Insights Archive

So here’s my problem: my innovation velocity varies too much. Way too much. When it’s up, it’s way up – lots of fresh ideas arriving and connecting, leading to new projects, articles, even books. When … keep reading

I heard a couple good stories the other day about the value of daydreaming, playing, fiddling, futzing, noodling, tinkering – that age-old, hugely underrated activity known as goofing around. Story #1 takes place in the … keep reading

Beneath every big talent lies an ignition story – the famously potent moment when a young person falls helplessly in love with their future passion. For Albert Einstein, that moment happened when his father brought … keep reading

I just came across a letter from 1998 that made my day. Here’s the backstory: Amir, a 14-year-old aspiring cartoonist, sends some of his drawings to John Kricfalusi, creator of Ren and Stimpy. Here’s Kricfalusi’s … keep reading

Leadership is fascinating because it’s rooted in mystery. What makes certain leaders great? What makes them tick? How do they know the right thing to do? One way to approach the mystery it through the … keep reading

Vision is the greatest of talents, because it looks so much like magic. We see it in sports, when a basketball player surprises an entire arena by delivering a last-second pass to a waiting teammate. … keep reading

At my recent trip to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, I spent a lot of time talking to coaches about a small but profound question: can we identify talent? In other words, … keep reading

Several readers recently forwarded me this video. Not only because it’s deadly cute (man oh man, is it ever), but also because it provides valuable insights into increasing our learning velocity. There’s more learning per … keep reading

I spent last week at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, giving a few talks. It was big fun on a lot of levels. For one, the Olympic team is in good hands–as … keep reading

We all know that world-class writers write differently from the rest of us. What I didn’t know — at least until recently — was how differently some of them read. Check out these links to the … keep reading