When we talk about ‘the future’, we’re subconsciously distancing ourselves from some indefinite, hypothetical construct. But in reality, argues Whitney Vosburgh and his co-author Charlie, we are continually co-creating the future in the present, without fully making the connection between the two. ‘Instead of being futurists, we need to be…
‘What is the business case for being unsustainable?’ Professor David Grayson has been involved in social enterprise before it was even a thing, and over the last few decades he has acted as the conscience of business on a range of issues from accessibility and diversity to corporate social responsibility…
A few of the stand-out moments from the last few Extraordinary Business Book Club episodes – there’s a celebratory feel as it marks the fifth birthday of Practical Inspiration, and this week we’re focused on finding inspiration in the uncomfortable and owning your ideas. Niki Schafer on submerging yourself in things…
Amazon has revolutionised retail, and it’s showing no signs of stopping. To understand the Amazon effect, and consider what might be coming next, we need to analyse it through two lenses – retail strategy and technology. Which is why retail analyst Natalie Berg and technology journalist Miya Knights decided to…
Graham Allcott is one of the most productive people I know. Which isn’t surprising. His book How to be a Productivity Ninja was a huge success when it was first published five years ago, and has become the cornerstone of his business, Think Productive. There’s a new edition of that…
‘While we’re doing one thing, let’s just do it as well as we can and make sure we are spending our time, of which we have so little, let’s spend it wisely.’ Ben Hunt-Davis knows a bit about focus. As part of the ‘Sydney 8’, who revolutionised the approach to…
‘When you’re being creative, all you’re trying to do is see the same things differently, and from that, see if you can drive new ideas, solutions and new value.’ Ayse Birsel, multi-award-winning designer, decided to try an experiment. She tried to catch herself being creative and reverse engineer exactly what…
A hand-picked selection of treasures from the last few Extraordinary Business Book Club episodes, with the focus on other people – how can they help you write a better book, faster, what impact will your book have on them, and how can you make them care enough to read it…
Former ad man, CEO of both the Granada and Conran Groups and Chairman of Citigate, Roger Mavity is also a renowned author, artist and photographer. In this conversation we explore the twin struggles of creativity and specifically of writing: the private struggle to articulate the idea, and the public struggle…
We’ve been stuck on the idea of competitive advantage as the key to strategy for a long time now. Paul Skinner thinks it’s had its day. ‘Where competitive advantage assumes that the way to succeed is by being better than others, I believe the way to succeed is by supporting…
