“What is the best route to become CEO of a corporation?“ For people driven to reach the top it’s a common question. A classmate asked it of Ralph Biggadike, professor of Top Management Processes, which, when I was at Columbia Business School, was the class in highest demand. Ralph is an excellent teacher, as knowledgeable about top management as you’d expect one of the top professors at one of the[…] Keep reading →

Important people do things differently than unimportant people — that is, behavior correlates with importance. If you want people to consider you more important — to trust and defer to you — you should pick up on how behavior correlates with importance. And with unimportance if you want to avoid being lumped in with unimportant people. The more important you are, the less you carry. The following corporate examples are[…] Keep reading →

This week’s New Yorker has an article on test tube meat — that is, meat produced outside a body. I’ve been talking about it for a while, as someone who doesn’t eat meat and as an entrepreneur. I’m looking forward to reading the article. I first read about the idea on a nerdy site called Slashdot a couple years ago. Technology recently made it possible. I think most people’s reaction[…] Keep reading →

For those who appreciated my series on entrepreneurial myths and productive behaviors, my friend and business school classmate, Ian Sigalow, posted on myths in venture capital, in particular “The Myth of the Board Seat.” Ian is an all-too-rare person who is successful at both entrepreneurship and venture capital. In school he got one of the most desired positions, working with Alan Patricof (also Columbia MBA) to found Greycroft Partners, where[…] Keep reading →

An entrepreneurial friend asked about business school. I shared the following with him and thought it might be useful for others. As long as it is, I could have written more. I got an MBA at Columbia. It was one of the best decisions of my life — different than I expected, because I expected an academic experience. I did it after starting a business in the early 2000’s. Some[…] Keep reading →

(Some details TBD, but mark your calendars. The room is beautiful and centrally located. Please contact me with any questions. I’ll update details as they are determined.)   LEADERSHIP THROUGH SELF-AWARENESS AND EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE At a time when businesses and business schools seek to learn from designers and design schools seek to prepare “students to be leaders in their professions and society”, cross-pollination between communities over common interests is as[…] Keep reading →

Do you want to live a life of the emotions you want — happiness, joy, whatever — freedom, and achievement? Then do what you love. If you believe you have to sacrifice what you love “to be practical” or “pragmatic,” you are your own biggest obstacle. My life is a testament to the contrary. If you don’t know what you love, find out. If you don’t know how to find[…] Keep reading →