Untitled

[duffwatkins]

The 9 Misconceptions About Networking (and what to do about it)

The 9 Misconceptions About Networking (and what to do about it)

– Opposite of Networking is Not Working – the 12 Letter Dirty Word that Nobody Wants to Say – The Min./Max. Formula

Business is interactive and interpersonal. You deal with people all the time. So get good at networking, or else….

Let’s start by obliterating these 9 misconceptions about networking:

1. My work speaks for itself.  Ha!  If it does, it whispers. You think being a CPA, lawyer,…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

6 Cold, Hard Facts About Your "Awful" Boss (or maybe it's you?)

6 Cold, Hard Facts About Your “Awful” Boss (or maybe it’s you?)

– Why 46% of people quit their jobs? – Bad boss or dull employee? – How to have a good boss

Have you ever had a good boss?  When I ask this to a group, I’m lucky to get 10% of hands raised.  When I ask, have you ever had abad boss, the response is +80%.  Sometimes two hands per person!

Are 80% of bosses really bad?  No.  But 46% of people quit their jobs, according to the US Dept. of Labor,…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

10 Lessons It Took me 50 Years to Learn

10 Lessons It Took me 50 Years to Learn

My alma mater, Centre College asked me to write an article for the alumni magazine. Alas, I’m at an age of reflection. After Centre, I went to Yale, moved to Australia, worked in ministry, psychiatry and business. Here’s what I’ve learned thus far. 1.  Life’s a persuasion, a negotiation.  Abe quibbled with God over the number of righteous people in Sodom (Genesis 18).  I had to lobby my…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Business Casual or Business Casualty? Take the Test!

Business Casual or Business Casualty? Take the Test!

– What’s your business dress IQ?   – Answer 7 questions and find out!

Clothes communicate. What do yours say about you? Got style? Know everything about good business dress? Answer these 7 questions and find out.

  True or False?

1. A charcoal grey or navy suit with a plain white shirt and small pattern tie is appropriate for a man attending a job interview. 2. Standard shirt collars are dressier

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Employing People? Flip a Coin!

Employing People? Flip a Coin!

Hiring is Less Accurate Than Flipping a Coin If you’re employing people in the traditional manner, you’re better off flipping of coin.  The odds are better. Why is executive hiring so chancy? A case study from the book, You’re Not The Person I Hired!: A CEO’s Survival Guide To Hiring Top Talent (Boydel, Deutsch, Remillard) illustrates the problem. The failure rate of executive hires ranges…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

What a Rock Star and CEO have in common

What a Rock Star and CEO have in common

Master = Good Student

When Employee is Ready, Good Boss Appears

Nobody Gets Better Being Comfortable

An interviewer once asked Neil Pert, the legendary rock drummer, why he still took lessons.  He is, after all an icon, a Master Drummer who’s won numerous professional awards, been inducted in several rock Hall of Fames, and was awarded the Order of Canada.

“What is a master,” he explains, “but a…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Why a Tie? 7 Brilliant Reasons

Why a Tie? 7 Brilliant Reasons

– 7 modern functions of a tie – Look cool, conquer worlds – Convey the right signals

When I wrote for the fashion magazine Men’s Style Australia, lots of young dudes would ask, why a tie?  That is, what’s the point, purpose or principle of wearing neck ties?!

Guys, it’s simple.  Your necktie is the single, loudest, most important, visual cue to who you are and where you’re going in life. (And if…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Are You a 2x4 Employee?

Are You a 2×4 Employee?

– 5 Signs of Your Obtuseness (and 3 solutions) – Thick planks facilitate comprehension! – Plow horse or race horse?

  I confess.  I was a 2 x 4 employee, ie, the employee that you had to whack upside the head with a 2×4 in order to make them understand.

True story:  After an unsuccessful job interview I began to protest, whine and complain to the recruitment consultant at which point she…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Career Advice from Marcus Aurelius

Career Advice from Marcus Aurelius

 Stink positively

Why you Need your Problems

What Figs Teach You About Bad People

Marcus Aurelius ranks among the Top 5 Emperors of Rome.

He was CEO of Rome, Inc., the largest multi-national of its day.

He personally headed the Roman army, the superpower of its time.

He managed “hands on”, from the front, literally sitting around the camp fire with his troops on the frontier of his empire, as he…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

12 Ways to Manage the Modern Brand

12 Ways to Manage the Modern Brand

12 Tips to Managing a Modern Brand from my recent interview with two brand experts, Dominic Walsh of Landor Associates and Michael Pooley of PPR.

“Products are made in the factory, but brands are created in the mind,” —Walter Landor

Walter Landor (1913-1995) invented branding.

His company has been reinventing it ever since.

His knack was creating designs with broad popular appeal, eg, the…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

What the Trans-Pacific Partnership is Really About

What the Trans-Pacific Partnership is Really About

It’s more than dollars and cents

Has the US lost it’s ‘juice’?

The Rules of the Economic Road

What’s In It for Australia?

No, It’s Not About China

Free Trade Agreements, Like Zombies, Never Die

Précis of the interview with Dr. Bates Gill, head of the U.S. Studies Centre in Sydney.

[Recorded for the business podcast of the American Chamber of Commerce in Australia; edited for brevity]

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Career Advice from Marcus Aurelius, CEO

Career Advice from Marcus Aurelius, CEO

8 Tips from the Emperor

How to Become a God in 10 Days

Why Praise Doesn’t Matter

Marcus Aurelius ran the biggest multi-national of its day, Rome Inc.

He headed the army, the superpower of its time.

He was “hands on”, leading from the front, literally sitting around the camp fire with his troops on the frontier of his empire, as he waged territorial take-overs.

He ranks among the Top 5…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Touch That Snake! --for a better career, life, whatever!

Touch That Snake! –for a better career, life, whatever!

How Mastering Fear Advances Your Career

Why Grabbing Snakes Does You Good

All Hail Fear! Fear is the underlying drive to everything that you do in life. It’s your emotional brake and accelerator. It stops you (mostly) from doing stupid, dangerous things and it’s why you’re on top of the food chain.  Fear keeps you alive.  So let’s all hail fear! Even so, masteringfear — which is not the same…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Make Yourself Uncomfortable!

Make Yourself Uncomfortable

I learned an invaluable life lesson from a speed reading course.

The average reading speed of people is about 250 wpm with 60% comprehension.

So in order to improve myself, I’ve taken 3 speed reading courses.

At my best (a long time ago), I could read Aristotle’s Politics at 2000 wpm with 90% comprehension.  (A very long time ago.)

Believe me, when you’re working full time, reading 100+ books…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Got A Degree, Now Want a Job Too !?!

Got A Degree, Now Want a Job Too !?!

You snagged your sheepskin; dibbed your diploma, posed for pictures, justified the financial investment of your parents and now you want a job too? Ok. Life rewards actions, so take these actions and be among the top 4% of job seekers.

  Discover what you want to do.No consultant, prospective employer, recruiting firm or heavenly being can help you find work if you haven’t already defined…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

Everything You Want to Know About Psychometrics (But Were Afraid To Ask!)

Everything You Want to Know About Psychometrics (But Were Afraid To Ask!)

It was 444 BC when Empodocles noticed that people seemed to act in 4 distinctly different ways.  Ever since, we’ve been trying to figure out – and predict– how people behave.

For 26 years I’ve used psychometrics to predict performance.  So whether you’re a candidate taking one or an HR professional administering one, here’s everything you need to know about psychometrics.

Everybody calls it…

View On WordPress

[duffwatkins]

The Only Management Advice You'll Ever Need

The Only Management Advice You’ll Ever Need

He went from playboy to poster boy for the US Treasury.

He was a superstar (with drugs and groupies!) of his time.

He was a renowned scientist and famed diplomat (and boudoir legend during his time as US Ambassador to France).

He was also chubby, bespectacled, balding and ineloquent.

So how can a dude who looks like this, do all that?

Let Benjamin Franklin tell you:

“I made it a rule to forbear…

View On WordPress