Josh Linkner's Blog, page 23
January 18, 2015
Avoiding Almost
Healmostclosed the deal. Shealmostgot that big promotion. Theyalmost won the championship.Almost.
Near misses can be especially frustrating, since you didalmostenough work to make it happen. When a pro football team carries the ball 90 yards down the field, that progress was the sum of great strategy, precision, agility, and powerful execution. But when they fumble on the two yard-line and fail to put points on the board, all that effort fell short of driving any results. We live in a binary w...
January 11, 2015
The Brilliance of Brevity
In a smoky bar while drinking heavily, Hemingway made a bet with fellow authors that he could tell a story in only six words. Once everyone at the table agreed to participate, Hemingway wrote his story on the back of a napkin, passed it around the group, and gleefully collected his winnings. The story read, “For Sale. Baby Shoes.Never Worn.”
Historians include this brief, vivid story as one of Hemingway’s best works. The brilliance was his ability to communicate with stunning efficiency.Nearly...
January 4, 2015
The Times, They Are a Changin’
Diplomacy with Cuba. More mobile devices than people on the planet. Cyber-attacks, not bombs, are the biggest threat to national security. Retailers such as Amazon delivering merchandise via drones. TV networks advertising when they actually have a scripted show.
Who woulda’ thunk it?
Back in early January of 1964, legendary songwriter Bob Dylan prophesied, “The times they are a changing.” He was certainly correct back then, on the verge of major changes such as the civil rights movement, the s...
December 21, 2014
Your Real Job Goes Far Beyond Your Role
It’s not my job.
Four of the most poisonous words when strung together. As a customer, how many times have you heard this stinging phrase when seeking help? Think how utterly frustrated you become when the person at the pharmacy, cable company, doctor’s office, or government office absolves themselves of any responsibility to serve by hiding behind their job description. Your blood boils as the full force of their apathy hits you in the face like a billowing wind on a frigid day.
On the other h...
December 14, 2014
Paying It Forward
Motorists recently enjoyed a friendly turn of fate in Lowell, Michigan. As drivers were pulled over by the police for small infractions (such as having tinted windows that were too dark), officers began a pleasant chat instead of grumpily issuing a citation.
In conversation, the officers also asked what the drivers and their kids wanted for Christmas.
The unsuspecting drivers had no idea that the officers were on a live radio, which was being broadcast to a team of shoppers ready to sprint thro...
December 7, 2014
186 Hours Wasted
Although we boarded early, my flight out of Detroit was delayed by 63 minutes.
The weather was clear, there were no mechanical issues, and the crew was ready to roll. The cause of our tardy takeoff? A bureaucratic procedural glitch that required sign-off from airline headquarters. This completely avoidable issue impacted 177 travelers aboard our MD90 aircraft, causing a total of about 186 wasted hours.
Everyone seemed to accept the setback in good spirit. At least it appeared that way — air mar...
168 Hours Wasted
Although we boarded early, my flight out of Detroit was delayed by 63 minutes.
The weather was clear, there were no mechanical issues, and the crew was ready to roll. The cause of our tardy takeoff? A bureaucratic procedural glitch that required sign-off from airline headquarters. This completely avoidable issue impacted 177 travelers aboard our MD90 aircraft, causing a total of about 186 wasted hours.
Everyone seemed to accept the setback in good spirit. At least it appeared that way — air mar...
November 30, 2014
Stop Chasing Unicorns — Get Passionate About What You Already Do
The easily given advice has become cliché: follow your passion and everything will turn out dandy.
Problem is, we can’t all be movie stars, professional athletes, or ballerinas. There’s a difference between an achievable dream and a fantasy. For example, I probably will never get drafted for the NBA at 5-foot-5 and 44 years old. Does that mean I should resign myself to a life of drudgery and soulless clock-punching and minimal impact?
Certainly the world needs Broadway performers and astronauts...
November 23, 2014
Use Feedback To Spark, Not Destroy
I was 11 years old and getting the scolding of my life. My dad let me have it because he busted me selling illegal fireworks at school, which obviously was problematic from a parent’s perspective.
My entrepreneurial efforts got me in a world of trouble. The resulting punishment included being forced to call the parents of all my customers (fellow classmates), introduce myself, and let them know I sold their kid illegal fireworks. Needless to say, this did not help my popularity.
Remembering bac...
November 15, 2014
Increase Trust, Reduce Cost
$167,731.
That’s the annual cost to house, feed and guard a single prison inmate in New York City, according to a recent report published in the New York Times. This whopping price tag equates to a daily cost of $459.54.
In the sharpest of contrasts to the cement-block walls of a cold jail cell, the Ritz Carlton Hotel is the paragon of luxury. World-class service, beautiful design, 600 thread-count sheets. And yet, the average cost for a night at the Ritz — $323, according to its public filings...
