leadership Archives

Mastering the Art of Decision-Making: Part One

Mastering the Art of Decision-Making: Part One Issue 196, January 23, 2025 Uncertainty has become a defining characteristic of both our personal and professional lives in today’s rapidly changing unpredictable world. Stated simply, uncertainty is a certainty. From navigating disruptive markets and responding to global crises to contending with career challenges and family issues, decision-making under pressure has become a persistent and constant reality. Consider those impacted by the ongoing wildfires in California who were instantly thrown into uncertainty when…

Kevin Novak

January 20, 2025

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

The Power of Principled Resilience: Navigating Change with Purpose and Adaptability

The Power of Principled Resilience: Navigating Change with Purpose and Adaptability Issue 195, January 16, 2025 Change is inevitable. In fact, only change endures, from technological advancements, market shifts, societal transformations, and even personal disruptions. The challenge is not to avoid change but rather to build the resilience and adaptability needed to thrive in uncertainty. To quote pop icon Marie-Kondo, “To truly cherish the things that are important to you, you must first discard those that have outlived their purpose.”…

Kevin Novak

January 16, 2025

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Managing Ethical Dilemmas: A Human-Centric Approach to AI Adoption

Managing Ethical Dilemmas: A Human-Centric Approach to AI Adoption Issue 194, January 9, 2025 It has become clear that the acceleration of AI applications has the potential to upend life as we have known it. It is impossible to deny the power of AI manifestations (platforms, chatbots, interfaces) to improve and influence our personal and professional lives. Many individuals are already diving deeply and embracing the use of AI for most if not all tasks. Others are holding out after…

Kevin Novak

January 8, 2025

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

AI Mindshifts: The Death of Brands

AI Mindshifts: The Death of Brands Issue 192, December 26, 2024 Let’s take a moment over the holidays to fantasize about the future. It’s a future that is all about you – that is to say, your favorite future. We present a mash-up of several emerging, predictive threads that you might want to start thinking about before it’s too late. What we are suggesting today might be surprising considering how we have repeatedly focused on (more like beating the dead…

Kevin Novak

December 26, 2024

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Is Critical Thinking at Risk of Extinction?

Is Critical Thinking at Risk of Extinction? Issue 191, December 19, 2024 We are tackling a topic that is a recurring theme in everything we write, including our book, The Truth About Transformation. Critical thinking is becoming an endangered skill along with practical know-how, common sense problem-solving and basic thinking skills. These tools are more important than ever for all of us caught in the crossfire of global geopolitical, geo-economic and cultural asynchronies. We have largely defaulted to thinking on…

Kevin Novak

December 19, 2024

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Why the Road to Transformation Can Be Surprising

Why the Road to Transformation Can Be Surprising Issue 189, December 5, 2024 Transformation is not a straight line. If you’re a sailor, you tack to the future unless you have a full tailwind. If you’re the turtle, you can out-navigate the hare. If you are the architect of your career, you use the career portfolio strategy to build a professional life on your terms. If you are a well-being advisor (think Deepak Chopra), you could redefine the perception of…

Kevin Novak

December 4, 2024

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

A Gratitude Retrospective

A Gratitude Retrospective Issue 188, November 28, 2024 As we take a brief break with family and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving, we want to review what has been resonating so far during this interesting and surprising year. Our 2024 newsletters have focused on forward-thinking topics, reflecting on trends and challenges impacting organizations and leadership, always mindful of what motivates human behavior. Everything that intrigues us and we share with you is instrumental in the process of organizational change and transformation…

Kevin Novak

November 27, 2024

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Why Are We Hooked on Speed?

Why Are We Hooked on Speed? Issue 187, November 21, 2024 Why are we always in such a hurry? We launched 5,481,437 startups in 2023. We introduce 91.9 million new websites every year: that’s 252,000 new websites each day. We debut 30,000 CPG products annually to add to the bewildering choice of favorite brands and 30 to 40 new domestic car models every year. It’s no different in the business world; in 2023 the retail trade had the majority of new…

Kevin Novak

November 20, 2024

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Ivory Towers: Unlocking the Gap of Theory to Practice in Business Transformation

Ivory Towers: Unlocking the Gap of Theory to Practice in Business Transformation Issue 186, November 14, 2024 How often have you encountered a compelling transformation or change strategy that failed in execution? In today’s rapidly evolving, dynamically changing business landscape, organizations face constant pressure to change and adapt. A theory provides an idealized roadmap for transformation, attempting to predict and explain how change should work under perfect conditions. However, reliance on theory alone comes with consequences. Interpretation of theory can…

Kevin Novak

November 14, 2024

Ideas and Innovations Newsletter

Will AI Replace You?

Will AI Replace You? Issue 185, November 7, 2024 One of the most popular debates of 2024 is what AI won’t replace. Is it me? Is it you? Is it all of us? Is it none of us? Surely you can think back to movies that projected what a possible future might look like as technology becomes more immersed in all aspects of our lives. Science fiction often isn’t fiction, but rather prediction. In real life, some of us will…

Kevin Novak

November 7, 2024

← Newer Posts

Older Posts →