Domestic goat smile, Crimea, 2009. By George Chernilevsky. Public Domain

Hogan’s Law of Consistency & Law of Conformity

Forrest Christianrequisite organization Leave a Comment

Maybe Kevin Hogan has summed the real reason that people don’t adopt the ideas of requisite organization / stratified systems theory. We know that people will hear the ideas, acknowledge that they represent an underlying reality and even admit that if they were adopted many of their complaints would be addressed. And then they say “No way am I going …

Air Traffic Controller 2nd Class Branden Powell keeps track of aircraft using a SPN-43 radar screen during routine flight operations on board amphibious assault ship USS Tarawa (LHA 1). Tarawa is participating in a composite unit training exercise with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit off the coast of Southern California. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Bryan Niegel (RELEASED)

Perhaps Requisite Organization is going viral under the radar! (A Response to ‘Why RO Will Not Survive (or will it?)’)

Forrest Christianrequisite organization 4 Comments

My article, “Why Requisite Organization Will Not Survive (or will it?)“, recently generated some new discussion. Here’s a well-argued response from Ken Shepard, President of the Global Organization Design Society, which is a leading professional group for managers and practitioners interested in Requisite Organization and one that I recommend you joining. — EFC The Global Organization Design Society’s response: Perhaps …

Yardmaster in railroad yards working, Amarillo, TX, 1943. By Jack Delano via Library of Congress Collection (LOC)

Know Who’s Really Your Customer — THE Secret to Success

Forrest ChristianCareers Leave a Comment

A parable. Of sorts. Just then a young man came up to Forrest to test him, saying, “Sam Walton, the late billionaire who founded Walmart, taught us to succeed already.” “Well what did he tell us after he became a billionaire?” Forrest asked him. And the young man answered him: “Sam taught us thusly: ‘There is only one boss. The …

Man sits apart. By Mead Schaeffer, c. 1933. Good Housekeeping magazine?

High Potentials Are Farther From Normal Than You Might Think

Forrest ChristianCareers 1 Comment

In my post about “Why You High Potentials Get Missed in Your 20s“, Michael Bates commented that “When the curves are so close together, all sorts of mistakes are possible, including a high-potential’s misjudgment of his own potential.” This is kind of true and kind of not. Let’s take a look at it in more detail. First, let’s talk about …

Paris: Horsedrawn omnibus on avenue des gobelins.

ANN: Recording new video classes

Forrest ChristianOverachievers Leave a Comment

Tomorrow I am going off to a decent site, with hopefully some better mics than I have, to record a couple of new videos for sale at the store. I will do at least one that is pretty much what I give my coaching clients to start these days. It will be priced low enough to be accessible to everyone …

Confusion in Bix. Splash page from "Heavens to Betsy", -Club "16" Comics-, Issue 1, page 1

Being a Jerk Can Get You That Promotion

Forrest ChristianUnderachievers Leave a Comment

Experts like software developers, attorneys and even regular folks who do actual work are all too often led astray by the belief that working hard and being the best will somehow lead to the top. This belief is perpetuated by the powerful and their ilk because it’s not exactly true. New research by Joey T. Cheng and Jessica L. Tracy, …

Gaza protest Amsterdam by Jos van Zetten (CC BY 2.0)

Talking Too Complex Will Destroy Communication

Forrest ChristianDecision-making 3 Comments

Did you ever think that by really pounding a logical point home you are destroying your success as a communicator? You get into an argument with a relative at a wedding dinner, say. He’s arguing some asinine point that’s clearly in violation of any semblance of reality. You provide key proofs. He fights back. You esalate your logic with more …

Man sits apart. By Mead Schaeffer, c. 1933. Good Housekeeping magazine?

Why You High Potentials Don’t Get “Tapped” in Your 20s

Forrest ChristianCareers, Underachievers 1 Comment

I’ve written before about the importance of being “tapped” for bigger and better things when you are in your 20s if you are a very high potential on the Jaques scale. During my research for a recent project on intelligence testing, I discovered that Gillian Stamp, the bioss founder (and ex-BIOSS and London School of Economics professor), said something along …