(1) Know it all, but don’t do it all. Understand how everything works, ideally from experience. Study the charts, plot your course, avoid harm, and seek leverage. Intuit the boat so you can tease out its advantage. And read the elements like your native language. Then — use everything you know to wisely direct the […]
Author: Paul Santhouse
Seven Things I’ve Learned About Moving to a New Country
(1) Read books. Anything you can find. Novels, human interest, political, current events, cultural studies, and so forth. Get a sense of the place. (2) Learn the language. Do what you can before you go. Keep it up once you’re there. (3) Interview people who’ve lived there. Take them to dinner, listen to stories, and […]
Seven Things I’ve Learned About Persuasive Writing
(1) Keep it personal. This is a conversation, not an announcement. (2) Show respect. Assume a reader more intelligent than yourself. (3) Be honest. Never resort to hype. (4) Make your point. Why does this matter? (5) Allow yourself to feel. Speak to the mind and heart. Identify with your reader. (6) Write visually. Evoke […]
Seven Things I’ve Learned About Sermons
(1) Interest and time are inversely proportional. The greater my interest, the shorter the sermon. (2) Interest and investment are directly proportional. The more you put in, the more I take out. (3) If it’s where I live, my attention is yours to lose. (4) The more you care about me, the more I’ll hear. […]
Seven Things I’ve Learned About Leadership from a Review of the New Petraeus Book*
(1) Get the big ideas right. (2) Communicate the big ideas. (3) Oversee the implementation of the big ideas. (4) Capture your best practices and lessons and cycle them back through the system to help refine your big ideas. (5) Don’t be afraid to disregard rank when someone exhibits characteristics you value, such as brains, […]