20 min Classroom Lecture: FOUR THINGS I’ve Learned Along the Way

Paul Barsch

Teradata Corporation

Marketing Director

• When looking at complex problems beware mental models

– Watch for non-linearities

• Mental model example from Gladwell: Classroom sizes not whole story

• We need a sense of limits. Must understand that more isn’t always better

Beware Mental Models of “Common Sense”

• “Correlation is not a cause”

• Myriad examples of managers getting this wrong

• We live in a “Web of complexity”--think probabilities not certainty

Common Errors – Not Understanding CINAC

• Perception of you: 80% is the work you do, the other 20% is politics.

– Payoff example at BearingPoint

– Keeping your job while others lose theirs

• Invest time in relationships for altruistic and political reasons

Corporate Politics Matters

• No one is responsible for your job security

• Invest in yourself – the highest ROI you can get!

• Manage your reputation very, very carefully, esp. online

• Toot your own horn (but not too much), and get others to promote you

Be Your Own Best Brand