RWL Newsletter #22
Greetings from Durham and happy Friday! Today is the last day of classes for the fall semester. It's always a strange day, the last day. As usual, the students rush off to do other things while I'm picking up my stuff for the last time. The classroom seems so empty. I can't help but imagine Jackson Browne's The Load Out/Stay playing in the background as I shut off the lights.
Anyway, the world goes on, and there is a lot going on in the world right now. Some links for your weekend pleasure:
Read
What: General James 'Mad Dog' Mattis Email About Being 'Too Busy To Read' Is A Must-Read
http://www.businessinsider.com/viral-james-mattis-email-reading-marines-2013-5
Why: He may not be our next SECDEF, but he is, in my view, representative of some of the best minds in the military that I experienced. The Army Officer Corps is one of the few professions left where continuous wide reading of liberal studies is regarded as a career imperative. Every Army Chief of Staff (CofS) publishes a reading list, and that reading list is never limited to just military history and leadership (though of course there is a heavy tilt in that direction). Machiavelli noted in The Prince that successful princes think of nothing but war and governance everyday, all the time. But Machiavelli was a well read individual and it was with an eye towards understanding war and governance that his reading would have been directed. Musashi made a similar assertion in the Book of Five rings, with the Way of the Warrior incorporating all the other ways. Musashi, the Sword Saint, was also an accomplished painter. From Mattis's letter: "The problem with being too busy to read is that you learn by experience (or by your men’s experience), i.e. the hard way. By reading, you learn through others’ experiences, generally a better way to do business, especially in our line of work where the consequences of incompetence are so final for young men."
Watch
What: Mercatus Center, The Healthcare Openness and Access Project
https://www.mercatus.org/hoap
Why: This is an infographic, rather than a video, but I thought it fit more in the "watch" than "read" category. If you're not familiary with the Mercatus Center, it is a free market think tank associated with George Mason University (where I did my PHD). The infographic tries to capture how open to competition each state is on a number of criteria related to healthcare purchasing and delivery. Interesting.
Listen
What: Design Matters - Debbie Millman interviews Krista Tippet
http://designobserver.com/feature/krista-tippett/39259
Why: If you know me, it probably doesn't surprise you that one of my favorite podcasts is put out by a graphic designer turned branding expert. I love Millman's style and only wish that I could sound as good as her when I do my interviews. I also really like learning about the various creatives Millman has on as guests, and about the industries they work in. In this podcast, Millman interviews Tippet, who herself is an outstanding interviewer, and has her own show, On Being. For me, the most important questions in life are those around value. Probably I should say Value (capital intended). Great leaders can identify with Value in their organization. They focus people on What's Important (see what I did there?). I'm feeling a little pensive today as the cycle of my work life turns, so I thought this was an appropriate listen to share.
That's it for this week! Have a great weekend! If you find these links interesting, won’t you tell a friend? They can subscribe here: https://tinyletter.com/markbonica
I' d love to hear what you think of these suggestions, and I'd love to get suggestions from you. Feel free to drop me a line by e-mail, or you can tweet to me at @bonicatalent .
Thanks for reading and see you next week!
Mark
Mark J. Bonica, Ph.D., MBA, MS
Assistant Professor
Department of Health Management and Policy
University of New Hampshire
(603) 862-0598
mark.bonica@unh.edu
Health Leader Forge Podcast: http://healthleaderforge.org
Twitter: @bonicatalent
"I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by a conscious endeavor." - Henry David Thoreau