Nugget #1 is thanks to my blogger colleague Gregor Ilg. He shared Jennifer Bortchen‘s fantastic article. She writes to me in her mind when she talks about the separation of work and leisure time: “So I can’t help but think of an idea in the shower.” This is exactly what I’m talking about! Also the suggestions how to redistribute time are really cool. After all, machines and algorithms will ensure that many activities will be eliminated in the future. Some of the 7 proposals make some good “What if…?” questions. What if WORK were a school subject? Or if we try something new once a month? I take Astrid Lindgren’s sentence at the end of the articleof to heart: “And then you need time to just sit and look at yourself.”. This usually works out quite well on holiday. I will try to do this again and again in normal working weeks.
Arbeit isst das halbe Leben – eine Abrechnung mit der (Arbeits)Zeit (10 min, text, German)
Nugget #2 comes from James Lawther again. He is the master of short articles. In 1 min 32 sec, it sums up why specialists prevent innovation. The explanation is really simple. For example, innovation is created by mixing ideas that have nothing to do with each other. And the generalist clearly has his nose in front. Simple? Unfortunately not, because efficiency mania ensures specialism in many companies.
Specialists Kill Innovation (2 min, text, English)
Nugget #3 is the first contribution to the “What if…?” blog parade. Björn Czybik asks,”What if there were no more formal roles?” A fictitious (?) scenario is about a CFO whose role is under discussion. After many emotions, the situation is finally resolved by a rewording of the title. Björn’s conclusion is clear: there would be more humanity. I agree with his assessment. How often do I experience that the division of roles leads to conflicts and distracts from the actual creation of value. One is responsible for quality and the other for meeting deadlines. Nowadays, someone else is needed for digitization. Welcome to the matrix(-organization) and welcome to the business theatre!
What if people would treat people like people? (2 min, text, German)
What do you think about Björn’s question? What if there were no more formal roles? Or maybe Jennifer’s article got you thinking? What if there is no separation between work and leisure time? I am looking forward to many more contributions. All information and further questions can be found under What if…?
PS: This post was translated with the help of DeepL, which you can use to translate the German nuggets.