Tag Archives: Krys Boyd
Steve Jobs, The Market Of One – His Opinion Is The Only One That Matters
Steve Jobs, the Only Opinion that Matters
I was listening to an interview with Peter Sims on Think, hosted by Krys Boyd. (You can listen to the interview here). Sims is the author of Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries. The discussion moved into a conversation about the brilliance of Steve Jobs. Specifically, just how does Apple decide to go forward with a specific design? Is it a group decision, based on extensive market research, focus groups, testing in the marketplace? Not quite: Here’s what he said:
It’s “The Steve Jobs factor…The person who makes those decisions …is Jobs. He’s the market – not users. He’s the market of one, in the case of Apple…”
Andy with Nigel
It reminded me of that brilliant scene about another market of one. This time the brilliant decision maker is the fictional Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada. I could not find a clip of the scene, but here are the words from the script:
Miranda's Opinion Rules the Day
Nigel:
There’s a scale. One nod is good. Two nods is very good.
There’s only been one actual smile on record, and that was Tom Ford in 2001.
She doesn’t like it, she shakes her head.
Then, of course, there’s the pursing of the lips.Andy:
Which Means?Nigel:
Catastrophe.Andy:
So because she pursed her lips, he’s gonna change his entire collection?Nigel:
You still don’t get it, do you?
Her opinion is the only one that matters.
And here is the business takeaway.
Well, there may not actually be a business take-away.
For most of us mere mortals, we are not smart enough to know just what the market wants. But, there are a handful of absolute geniuses; geniuses who seem to know exactly what people want. So, maybe the takeaway is this… Identify those geniuses, listen to them, watch them, pay very close attention — and then, go and do likewise.
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You can read a review of Little Bets by Sims, written by Bob Morris, here.
We Need Empathy At Work, And Not Just Competition – Business (And Life) Counsel From Playwright Doug Wright
“We lead by being human. We do not lead by being corporate, professional, or institutional.” (Paul G. Hawken, founder, Smith and Hawken)
James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Pozner, Encouraging the Heart: A Leaders Guide to Rewarding and Encouraging OthersMore profoundly than just getting things done, strong connections with others represent a value unto themselves. Relationships lie at the heart of who we are as humans; they give our lives meaning and significance.
Dov Seidman, how: Why HOW we Do Anything Means Everything…In Business (and in Life)
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On a drive to a client’s last Thursday, I listened with rapt attention to a great hour on Think, the local NPR program (KERA – 90.1), hosted by Krys Boyd. Krys is a terrific, always thoroughly prepared interviewer, and her guests on Thursday were a Pulitzer and Tony winning playwright, and his high school drama teacher. Here’s the paragraph on Think’s web site:
Doug Wright
What makes a writer a writer, and how can a great teacher influence the arc of a writer’s career? We’ll spend this hour with playwright, author, screenwriter, actor, director Doug Wright and Linda Raya, the Highland Park High School Fine Arts director and theatre teacher who instructed Doug when he was a student at the school. Doug Wright will deliver the keynote address at this weekend’s 15th annual Highland Park Literary Festival.
During the interview, this paragraph absolutely gripped me (I transcribed this from the audio):
Doug Wright:
Art (should be perceived as) a serious subject. I’m very fond of saying that Art, and Drama in particular, is the one discipline that teaches empathy… Because if you’ve got a kid in Anne Frank, then they’re learning what it was like to be Jewish during World War II. Drama is all about slipping into someone’s shoes, and walking their walk…by studying plays and acting in them we learn tolerance.
And the emphasis in schools (athletics): we teach competition; we teach competition really, really well. But we don’t always teach empathy and tolerance. And I think that’s what these disciplines foster. And I think it is shocking and disturbing that they’re the first to meet the chopping block when legislators are looking at the state budget.
I have read a lot of business books over the years, and there is little shortage of discussion of concepts such as “winning,” competition,” “beating the competition,” “being first.”
But this interview reminded me that there is another, I think better, side to this whole endeavor – let’s call it the “human side.” And in the heart of this side is empathy – walking in another’s shoes. Doug Wright reminds us of the simple fact that all business leadership, all business management, all business endeavor begin (and end) with human beings.
Starting by being human might be the best business (and life) counsel of all.
Listen to Larry James, CEO of CitySquare (formerly Central Dallas Ministries), interviewed by Krys Boyd on Think (90.1, KERA)
Larry James, CEO, CitySquare
I have written often about the event I speak at for CitySquare (formerly Central Dallas Ministries), the Urban Engagement Book Club. Today, at the noon hour, Krys Boyd interviewed the CEO of CitySquare, Larry James. Larry is a walking encyclopedia about many aspects of unmet and under-met human need, and through his leadership, CitySquare is truly making a difference, in Dallas, and in an ever-growing circle outward.
Go here to listen to a podcast of the interview.
{North Texas in Need
[2010-12-08 12:00:00] North Texas may be weathering the current economy better than many U.S. cities, but what’s the climate like for those who help the needy in our community? We’ll talk this hour with Larry James, President and CEO of City Square, which recently changed its name from Central Dallas Ministries.
Download MP3 File}
By the way, Public Radio has a true all-star line-up of world class interviewers. They are able to let a guest speak clearly, giving us real insight into the message and the concerns of each guest. We are familiar with the nationally known names: Terry Gross, Diane Rehm. Locally, Krys Boyd is a key part of that all-star line-up, and her interview with Larry was terrific.
The Most Powerful Idea in the World – So Many Books, So Little Time, part 18,250 (or so)
I heard interviewer extraordinaire, Krys Boyd, on KERA (NPR – 90.1) interview William Rosen, the author of The Most Powerful Idea in the World: A Story of Steam, Industry, and Invention. (you will be able to track down the podcast here – it aired on July 26, 2010).
Here’s the Description:
What does the world owe to steam? We’ll look back this hour at the marvelous invention that started the modern era with William Rosen.
The interview described the catalyst that led to so many leaps forward made since the arrival of the steam engine, (after literally millennia of stagnation), with a discussion of education, the 10,000 hour rule, the 14 year life span for the first patents, and so much more.
Here are some lines about the book from its Amazon page:
Rosen modulates his mechanical zeal with contexts underscoring that Thomas Newcomen and James Watt did not operate in a social vacuum. Fixing on patents as one prerequisite to their inventions, Rosen describes intellectual property’s English legal and philosophical origins as he segues to Newcomen’s and Watt’s backgrounds. A degree of social mobility in eighteenth-century Britain enabled their rise, but it was the specific economic situations in mining and textiles to which they responded that ensured it. These business matters provide Rosen with storytelling opportunities that feature capital investors, scientists studying heat, and over time, innovators who improved the steam engine from a stationary to a mobile power source: Rocket, the famous railroad engine built in 1829.
It was a really fascinating interview, and now I have another volume to add to “if only I had time to read everything” list.
So many books – so little time.
A moment or two with Daniel Pink (with a credo from Harrison Ford, and appreciation for conversations facilitated by NPR)
Dan Pink
Daniel Pink, author of Free Agent Nation (which I have read and presented), A Whole New Mind (which I have read) and his new book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us (which I am reading, and will present), is speaking in Dallas tonight. I plan to attend, so I thought I would read up a little on him.
Here are two items, unrelated to each other, from his blog:
Item #1: A credo from Harrison Ford (from an interview in Parade):
“When I was a carpenter, I once worked with this Russian lady architect. I would tell her, ‘Look, I’m terribly sorry, but I want to change that a half inch,’ and she would say, ‘No limit for better.’ I think that is a worthy credo. You keep on going until you get it as close to being right as the time and patience of others will allow.”
I think you might recognize this guy...
No limit for better. Good advice for a Monday.
Item #2: And a reminder of the great value of conversations on NPR (including our local Think host, Krys Boyd):
The way ideas spread is pretty simple: Conversation by conversation. One engaged person talks with another engaged person — and out of that daisy chain of human interactions come new ways to navigate our lives.
One of the best and most enduring forums for conversation is public radio. And in the past week, I’ve had the good fortune to talk about the ideas in Drive with several National Public Radio journalists. Here’s a sampler:
1. Morning Edition. A talk with Madeline Brand.
2. Talk of the Nation. Host Neal Conan invited listeners to tell their stories about motivation at work — which brought forth examples of the very good and the very bad.
3. Local programs. Some of the best journalism in this country goes on at the local level. Visiting with hosts like Washington’s Kojo Nnamdi, Philadelphia’s Marty Moss-Coane, Dallas’s Krys Boyd, and the Twin Cities’ Kerri Miller, I learned a lot about both the possibilities and limits of these ideas.
If, er, you’d like to join the conversation, please do…’
Daniel Pink – a name to add to your “ I should read his books” list. And now, now that I’ve discovered it, I have to add his blog to my reading list. So many books; so many blogs; so little time…
Jason Kidd summarizes success: “Read, React, Execute” — one of the jewels from What Americans Really Want…Really
What do Americans Really Want? – One thing that they want is success, without paying for it…
I’m working my way through the new Frank Luntz book, What Americans Really Want…Really. It is my selection for this Friday at the First Friday Book Synopsis. I heard him interviewed on the Krys Boyd Think program on KERA (NPR in Dallas—listen to the interview here), and she described it this way to Mr. Luntz: “Your book concludes that we are a nation of well-meaning hypocrites.” Luntz agreed, admitting that we want small government, lower taxes – but better government services. (See my earlier post, To be Rich without Being Greedy — What Americans Really Want…Really by Frank Luntz about this book to see another example of this of this “hypocrisy” – or, at the least, inconsistency).
The book has much to offer as we think about success in business and in life. Here’s an excerpt:
You can learn a lot from listening to accomplished individuals talk about their craft… Among the most memorable conversations of my career was one with Jason Kidd, one of the great basketball point guards – not just of our time, but of all time. He had three simple words to explain the success on the court: “read, react, execute.” Read the basketball court not just as it looks at that instant but as it will look a split second later; react to the opportunities in front of you as they develop; and execute so that those opportunities are realized.
Read — react — execute. There’s Ram Charan’s Execution in three words…
If you are in our area, come join us. We meet this Friday, 7:00 am. Register here.
