The100: Career lessons, communication tips and the sound of rain

The Empire strikes back

Fortune favours the brave. 

Or in the instance of brands during a pandemic, fortune favours the large. 

Big brands are reclaiming the market share they were once hemorrhaging, with many reporting their highest growth in years. 

But, because there’s always a but, is back to basics shopping here to stay? (You can get around the paywall by Googling the title instead.)

Some predictions in the Times New Roman tea leaves that are worth mulling over:

“Reckitt Benckiser has identified one counter-effect from pandemic prevention measures – a weaker cold and flu season, cutting into medicine sales, as social distancing measures dampen infectious diseases other than coronavirus. Reckitt also predicts a more far-reaching change: lower birth rates, which it says will affect baby formula sales.”

Deep canvassing

Where was this two weeks ago?! The Behavioral Scientist has some brilliant counsel on how to have conversations on polarising topics. 

“Remember that simply throwing facts at a person won’t change their mind; use their past experiences to understand where they are coming from and shape the conversation accordingly. If your goal is to shape opinions, let them share stories on parallel experiences that can be connected to the topic at hand and guide them to changing their mind on their own.”

Quiet people change the world

Ian Leslie has written a useful summary of 10 causes of communication breakdown. It’s a fine list and had me channeling my inner nodding dog from point 1:

“1. Believing you have communicated […] In our normal lives we blithely tap away while assuming our message has landed. William Whyte, an astute observer of post-war corporate life, put it this way: ‘The great enemy of communication is the illusion of it.’ “

Welcome to my bookmark bar Mr Leslie, do make yourself at home. 

Or should we just talk less in meetings?

“My aim in meetings now is to be the least loudest person in the room. There is so much hot air and noise in meetings that achieves nothing. Your desire to be heard in meetings could be stopping your learning.”

Exits are as important as Entrances

In more advice, 12 un-clichéd pieces of it in fact, Rishad Tobaccowala has written a very smart list of career lessons to consider during your early, middle and later years. 

An economist walks into a bar

Climbing back out of the 2019 draw is a paper from Mike Andrews on how informal social networks increase invention. 

“A large disruption of informal social networks causes a significant and immediate drop in patenting […] social networks are important for invention because they expose individuals to new ideas rather than simply facilitating collaboration, that informal and formal connections are complements in the creation of new ideas.”

Andrews came to his conclusions by examining the impact of alcohol prohibition on the number of patents. All sounds a bit too familiar doesn’t it?

The Rainforest Cafe

Well this is pleasant. On Rainy Cafe by Focus Me you can listen to the sound of coffee shop chatter and / or rain whilst you work. Jolly good.