New Hero

Jim Collins is my new management hero.  The "Hitting The Wall" article on this page is outstanding.  I need to read more of his books.  There's one weird thing about him, though:  he talks about the importance of humble, un-self-centered leadership, and yet he himself seems fairly oriented towards attention-getting.  I wonder how he rationalizes / justifies that.

Another iffy thing about his theories:  he talks about big, hairy, ambitious goals - and he says that good ones come out of understanding and bad ones come out of bravado.  But how can you know if your goal came out of understanding or bravado until afterwards, when you've won or lost?  (Of course, he did foresee this complaint, and even addresses it in *Good To Great*.)

Still, I want to believe.

Comments

[Factory]

From one article:
"They understand the power of A to B, B to C, C to D, and Y to Z, and they use that psychological mechanism to create situations where otherwise-good people participate in awful things. Those people are frequently charismatic characters whom people want to believe. And that only serves to make them more dangerous."
ROFL.

[greggman]

So I went and checked out Mr. Collins' site and I read this

"She then gave me what I came to call the 20-10 assignment. It goes like this: Suppose you woke up tomorrow and received two phone calls. The first phone call tells you that you have inherited $20 million, no strings attached. The second tells you that you have an incurable and terminal disease, and you have no more than 10 years to live. What would you do differently, and, in particular, what would you stop doing?"

As a game programmer myself I'm curious about your answer. If you were in that situation would you spend even 10 more minutes playing games? Would you continue to make them? I ask because I'm trying to figure out if I would and I'm having a hard time answering yes.

[Apar]

I think because I dont have the money maybe I am jumping the gun in answering but I still think my answer is Yes I would like to be part of the gaming industry in what role is something I would have to figure out.

I have had an even tougher question asked of me once you are going to die in the next 6 months no money no external conditions change what will you do in those 6 months. I have voice a doubt here maybe not the right forum but people can put my mind to rest. I have lived with people who are doing PhD in genetics and finding cures for diseases etc. and at those times I wonder what my contribution would be if I ever do work in the games industry? Sorry if this is to off the topic :)

[Jonas Antonsson]

Jeezz! You are getting all philosophical on me. I'll be damned if I wont add my two cents.

I truly believe that everyone can make a dent by doing what they love - by not selling out on their passion or motivation. If Game Development is your thing then you can make that a platform for your "dent". You can use it to change your surroundings, the world - to some extent at least - in a manner that you consider to be good. No vocation is better or worse then the next one. It is the drive, ambition and the passion of the individual that decides if he/she makes a difference or will be remembered for something.

And then again we can't all become stars... Maybe the most important thing is affecting the ones that are close by. Friends and family. Be an inspiration. Who knows - maybe you'll inspire someone that ultimately achieves something great. Big names are made from many small letters.

And the question whether people would do anything differently? Why would you? It's impossible to determine the outcome and besides it's a faulty question since we are limited to only one direction through time and space ;-)

J#

[Jeffool]

$20 million and ten years to live? I'd quit my current job, that's for sure. Maybe spend a year vacationing. But yeah, I'd like to make a game or two before I died. That and publish/push comics of indy artists I enjoy.

[Jay Woodward]

Jamie, you seem to be forgetting the "those who can't teach" factor. And no, I'm *not* missing a comma there.

"he talks about the importance of humble, un-self-centered leadership, I wonder how he rationalizes / justifies that."

Never rationalizing or justifying anything you say -- especially the obvious self-contradictions, hypocrisies, or disconnects with reality -- is a CRUCIAL component of being a motivational speaker or Scott Miller.