Against Easy

Like Hammers

Mon, 30 May 2011 17:47:04 +0100

Perhaps, a final word on FSM.

Excerpted from an email responding to a very nice person who makes a lovely-looking writing app.

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Economic dags'

Sun, 17 Apr 2011 17:40:39 +0100

Too many organisations have inbuilt ecosystems of people built around waste and inefficiency, people with mouths to feed and bills to pay, people whose self interest is served by perpetuating the waste and inefficiency, or just simply by perpetuating the problem they’re their to solve.

The incumbent ecosystem will rise up when challenged and seek to prevent the eradication of the waste and inefficiency because their comfortable livelihoods rely on the status quo being maintained.

These people are the incumbent economic freeloaders and hangers on, these people are the economic dags.

(Dag, a clump of feces stuck to the wool of a sheep, also used in Australia as a term of abuse)

Mediocrity

Sun, 08 Aug 2010 12:59:41 +0100

A lot of people are writing about mediocrity lately. Maybe it’s a sign of the times. All sectors are struggling so no wonder the hard questions are being asked. Whatever is happening out there the subject of mediocrity is on my mind.

I’m having to ask, and try and answer, lots of hard questions about myself, my work life and most importantly what I should be doing about the freakin’ situation. This is the hardest job I’ve ever had.

I'm here to advise

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:50:20 +0100

I hear it all the time: “We’re only here to advise”. This stinks to me. It says “I’m here to point out the fucking obvious but not give you a solution”. What’s the point of existing if that’s your corporate attitude?

As appropriate.

Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:00:30 +0100

“As appropriate..”

Ending a statement with “as appropriate” smacks of mediocrity. What does it actually mean? It’s either appropriate or not, right? Why bother caveating?

I tell you why…. It’s a catch-all get out just in case. It’s a cover you can use if things start to go wrong and you need an exit. What a weasley phrase, I despise you.

We're addicted to easy

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 21:26:09 +0100

We’re addicted to the lowest common denominator, the path of least resistance, the choice that involves the lightest cognitive cost.

This is just plain laziness and boredom. We’ve become addicted to a comfy feeling of making the least personal impact choice. No one seeks out the toughest assignment or the hardest options until it’s bad enough that you care enough.

It's not bad enough that you care enough.

Sun, 25 Jul 2010 18:50:00 +0100

How bad does it have to get before you really, truly give a shit? I mean at what temperature will your blood really boil to the extent that every angry word you speak is accompanied by a shower of scalding hot claret?

I see alot’a people whinging, but not many doing anything about it. Don’t waste your time, energy and attention. If it’s really that bad then care enough to actually do something constructive to either improve the situation on the ground, or get yourself the hell out’a there.

We choose.........

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 17:05:15 +0100

“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.”

President John F. Kennedy, Rice University, 12 September, 1962

merlin: New Rider

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 19:46:49 +0100

merlin:

New Rider

Big Society

Tue, 20 Jul 2010 10:02:46 +0100

GrantSharkey “The Big Society is useless without the Massive Culture of Caring and the Gigantic Civic Duty of Giving a Shit. #bigsociety”

That pretty much sums up the problem. Vast majority care only about themselves, rather than their community. I love the idea, but in practice I find it hard to understand how this will actually work, especially under voluntary conditions.

Mediocre and shit

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 13:35:00 +0100

gapingvoid “We’re fighting like hell to be something other than mediocre and shit. And the ones who aren’t? They make me sick, frankly.”

Hugh MacLeod pretty much sums up why this little blog is here. It’s just become too easy to do the easy thing, to avoid making the difficult decision rather than knuckle down and make a hard choice. And as Seth Godin knows it’s “So easy to talk about lunch”.

Gain(?) and Pain(!)

Sun, 11 Jul 2010 12:38:00 +0100

DalaiLama “ If we continue to approach problems from the perspective of temporary expediency, future generations will face tremendous difficulties.”

Couldn’t agree more… Alas, those making the decisions for the sake of the easy gain are inevitable not the ones that have to deal with the long term pain.

Why?

Sun, 30 May 2010 14:16:00 +0100

Why is this blog here? That’s a damn good question that I ask myself every day