In the fast-paced and ever-evolving landscape of technology, the role of a software designer not only requires technical acumen but also a deep understanding of user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design. In this article, we will delve into five attributes that are required to become an outstanding software designer. 1. Prioritizing End Users […]
Category: Excellence
When it comes to tools for the workplace, you have your mouse, keyboard, chair, and monitors. Now whether you have your own office, share a common workspace, reside in coffeeshops, or work from home, you almost always need one more thing – music. Countless studies have been done to connect music to increased concentration, reduced […]
“Consulting has traditionally been and is still a boys club, particularly at management level”, female McKinsey Consultant. “A lot of times I found myself the only female in the room with another 10-15 males during the steering co-meeting”, BCG project leader. Despite a drive to make equality of opportunity a norm of modern workplaces, women are […]
Curiosity is a word frequently associated with childhood or domestic pets. When a child is experiencing the world around them for the first time and interacting with their new surroundings, we say they are curious. In the context of pets, curiosity is known to have killed the cat. This post asserts that curiosity is more […]
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The Importance of Being Wrong at Work
Being wrong is a natural part of being human. Everyone makes mistakes, misinterpretations, and miscalculations. Unfortunately, another natural part of being human is having an ego, and the accompanying desire for self-preservation. No one likes being seen to make mistakes as it can be embarrassing, cause reputational damage and loss of status, and make us […]
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The Importance of Coachability
The ability to learn faster has become a more valuable asset as the amount of knowledge produced continues to grow on a daily basis. When starting a new position, you will need to learn the technical skills and background knowledge to perform on the job. During these transition periods there is a large knowledge gap […]
Your manager recently told you that you did a good job on a project. This is great news, but how can you assess for yourself that you are doing well? This becomes a tougher question the further you progress in your career as there are fewer established metrics to base your assessment on. In college, […]
You have just sat down for the evening in your study at home to write an important article. Your friend calls you on the phone, “Tom, what are you doing right now? Come for dinner!” The article is not due tomorrow, and discussion with your friend is always lively and entertaining. You instinctively close your […]
Last month I wrote about knowledge management basics, introducing some thoughts on the paradoxical definition, perspectives from experts, challenges that arise, and some interesting ways to encourage knowledge sharing. You can read the full article here. More specifically, I discussed knowledge management using three pillars: Input (knowledge) Process (management) Output (communication). In this article, I’d […]
Breakfast is not just the most important meal of the day, but also the most important meeting you’ll have: a chance to check in with yourself, remember what it’s all about, and strengthen your resolve to succeed. Success in business means not just managing your assets, your network, and your office, but above all: managing […]
Most of us work pretty hard to ensure an even schedule throughout the working week: five or more days of calm, measured – if industrious – productivity. Yet most people will also recognize the simple truth that, from time to time, work tends to get bunched up together. Whether it’s a fast-approaching deadline, a backlog […]
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Courage
The hard part about pursuing a new idea is not the idea itself. There are thousands of good ideas shared every day online for free. Nor is it the risk of financial failure since it is easier than ever to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start again. The real risk that the trail blazers face is a […]
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7 Keys to Success
Success is what you attract by the person you become (Source: Flickr) THE late Jim Rohn once said, “success is what you attract by the person you become”. A pithy saying, but how do you become a person who attracts success? Here are seven thoughts to get you going: Skill development – It is natural to learn from experience and […]
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Humility
Subtitle: Get over yourself. Great business ideas are usually created by others. Are you ready to receive them? (Source: Flickr) IF you counsel a young child (or grown adult) on the merits of humility, we will not raise an eyebrow. Humility is an admirable quality and has an endearing appeal, much like a puppy dog or a baby in a bassinet. We approve, and quickly […]
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Tolerance
Independence of thought, acceptance of difference “Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one’s own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.” ~ John F. Kennedy “In the practice of tolerance, one’s enemy is the best teacher.” ~ Dalai Lama “Religion is like a pair of shoes … Find one that fits […]
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Persistence
The night is darkest before the dawn. Keep moving. You’re closer than you think. “You will make mistakes. Are you going to be able to get up off the ground when you get smacked down, and keep driving. Persistence and resilience are very important, and there are going to be very difficult trade-offs to make, […]
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The Value of Meditation
The mind is a muscle, and meditation is a form of stretching MOST PEOPLE wouldn’t find it strange if you told them to stretch their muscles before running a race. Stretching limbers up the muscles, increases performance, and reduces the risk of injury. And yet, and yet, every day people around the world turn up for work and run a mental […]
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Acceptance
Making the most of right now ANGER and hatred result from clinging to past experiences. By refusing to accept things you cannot change, you lose your peace of mind, waste mental energy, and remain trapped by events which didn’t kill you yet leave you permanently diminished. Better to let the bad stuff go. Ambition and anxiety result from restlessly anticipating the future. […]
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Forgiveness
An act of personal empowerment that gives you freedom from the past and allows you to retain the initiative (Source: Flickr) FORGIVENESS is a noble sentiment, but shouldn’t our tormentors be punished? What about truth? What about justice? What about revenge? Breathe, breathe, everything will be okay. The deceptions and betrayals of those around us can sometimes infect and overwhelm the mind. The […]
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Let It Go
Holding a grudge is like drinking poison, and wishing your enemies would die. Let it go, keep moving, and retain your freedom. Or, as Oscar Wilde put it, “always forgive your enemies, nothing annoys them so much.”
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Tourist or Adventurer
If you’re waiting for the bus, and missing it throws out your whole day, then you’re a tourist. Some people go through life this way. High school, university, respectable office job, marriage, house, children, death. A safe bus ride with a predictable number of stops. There is an alternative, but it won’t fit neatly on your itinerary. You […]
Greg McKeown shares his revelation that success can lead to failure and why doing less can often mean getting more
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How to Get Lucky
You can create your own luck by expecting good fortune, having persistence, and embracing opportunities as they arise IF you are like most people you probably appreciate the role that luck plays in finding a romantic partner. People spend large amounts of time attending parties, going to bars, and participating in bizarre social and sporting […]
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How to Make Your Own Luck
“Luck is not something you can mention in the presence of self-made men.” (E.B. White) TODAY, over coffee with a friend at an alfresco cafe in Sydney, our conversation turned, as if by chance, to consider the nature of luck. As an Australian, I have always considered myself lucky. After all, if you grow up […]
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How to Make Stress Your Friend
Viewing stress as helpful can foster courage, and connecting with others under stress can aid resilience KELLY McGONIGAL explains that merely believing that “stress is harmful” can increase your chances of premature death. The good news is that by changing how you think about stress you can change your body’s stress response and improve your physical […]
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Tim Minchin’s Nine Life Lessons
“It’s an incredibly exciting thing, this one meaningless life of yours” (Tim Minchin) “TIM Minchin is a genius, pure and simple. He is to musical comedy what Charles Darwin was to evolution” (Tim Arthur, CEO of TimeOut Magazine). We tend to agree. For those of you unfamiliar with Tim’s work, you can check out some […]
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We Think Therefore We Are
If you can imagine it, then it can become a reality ADAM Spencer (no relation) gives a wonderful speech about the beauty of mathematics, the search for the largest prime number, and the age in which we now live – the age of machine aided human discovery. As Adam poetically states, “numbers are the musical notes […]
Fear, Laziness, and Pessimism YOU are capable of producing great work. But are you? It is possible that you merely producing the minimum required of you. You may even have a list of sensible sounding reasons why now is not the right time to take bold action to achieve success: you’re too old, you’re too young, […]
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Strategic Fail
Fail fast. Your success depends on it BACK in high school, you teachers probably trained you in ‘exam technique’. For example, your maths teacher probably gave your class exam-prep advice which sounded something like this: “do the easy questions first, skip anything you don’t understand and come back to it at the end of the […]
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Warding Off Ghosts
Hint: this post has nothing to do with ghosts HAVE you ever seen a ghost? Or been told a ghost story by someone who claims to have seen one? I recently had a conversation with a friend who explained to me that his apartment is inhabited by an unfriendly ghost. How do you ward off a […]
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3 Steps to Eliminate Worry
Identify the source, weigh your options, and take action DO you suffer from worry? Worry is an obstacle which can prevent otherwise talented students and business people from setting and achieving goals; even ones that should be well within their reach. Do you ever twiddle your thumbs for five minutes (or an hour) before making a […]
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Salutation to the Dawn
Today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness Look to this day! For it is life, the very life of life. In its brief course Lie all the verities and realities or your existence: The bliss of growth The glory of action The splendor of achievement. For yesterday is but a dream And […]
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3 Steps for Greater Focus
Accept what you have, visualise what you want, and orient yourself in the right direction DO you ever feel like ‘success’ eludes you? Like you should be achieving more? Like you’re not making progress with your studies, career, or business? There are 3 steps you can use to achieve greater focus: Acceptance: understand where you are […]
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Know Your Outcome
https://www.youtube.com/v/5tknowAM50Y Burn all other bridges
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How to Achieve Your Audacious Goals
Hint: taking audacious action is not the answer THERE are many things worth having. What do you want? You may want to work for McKinsey, start your own firm, or fly to the moon. Be specific. What exactly is your audacious goal? If nothing comes to mind, then don’t worry. The reason that most people have […]
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Believe In Yourself
It ain’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward YOU have what it takes to be successful, but unless you believe in yourself, you’re not going to have the life you want, or the life that you know you deserve. Keep fighting. Don’t let anybody […]
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3 Lessons from Steve Jobs
Believe that the dots will connect down the road, love what you do, and remember that you are going to die STEVE JOBS was one of the world’s great visionaries, entrepreneurs and businessmen. On October 5th 2011, he departed. People knew that he was sick, but nobody expected him to leave so soon. I remember […]
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Live passionately everyday
Your passion is what stays with us There was a very cautious man, Who never laughed or played. He never risked, he never tried, He never sang or prayed. And when he one day passed away, His insurance was denied. For since he never really lived, They claimed he never died. ~ Anon.
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Six Secrets to Success
Arnold Schwarzenegger provides his 6 secrets to success LISTEN UP.
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Short the market, but long on you
THE market may be down, but not you. Be bullish about the future. Invest in yourself. And stay hungry. Your stock will rise.
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Do One Thing Every Day That Scares You
Sometimes all you need is a little nudge ARE you holding off on pursuing a new initiative because you’re in your comfort zone? Do you have a friend whose potential is obvious but they spend all of their time talking big, partying and generally goofing around? Sometimes all you need is the smallest nudge to […]
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Here’s to the Crazy Ones
Steve Jobs narrates the first “Think Different” Apple commercial “Here’s to the Crazy Ones”. It never aired.
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Life moves pretty fast
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it ~ Ferris Bueller THE FRENETIC pace of daily life in Ho Chi Minh City combined with incredible time lapse photography produce a short video that gives you pause for thought (hat tip to Mike Maier for the video). […]
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Who is responsible for your success?
THIS IS an important question because the answer will affect how you feel about yourself, how likely you are to persist in the face of set backs, and how much enjoyment you gain from the things you do. If you have read any of Seth Godin‘s work then you are probably familiar with the idea of the “linchpin”; […]
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How great are you?
If you think you are beaten, you are. If you think you dare not, you don’t. If you like to win but think you can’t, It’s almost a cinch you won’t. If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost. For out in the world we find, Success begins with a fellow’s will. It’s all in the […]
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Hail to the bus driver man!
What do you want to do when you grow up? THIS is a tribute to those people whose actions make our lives possible. Think of an ordinary day of your typical city dwelling person. A school student, university student, office worker or senior citizen. It is very likely that they may need to go somewhere, […]
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Slow Dance
Are you dancing too fast? Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round, or listened to the rain slapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight, or gazed at the sun into the fading night? You’d better slow down, don’t dance so fast, time is short, the music won’t last. Do you run through each […]
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CEO U
BACK in 1997, Tom Peters talked about “Brand You“. Tom told us that big companies understand the importance of brands and that today, in the Age of the Individual, you have to be your own brand. This is absolutely true, but it is only part of the story. You are not a walking brand, you […]
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Finding Yourself
THIS post was initially going to be called “finding your competitive advantage”, but I think it goes further than that. Here are 8 factors to get you thinking, and to help find what you’re looking for: Why do you do what you do every day? What makes you tick? What do you believe in? These […]