STRATEGY CENTRAL

Sometimes a book just arrives…it's a long story…and there's a little intrigue about the title…and the next thing you know you're reading it.  That's been the case with How Did That Happen by Roger Connors and Tom Smith.  I've been working through the book for about a week and it already is a book that I've read a line and just stopped, turned back a page, and thought, "I need to read that again.  This is good stuff."

The subtitle is "Holding People Accountable for Results the Positive, Principled Way."  Sound like it might be helpful?  Authors Connors and Smith have collaborated on two previous books,The Oz Principle and Journey to the Emerald City, both on the subject of accountability.

What I'm loving so far is the very practical building block approach.  I'm seeing that this book could be one that helps to reshape and make systematic the process of forming, communicating, aligning and inspecting expectations (the four stages of holding people accountable the positive, principled way).

I don't know about you, but for me this could turn out to be a pretty important read.  If you've ever gotten to the aftermath of a project and asked "How did that happen," maybe it's a book you'll find helpful too.  Want to read along?  You can order your copy right here.

Do you know what the biggest enemy of productivity is?  Can you guess?

According to Jason Fried, founder of 37signals, "proximity is an invitation to interruption and interruption is the biggest enemy of productivity."  Interesting, don’t you think?  I’m probably the worst at walking over to poke my head into another office…just to check in…no purpose…shoot the breeze.  And those can be the beginning of an idea that goes somewhere.  But more often than not it’s only a diversion.

By the way, Fried’s comment came in a fascinating interview that you can watch right here.

Don’t know about 37signals?  Be sure and check it out.  I use the free version of Backpack and Highrise.  Really great stuff to organize life.

Thanks to Terry Storch for the link!

You never know what you’re going to discover over on Lifehacker.  Definitely worth adding to your list of feeds.  Yesterday’s list of cool stuff included Jerry Seinfeld’s Productivity Secret.  I know it sounds a little weird…but it’s actually a really good idea.