John Weathington, Information Strategist

I Pray the Lord my Soul to Keep

I was born to, and raised in, a Christian home. There was a common prayer we used to recite just before we went to bed, that went like this:

Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
If I should die before I wake
I pray the Lord my sould to take.

Here we are, talking to the supreme being and creator of the universe, and out of everything we could possibly say, we request an insurance policy in case we die.

As innocuous as this sounds, it is very dangerous to put thoughts like this in your head, especially when you recite it every night as a young child. I'm not saying it's not a good outcome, but to wish it like this puts something into the universe that you don't want there. This extreme negativity, in some cosmic way, becomes a subtle tropism--an orientation--for the rest of your thoughts, assumptions, beliefs, and ultimately behaviour.

Some people chronically enter a situation focusing on the worst. If they embark on an exciting trip, they say to themselves, "I sure hope I don't crash." When they turn off the lights at night, they say to themselves, "I hope somebody doesn't break in." This perspective is poisonous, because although you negate the effect in your wish, it's still becomes the object of consideration. Do you think, when Steve Jobs launched the iPhone, he said to himself, "I sure hope this iPhone thing doesn't flop!"

Instead, focus on the positive. This may be the first time you've heard this, or maybe you've heard it a thousand times. It doesn't matter, you can't forget must remember it. Effective people visualize what they want, not what they don't want. They wish for things to come true, not for backup plans in case things don't work out.

The Lord has a lot on his agenda. Next time you whisper a prayer, make it count.

Simple Minded

I spent some time recently looking at various different design and style options for my blog (yes, this one). What I ended up with was something called "Simple White." It's clean and simple, and because of that, the message is accentuated over the format. This is something to remember.

Observation is a key part of my practice. One of the key things I look for when I survey the situation at any company is the contrast between the content and the process of an organization. The content is what the organization specializes in and gives it a competitive advantage. For instance, in working with Visa, I came to understand that their content is centered in the technology of processing millions of transactions around the globe every second.

An organization's process however, determines how it functions as an organization, regardless of content. Organizational processes, such as how the organization develops strategy, innovates, communicates, manages projects, builds and improves processes, and leverages information; work with the content at a fundamental level to promote its effectiveness, and at an optimal level to promote its efficiencies.

Since both content and process are operating on the same canvas, the higher the contrast between the two, the better one can be accentuated over the other. If both your content and processes are complex, there is no contrast. The same condition happens when both are simple. The problem with simple content however, is that it's hard to be competitive with this strategy. Therefore, to be competitive, your content must be complex--and your processes must be simple.

Complex content sitting on a background of overly complex processes is a convoluted mess that's both ineffective and inefficient. Clean up and simplify your processes, so your competitive advantage can be accentuated.