Inspiring Videos
It’s amazing how powerfully inspired one can be in only 120 seconds… and video to boost your mood.
6 minutes and 44 seconds that will help you make sure that everything you think about and do is connected to the broader context affecting all of us, as part of the all encompassing and unprecedented Digital Revolution we are going through as a species. Read the report here.
A moving reminder of the roles of identity in the 21st century and how lost (and isolated!) we are in social and operational stereotypes that drive us apart rather then bring us together.
I love this video because my experience from working with large international corporations keeps reaffirming the damaging blindspot they have with regards to only focusing on their people’s functional/professional identities and not creating an environment that allows their people’s full identity to shine through - something that would dramatically reduce escalations and boost coordinated execution and overall collaboration.
A remarkable demonstration of the power of teaching over the hardships of learning. For years I have believed that kids with ADD do not actually have an attention deficit but rather an attention surplus. When their attention capacity is not fully harnessed by the teacher, it is highjacked by alternative stimulations. This is why, I frequently tell my audiences to feel free to keep their laptops open or have a news paper on call during my lectures and training sessions because I truly believe that it is my job to earn their attention by being more interesting and offering ample value to them. I find the content in this video, and the wonderful way in which it’s delivered, tremendously important, for teachers, parents and even kids whom can relate to the kids he speaks about
This wonderfully simple and creative experiment was the inspiration for my book "You're Not Moving Slow Enough".
A wonderful and very funny illustration of the interpersonal communication challenges of the 21st century, especially in large corporations that rely heavily on remote communications between and within virtual teams.
We love showing this video in workshops when I talk about the concept of reciprocity in interpersonal dynamics. I use it to illustrate how much potential influence we each have, even as we feel like small pegs in a big machine - how much impact we can have on our immediate environment (I like to call it "operational landscape") in spite of massive forces such as organisational culture. This related directly to a core principle in everything that we teach: the balls are ALWAYS in our court - no matter how justified we are in our frustration and complaints about the negative forces around us, which we did not create and which we cannot fully eliminate. We can start the next positive cycle of interpersonal interaction between us and the people around us.
This video has become an integral part of our "Value Orientation" sessions. Why? Because it's important to understand that value can come in many shapes and forms and if we want to be able to be truly through when conducting "Value Discovery" as we engage in "Consultative Dialog" with our clients and/or internal key stakeholders, we must leave judgement behind (at least at first) when ask them to share what success looks like to them. Upon first viewing, you may thinking "Wow... these people are so stupid" - but upon second consideration (perhaps after attending this workshop) I hope you walk away thinking: "Value is not just a tangible thing. It can be an positive experience - which is exactly what these people were given in HOW the water was presented to them, regardless of the objective qualities of the water itself. I guess this is another way I can create value for my clients or internal key stakeholders, not just by providing them with objectively valuable products or services but rather in HOW I offer these to them".
As I mentioned in the "About Me" page in this website, I am a big fan (and believer in) games. While I strongly believe in the long term benefits of pushing one self beyond the limits of our Comfort Zone, I do think that pleasure is a powerful and legitimate way of motivating behaviour. You may want to watch the talk by John Cleese about creativity for a more detailed explanation about the importance of humour when dealing with serious topics and challenges.
A masterpiece of irrational persuasion. I commonly show this video in my "The Persuasion Table" workshop to demonstrate just how many persuasion elements can be incorporated into every second of a message. Can you spot them? All of them? It's quite mind blowing.
I was dumbfounded when I first saw this video. I had never properly distinguished between Sympathy and Empathy and although I consider myself a highly empathetic person, I realised - after watching this video - that in my attempts to be empathetic, I was in fact being sympathetic - and in doing do, robbing the person in front of me, and myself, from an important opportunity to make their lives just a bit better. A bit more endurable.
It seems that reality around us is changing so fast and relentlessly. Paradigms are shifting beneath our feet every few years now. And that's exactly why I am so impressed with this short clip and with Bertrand Russell's powerful two points - because their wisdom and relevance have endured all of the changes that the world has gone through since this interview was held. these two recommendations are as true today as they were when he spoke them.
When it comes to the power of modelling behavior, parents are to their kids what executive leaders are to their employees and mid-level managers. Don’t let hierarchy rear its head and tempt you into a “do as I say, not as I do” mentality or culture. Whatever behaviours you are looking to infuse into your organization and turn into self sustaining habits - even into organizational DNA - you will need to apart yourself and make a point of displaying on a regular and consistent basis.