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"When you look back on your life, what would you change? Many of you might wish you had spent more time with family and friends. Some of you might wish you had spent more time outside or doing things you love. The good news is, you can actually make a simple change that will grant you these wishes, and probably many other wishes you have.
Change the way you interact with technology.
What does that mean? Well, let me ask the question another way. How many of you, when looking back, wish you had spent even more time on social media? More time on Slack or answering emails? More time aimlessly surfing YouTube looking at random cat tricks or strange but useless videos? More time looking at the perfect vacation pictures of high school acquaintances you don't really care that much about? More time checking texts for work late at night?
The way we use technology is, far too often, broken, brain dead and utterly dehumanizing. It is negatively impacting our happiness. And it needs to change. This is not to say we can or should pull the plug. We are past a point where we can comfortably exist in society without technology."
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"While at Change.org, I got a unique perspective into the world of decision-makers because of the more than one thousand campaigns started every day on the site asking people and institutions for change. From the data, I've seen that there are a series of predictable stages decision-makers tend to go through as they react to campaigns that are directed at them. I call them the Five Stages of Engagement: denial, listening, acceptance, embracing, and empowering. Not all decision-makers go through each of the five stages, but we do see each of these stages play out on a regular basis.
Understanding the stages can help you be more effective in persuading decision-makers that you are working to influence. In particular, helping decision-makers see the risks that come from denial and the benefits that come from listening and then acting can help you make your own case more persuasive. For the purposes of describing each stage briefly below, I've referenced petitions to corporate decision-makers, since they take place in a shorter time frame and clearly demonstrate each stage. Nevertheless, these stories illustrate the way decision-makers of all types react to appeals for change."
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"Adding digital capability to a product or to an entire business may improve it and make it more profitable, but technology alone is not enough to propel the kind of sustained growth that can transform your whole enterprise. The business model that goes with that technology is absolutely key to its success or failure.
This was true when Amazon sold its first book online in 1995, when Netflix shipped its first DVD in 1998, and when Apple launched its revolutionary iPod in 2001. It was true in 2011, when Uber dispatched its first car, and it is even more true today.
But it is still not widely understood."
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"No matter how you've come to entrepreneurship, you may find yourself needing some direction. You're just trying to figure it out as you go, and guess what—so is everyone else! This manifesto is here to give you the guidance you crave and to let you know we're in it together.
Being boss is a constant practice, and after three years of hitting publish on our podcast (and now a book) we've learned that it's conversation that is constantly evolving. Here are some key patterns and foundational insights we've picked up along the way."
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"We are told that we live in a post-truth age. When the facts get in the way, we turn to 'alternative facts' that serve our purposes. Rather than listen to another point of view, we focus only on arguments and talking points that support our ideology. Not everyone is like this, of course, but it seems to capture the tenor of the times. Worst of all, it exacerbates the polarization that so many worry about, because we can't find common ground.
The root problem, in my view, is a gradual abandonment of rationality. We can't reach consensus because we no longer acknowledge a rational basis for resolving disputes.
Ethics was an early casualty of this retreat from reason."
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