1: On July 2nd, 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted to declare independence from Britain.
The following day, July 3rd, final revisions to Thomas Jefferson‘s draft of The Declaration of Independence were agreed to.
Which brings us to the 4th of July, 1776.
“In later years the excessive summer heat of Philadelphia would frequently figure in accounts of Thursday, July 4th, 1776,” David McCullough writes in his Pulitzer … continue reading
1: On July 2nd, 1776, the Second Continental Congress voted unanimously to declare independence from Britain.
“That these United Colonies are, and of a right ought to be, free and independent states, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved,” so read the motion.
But “there was … continue reading
1: “Monday, July 1st, 1776, began hot and steamy in Philadelphia, and before the morning was ended a full-scale summer storm would break,” David McCullough writes in his book John Adams.
John Adams, then one of Massachusetts’s delegates to the Second Continental Congress, was up before sunrise.
Early that morning, he wrote a long letter to Archibald Bulloch, the new president of Georgia: “This morning is assigned … continue reading
1: “In 2011, Netflix was on a roll,” Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vikram Malhotra write in CEO Excellence.
The company was a media darling. Its rapidly growing, highly popular subscription business delivered DVD rental movies to customers’ homes.
Still, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings knew that streaming was the future.
“It was a classic innovator’s dilemma—for Netflix to keep growing it would have to cannibalize its DVD … continue reading
1: The Nobel Prize-winning psychologist Daniel Kahneman did an experiment
“Half the participants were randomly assigned a numbered lottery ticket,” Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vik Malhotra write in CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest.
“The remaining half were given a blank ticket and a pen and asked to choose their own lottery number.”
What was the twist?
“Just before … continue reading
1: Getting better at getting better is what RiseWithDrew is all about.
Monday through Thursday, we explore ideas from authors, thought leaders, and exemplary organizations. On Friday, I share something about myself or what we are working on at PCI.
The Old Testament tells us: “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”
“Change requires a vibrant organizing image,” Robert E. Quinn writes in the The Deep Change Field Guide.… continue reading
1: This week in RiseWithDrew, we’ve explored the power of vision to galvanize an organization.
“Reframing the game doesn’t necessarily mean creating a vision that departs from a company’s heritage,” Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vikram Malhotra write in their powerful book CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest.
“Our research found,” the authors note, “that the best CEOs often … continue reading
1: When soccer sensation Lionel Messi sprints down the field and scores, he gets an assist from his high-tech Adidas soccer boots.
“Sure, Messi has a sponsorship agreement with Adidas—the world’s second-largest athletic apparel maker after Nike,” Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vikram Malhotra write in CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest.
Lionel’s shoes, however, do more than help him … continue reading
1: It was the summer of 2012, and electronics retailer Best Buy was on the brink.
That year, the company would lose $1.7 billion.
Ouch
New CEO Hubert Joly was swimming with crocodiles: “Amazon and various technology companies were vertically integrating, service quality in stores had plummeted, trust in leadership was low, and the share price was dropping rapidly,” Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vik Malhotra write in … continue reading
1: Mastercard’s former CEO Ajay Banga was walking through the office one day when he noticed a slogan written in a staircase:
“Mastercard, the heart of commerce.”
“It made me think,” he reflects in Carolyn Dewar, Scott Keller, and Vik Malhotra‘s powerful book CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest.
A thought struck him: “Commerce is mostly in cash, right? … continue reading
