is a playbook that offers a field-tested approach to delivering superior customer value and reaching unicorn status by removing the potential inhibitors to organizational scale and speed. Drawing on a mastery of lean-based methods for achieving maximum effect with minimum means, private equity operators Matthew E. May and Pablo Dominguez provide readers with a powerful framework of universally applicable principles that enable any company to effectively accelerate its ability to scale and grow. Called The Unicorn Model™ and built on five foundational principles, the authors deliver a compelling narrative of stories and experiences in an easy-to-remember mnemonic: Strategic speed Constant experimentation Accelerated value Lean process Esprit de corps Drawn from the authors’ successful track record with a wide variety of unicorn-level companies, What a Unicorn Knows offers a necessary guide for rapid but lasting growth. As more companies than ever vie for unicorn status, your competitive edge will depend on learning from the best.

The Visual Organization

2014-02-19
The Visual Organization

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  • Author: Phil Simon
  • Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
  • ISBN: 1118858344
  • Category : Computers
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 227

The era of Big Data as arrived, and most organizations are woefully unprepared. Slowly, many are discovering that stalwarts like Excel spreadsheets, KPIs, standard reports, and even traditional business intelligence tools aren't sufficient. These old standbys can't begin to handle today's increasing streams, volumes, and types of data. Amidst all of the chaos, though, a new type of organization is emerging. In The Visual Organization, award-winning author and technology expert Phil Simon looks at how an increasingly number of organizations are embracing new dataviz tools and, more important, a new mind-set based upon data discovery and exploration. Simon adroitly shows how Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Twitter, and other tech heavyweights use powerful data visualization tools to garner fascinating insights into their businesses. But make no mistake: these companies are hardly alone. Organizations of all types, industries, sizes are representing their data in new and amazing ways. As a result, they are asking better questions and making better business decisions. Rife with real-world examples and case studies, The Visual Organization is a full-color tour-de-force.

Rotman on Design

2013-05-13
Rotman on Design

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  • Author: Roger Martin
  • Publisher: University of Toronto Press
  • ISBN: 1442668377
  • Category : Business & Economics
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 265

Over the past decade, the Rotman School of Management and its award-winning publication, Rotman magazine, have proved to be leaders in the emerging field of design thinking. Employing methods and strategies from the design world to approach business challenges, design thinking can be embraced at every level of an organization to help build innovative products and systems, and to enhance customer experiences. This collection features Rotman magazine’s best articles on design thinking and business design. Insights are drawn from the people on the frontlines of bringing design into modern organizations, as well as from the leading academics who are teaching design thinking to a new generation of global leaders. Rotman on Design is divided into three sections, each of which features an all-new introduction by a prominent thought leader. The selections cover a variety of practical topics, focusing on why design methodologies are so important today and how they can be introduced into organizations that have never before considered design thinking. They also illustrate the particular skills that promote great design – whether it be of a new business plan, a user experience, a health care system, or an economic policy. Together, the articles in this collection will help managers to thrive and prepare for future challenges. Anyone who is interested in fostering creativity and innovation in their organization will benefit from this engaging book.

Rules of Play

2003-09-25
Rules of Play

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  • Author: Katie Salen Tekinbas
  • Publisher: MIT Press
  • ISBN: 9780262240451
  • Category : Computers
  • Languages : en
  • Pages : 680

An impassioned look at games and game design that offers the most ambitious framework for understanding them to date. As pop culture, games are as important as film or television—but game design has yet to develop a theoretical framework or critical vocabulary. In Rules of Play Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman present a much-needed primer for this emerging field. They offer a unified model for looking at all kinds of games, from board games and sports to computer and video games. As active participants in game culture, the authors have written Rules of Play as a catalyst for innovation, filled with new concepts, strategies, and methodologies for creating and understanding games. Building an aesthetics of interactive systems, Salen and Zimmerman define core concepts like "play," "design," and "interactivity." They look at games through a series of eighteen "game design schemas," or conceptual frameworks, including games as systems of emergence and information, as contexts for social play, as a storytelling medium, and as sites of cultural resistance. Written for game scholars, game developers, and interactive designers, Rules of Play is a textbook, reference book, and theoretical guide. It is the first comprehensive attempt to establish a solid theoretical framework for the emerging discipline of game design.