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Education Reading TED

Latest Read: Bias Interrupted

Bias Interrupted: Creating Inclusion for Real and For Good by Joan C. Williams. Joan is professor and director of the Center for WorkLife Law at the University of California College of Law. This book is addressing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) within large organizations. Previously Joan wrote What Works for Women at Work.

Bias Interrupted: Creating Inclusion for Real and For Good by Joan C. Williams

So, when does $8 million not move the needle? When companies use the wrong tools to solve a business problem. This is the outline of Bias Interrupted. Joan’s message that organizations have been using the wrong tool trying to address DEI.

In addition, Joan delivers a solid breakdown via evidence-based data (over twenty years) to the origins of organizational bias. This includes both descriptions and examples of common biases along with actionable outcomes to change culture.

Joan is certainly focusing this book on large organizations. In addition, it would be fair to say the book is for supervisors, managers and senior leadership.

I felt this book is indeed a great read. Some may consider this to be short and more of an overview. However, there are practical solutions included. This may be best for busy leaders today.

On the surface too many organizations may believe their cultural bias cannot change. Worse, they are also terribly mis informed that a half day workshop is the instant cure-all. However, Joan provides an educational overview to organizational leaders to indeed discover how their tuned efforts can establish a better workplace.

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Education Reading TED

Latest Read: The Gifts of Imperfection

The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown. Dr. Brown is a research professor at the University of Houston. She is also a visiting professor in management at The University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business.

The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown

Brené certainly provides insights for those audiences who need guidance on shaming. This book is indeed that resource for those who are seeking hard examples of how to embrace themselves.

The focus of her research, presentations, and writing has indeed the identification of patterns defined as living a “wholehearted” life. Wholehearted people according to her research will certainly dig deep — however in a little different way. They focus on being deliberate, inspired, and ongoing.

Brené is indeed a master storyteller by communicating the concepts, ideas, and her research process.

Certainly the most related segment of the book is within ‘The Gun-for-Hire Shame Storm’ lesson. In addition, I find this to be a common scenario, an organization identifies a gap and chooses to bring in outside consultants.

Certainly, one cannot help but feel for her story which begins by a PTO president who did not stay on focus, but rather introduced a bold statement:

You might not like what you’re going to hear tonight, but we need to listen for the sake of our children. Dr. Brown is here to transform our school and our lives! She’s going to set us straight whether we like it or not!
pg .46

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Artificial Intelligence Education Innovation Reading Technology TED

Latest Read: Hello World

Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms by Hannah Fry, Today Hannah is a senior lecturer at University College London’s Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis.

Hello World Being Human in the Age of Algorithms by Hannah Fry

Generally speaking, Hannah has written a wonderful book addressing algorithms and artificial intelligence. Society has certainly fallen behind the moral implications of algorithms and Hannah speaks truth to power.

Above all, do not let the idea of learning about algorithms, artificial intelligence, or machine learning intimate you. Hannah explains all of these terms with easy to understand examples. This is why her book is popular and well regarded.

I really appreciate how Hannah is addressing algorithm technology across the following chapters: Power, Data, Justice, Medicine, Cars, and Crime. However, I will save her best lesson for last.

Machines that see

So, Hannah reveals artificial intelligence allows a computer to identify dogs. Once a computer has identify over one million dog photos, artificial intelligence can identify dogs like an expert.

Yet, when applying this to breast cancer diagnosis the magic of machine learning can truly shine. Feed a computer millions images of breast cancer tissue images and a local doctor at a small community hospital in remote Iowa can tap into machine learning to help diagnose with a better degree of accuracy once only for a doctor with 20 years of breast cancer diagnosis at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.

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Education Innovation Reading TED

Latest Read: Think Like a Rocket Scientist

Think Like a Rocket Scientist: Simple Strategies You Can Use to Make Giant Leaps in Work and Life by Ozan Varol. I am very impressed with the messages in this book. Majoring in astrophysics at Cornell, Ozan was also serving on the operations team for the 2003 Mars Exploration Rovers project. He really is a rocket scientist.

Think Like a Rocket Scientist: Simple Strategies You Can Use to Make Giant Leaps in Work and Life

Ozan went to law school and today teaches at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Oregon.

So, when did you first learn to correctly breath? Yes, breath. Can you recall learning how to think? Well, Ozan will teach, as the book title implies like a rocket scientist.

Likewise, you will certainly appreciate learning that scientific thinking can position you for success in life.

Ozan delivers the opportunity to improve how your approach, perceive, analyze, and act in our very chaotic, and complex world.

This book’s insights are across three sections: Launch, Accelerate, and Achieve. Each provides rich examples from a scientific mindset. This will provide new thinking for many.

Chapter 1 Flying the Fact of Uncertainty

Chapter 1 provides a great introduction to NASA thinking. Tackling the identification of uncertainties, Ozan introduces benefits of best-case and worst-case scenarios. This is great thinking for rocketry. In addition, this addresses risk mitigation via redundancies (and deploying margins of safety) that can easily be applied to many organizations.

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Education Innovation Reading TED

Latest Read: Quiet

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain. Susan’s efforts in revealing insights addressing introverts are remarkable. In the age of COVID, Quiet offers all readers a refreshing though process to strengthen ourselves and all of our relationships by better understanding introverts. At the same time, it may be indeed revealing that readers are rediscovering their own quiet demeanor while working at home.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain

Susan’s stories of Rosa Parks, Dr. Seuss, Steve Wozniak, and Eleanor Roosevelt are certainly well researched and serve as insightful lessons to their daily behaviors.

As a result, one of the strong and revealing topics across the opening three chapters address how leadership is impacted by extroverts. However, this is sometimes not for the better.

Traditionally extroverts certainly carry a group’s ideas. Susan is proving this to be a wrong approach.

Any unchallenging loud voice in the room seemingly is ‘defining’ a project or sales ‘success’ for the gorup, can certainly be where the train goes off the tracks. When this is a CEO or senior Vice President there can be uphill challenges to organizational success. An introvert attending a Tony Robbins event was interesting to say the least as Susan attests.