While Albert Hammonds was almost correct in his 1972 song, It Never Rains In Southern California, that doesn’t mean the sun is always shining. We call our own special brand of fog marine layer. It’s a dense layer of fog that rolls in off the ocean in Southern California, drawn in by the warm air over the […]
Author Archives: Dave Franzetta
The Single Greatest Risk to Our Economy?
The 2012 election was about the economy. Much was said about the government’s role in supporting the context for job creation via tax, debt and trade policies. Most of the focus however, was on the role of large companies–whether they will ship jobs overseas or keep them here. Even less attention was paid to small […]
Seeing With Fresh Eyes
French novelist Marcel Proust wrote that, “The real act of discovery consists not in finding new lands but in seeing with new eyes.” To me, this sounds like the exact opposite of déjà vu. We all know that déjà vu feeling. It’s the distinct feeling that, even though we are in a completely unfamiliar place, somehow, we’ve […]
Stomping Grapes or Making Wine?
If you’re anywhere near my age, you’ll remember a very funny episode of the “I Love Lucy” show, where, en route to Rome by train, Lucy is spotted by a famous Italian cinema director and chosen to play a part in his new movie “Bitter Grapes.” Lucy sets out to immerse herself in the role. When […]
Four Rules for Building Powerful Teams
Last week, my business partner Moss Jackson and I finished up a leadership development program that we had created for a long-time client. The program brought together senior leaders from different business units and corporate functions within the company, who worked in small teams on a variety of challenges. All but one of the challenges […]
Predicting Progress
I read something the other day that appealed to the techno-geek in me. It has to do with techniques for predicting technological progress. The go-to rule for predicting progress in the technology realm, at least what I always thought was The Rule, was attributed to Gordon Moore, co-founder of Intel Corporation. The rule is commonly […]
Too Many Choices?
While my wife and I were visiting my father-in-law in Pittsburgh, we did some grocery shopping at the local Giant Eagle supermarket. I enjoy walking around the store, which is huge, checking out the almost unbelievable variety of products available in virtually every category of grocery. There is an entire aisle–50 to 60 feet of […]
Fast Food is Really Fast!
Fast food. It’s fast. You order it in a hurry; it’s ready in a hurry; you usually eat it in a hurry. Other than the risk of indigestion–and, if you believe some of the medical studies, obesity– you don’t expect fast food to have any affect on you at all. But that may not be the case. […]
Why Are We in Such a Hurry to Make Up Our Minds??
Perhaps you’ve wondered: Why did banks and traders make such bad decisions leading up to and during the 2007-2008 financial crisis? Frank Portnoy [a former derivatives trader and current professor of law and finance at the University of San Diego] , was apparently wondering the same thing. In Professor Portnoy’s case, it led to the writing […]
The Power of the First Follower
I got a gift the other day. One of my former coaches, Martha Tilyard (I wrote about Martha last year in my post “A Belated Thanks You“), sent me a link to a video of a 3-minute talk at the February 2010 TED by Derek Sivers, titled “How to Start a Movement.” I want to share that gift with you. […]