Tag: Bri Williams

During a recent visit to the off-leash park my dog was being jostled either side by a couple of rouge, running hounds. Instead of carrying on, enduring the torment of being corralled by the hecklers, my dog stopped, stood tall, and let them go past. Then she changed course and reasserted herself. This has been the strategy of Intel, Hollywood and independent schools.

My favourite colour is blue. If, when I was a wee tyke, you’d asked me why, it's likely I would have said: “... Because!" Kids are pretty blunt and uncomplicated like that. And yet we grow into professionals who use business jargon to explain why we do and don't like something.

Why are we so swayed by system-produced data even though there is a fair probability that it contains some degree of garbage? Data – and more particularly, spreadsheet data – gives an undeniable sense of authority. Take a ‘back of the envelope’ calculation, key it into Excel and suddenly there is an authority to the numbers that belies its origin. Why?

Here’s your brief: You are to create a sign that will be posted in public that needs to do one thing – change behaviour. You can determine the shape of the sign, but it must include only three colours (or less), one graphic and up to three letters or numbers. Now, remember your audience will be very distracted as they come across your sign. They could be in a life threatening situation, and have milliseconds to process your message. Are you up to the challenge?

Swimming laps at the local pool the other day, the old guy in the lane next to me offered some unsolicited advice: "Your kick, too inefficient. You are using too much energy. You need to go like this..." at which point he mimicked shallow, light movements with his hands. My reaction? "What would he know?!" It was rookie-mistake.

“This is about me, not you!” So proclaimed Tim Minchin, a London-based Australian “rock star” comedian, to his audience at the Palais in St Kilda on 25 Feb 2011. What follows are the business-life lessons I’ve drawn from his stage craft.