May - 2018

Questions, Decisions and Leadership

Questions, Decisions and Leadership

I was consulting for a large company. The project was to tie the company’s data and analytics to their decision-making in a particular area. They had tried to do it several times before but hadn’t been able to make it work. They were desperate to get it right, so I had the freedom to take a different approach. Step one was simple: Talk to the top 40 leaders in the company and have them tell me their questions. I asked the leaders to ignore their current data. I asked them to

China’s President Talks About Zero-Sum Games (And Negotiation)

China’s President Talks About Zero-Sum Games (And Negotiation)

Recently, China President Xi Jinping gave a speech about China’s place in the world. He talked about Zero-Sum Games and (implicitly) Positive-Sum Games. CNBC reported: "In his speech, the Chinese president sold a vision of China as a benevolent leader of the global economy, emphasizing that open systems are the best course of action for the world. 'We must refrain from seeking dominance and reject the zero-sum game, we must refrain from 'beggar thy neighbor' and reject power

Games In The Office

In the Spy's Guide books, Positive-Sum Games and Zero-Sum Games are a simple way to develop effective strategies. Author Chris Illuminati (his real name) asked me how those games apply to strategies in office politics. The result was this article. Here's how it starts: Working in an office is oddly the same as working in the field of espionage. There are allies, enemies, allies who could become enemies and vice versa. There’s also intense negotiation to get more money, a more

What Russians Think About A Spy's Guide To Thinking + Strategy

What Russians Think About A Spy's Guide To Thinking + Strategy

Russian publishing house Alpina (Russian publisher of Malcolm Gladwell, Stephen Covey, and many others) has translated and combined A Spy's Guide To Thinking and A Spy's Guide To Strategy into a single volume. The Russian title is "Think Like A Spy: How To Make Decisions In Critical Situations." Alpina says it's a bestseller in Russia. Here's the cover: Alpina posted reviews from two former Russian intelligence officials and an author (via Google Translate): "John Braddock's

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