The Professional Practising Philosopher at a Business School

This transcript of an interview with John Armstrong, Philosopher in Residence, at Melbourne Business School conducted by Alan Saunders's Philosophers Zone programme on the ABC suggests the possibility of a business school syllabus that deals in the history and philosophy of ideas. Armstrong says a business school can offer an environment in which questions such as What makes a good business? What makes a business career successful in a broader sense rather than just economics; What are the bigger images of success in life? can be geuninely explored and the reaction from the participants in his programmes has offered rcih learnings from both sides!!

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A 30 Second MBA - A reality or is it just gimmicky branding?

The teminally hip, Fast Company have come up with a site entitled the 30second MBA. They have assembled a small faculty of on-line experts, combined Twitter and it looks like a Ning platform to create an on-line classroom operating in real time with a weekly syllabus. Week 13 topic is How Do I Prepare For A Presentation? The only concern I have is they haven't included the world's best presentation guru, Garr Reynolds of Presentation Zen.

This is a neat way of learning and time will tell whether it is just more information rather than more data pollution information being offered as knowledge. It certainly offers practical advice and after all isn't that what business is all about - practice!!

Try and let us know what you think!.

The AGSM Executive Programs in collaboration with The Creative Leadership Forum

The Creative Leadership Forum and The AGSM Executive Programs are collaborating together to develop a two and half day program for executives on Leadership, Creativity and Innovation.

Following on from the AGSM Executive Roundtable on Leadership, Creativity and Innovation on 20th February 2009, this program caters for the needs of executives that emerged.

Rosemary Howard and Ralph Kerle have produced a podcast below that provides a fantastic insight into the background and importance of this program in our current challenging times...

Alain de Botton on Status Anxiety

Alain de Botton's Status Anxiety, first published in 2004, remains a thought-provoking and helpful text as I continue to think about happiness (and its absence.) De Botton, "a philosopher of everyday life," seeks in this book to acknowledge the intensity of status anxiety in contemporary Western society, to explore its causes, and to suggest some means of relief. He begins with a brief set of definitions and a concise statement of his thesis:

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Intensifying your Initiative

Initiative Initiative is necessary both to allow innovation to work and also to ultimately implement the solution. Intensifying Your Initiative Without harnessing the power of initiative, the wheel of innovation comes to a screeching halt. We all have a desire to "make a difference" or to make improvements in our lives, but for a variety of reasons, many people face challenges in regard to taking initiative in one form or another. Fortunately, there are many things you can do to enhance your power of initiative, and the payoffs are huge. The power of initiative is a critical catalyst for personal brilliance. You need it to bring your dreams to life, but it's also necessary in order to start the innovation process. Without the motivation to amplify your awareness, explore your curiosities, or expand your focus, you probably won't even make it to the drawing board, let alone come up with a new idea or solution.

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