The High Cost of Low Quality

Whether it's perl programmers or design divas, you get what you pay for. Talent is not always an easy thing to spot, and so too often people settle for safety...and they get mediocrity.

Small companies can't afford the slack. But the bigger ones can - which typically leads to ossification and relaunch.

moving type

Simplicity is a creative tool. And it can make stories moving.



Check out this great use of typography. Nice work Olivier.

learning media moguls

We've been talking to a lot of folks about their eLearning programs lately. And what has changed the most are the development tools...and the expectations. In a world immersed in iPods, YouTube, and any-teenager-can-do-it consumer generated media, we're immersed in an environment that is realizing the promise of faster & cheaper. But is it better?



It can be. But the critical thing to remember with all of these media & delivery options is this: content is king. Learning professionals would do well to think more like media moguls. Michael Laff makes a great point (one of many) in this recent article:

In some ways, trainers need to act more

like entertainment impresarios by using tools and games to heighten the

learning experience. Learning consultants acknowledge that training

materials are often unimaginative and fail to engage the user because

they are the work of software designers, not instructional designers.

OK, Barry Diller. You've got more channels. But have you got the goods to fill the airtime? What kinds of content is accessible, compelling, and useful to your learners? And can you package it in 22 minute segments?

Instant Value

When you think about any business - that first experience and interaction will determine so much. Like if there will be a second interaction.



While they may be a little more relevant for Web 2.0 companies, Kleiner Perkins 7 rules for start-ups [via Don Dodge] are a great checklist for entrepreneurs...and really, for anybody and everybody in business.



Are you creating instant value? Are your customers evangelizing? Are you lightweight and lean? And how personalized is your engagement.

today is the day

Today is the day for Liverpool. The Champions League Final. Athens.



Will the Reds muscle their way past Milan to become UEFA Champions League Champion?



Stay tuned...



Meanwhile, enjoy some great CL goals from the past



Top ten CL goals of all time

calling all scribblers

Sometimes a barrier to creativity is inside the box. That box is your skull. And the limitations of your own hand-eye-imagination coordination.



Not so good at drawing? Me either. But it's fun, and you get better with practice (that you likely haven't had since elementary school).



Here's a cool tool that amplifies the power of your pen - a technology-enabler for you drafting-dodgers. Check out Ze Frank's S C R I B B L E R. Very very cool.



The handiwork inspires hope for all graphically challenged.

know when to fold em

Leadership is fundamentally positive. Envision a brave new world. Explore, discover, build. Create opportunity for people and bring them along.

And one of the hardest things for leaders to learn is how to take a negative decision. The Quit.

When you were 14 on your high school track team, you may have discovered profound wisdom - or at least comfort - in the idea that "quitters never win...and winners never quit."

But your coach had it all wrong. While perseverance is powerful, winners know how to look at their opportunities honestly. The power of perspective on when to invest more effort...and when to quit.

Seth Godin's new book is going to be a good one...