Darya Sinusoid, Author at Shortform Books

Change Your Environment—Change Your Life

How does your environment influence your personality? What can you do to restructure your environment for success? Your environment—the people you surround yourself with, the clothes you wear, the neighborhood you live in, and the food you eat—shapes you into the person you are. If you want to become more successful, the first thing you need to do is to change your environment on all three planes: physical, social, and internal. Here is how you can recondition yourself for success by changing your environment.

Micromanagement in the Workplace: Sometimes It’s OK

Is micromanagement always a bad thing? Can overseeing every little detail of employees’ workflow ever be good? Micromanagement is a common practice in modern workplaces. Most of the time, micromanagement is toxic in that it hinders employee performance. However, there are occasions when micromanagement is the way to go. Here’s why managers think they must oversee every detail and when that can actually be helpful.

Peter Drucker’s The Effective Executive: Book Overview

What is The Effective Executive about? What can you do to increase the effectiveness of your organization? In his book The Effective Executive, Peter Drucker argues that effectiveness derives from a set of five practices anyone can learn rather than from unique talents or charisma. Drucker’s five effectiveness practices are as follows: 1) manage your time, 2) focus, 3) make a unique contribution, 4) maximize your strengths, and 5) make sound decisions. This article examines how Drucker’s ideas on effectiveness hold up today and how others have built on them.

Black Hole Entropy: Stephen Hawking’s Discovery

What’s entropy like inside a black hole? And how do we know that black holes have entropy in the first place? Jacob Bekenstein suggested that the area of a black hole was itself a measurement of its entropy. But if black holes had entropy, they would have to emit radiation (which was thought impossible at the time). In 1973, Stephen Hawking ran calculations that showed that black holes would indeed create and emit particles. Keep reading to learn more about black hole entropy.

10X Companies: 3 Core Habits That Drive Success

What distinguishes 10X companies from the average? What are some of the key characteristics of businesses that manage to stay afloat through a crisis? Dispelling an entrenched myth, the research suggests that ultra-successful 10X companies are not more creative, more ambitious, or more visionary than the average. What sets them apart are these three behaviors: 1) fanatic discipline, 2) empirical creativity, and 3) productive paranoia. Keep reading to learn about the three core characteristics of 10X companies.

The 3 Attitudes for Success and How to Cultivate Them

What does it mean to have an attitude for success? What kind of attitude sets apart a successful person? Our attitudes speak for us, broadcasting disinterest and boredom, or energy and success. If you want the latter, work on nurturing these three attitudes: 1) “I’m activated,” 2) “You are important,” and 3) “Service first.” Keep reading to learn about the three attitudes that all successful people have in common.

Employee Performance Management: Best Practices

What does employee performance management entail in your organization? What are the characteristics of a good performance management routine? Employee performance management consists of meetings and conversations that help you to focus on the progress and performance of your employees. An effective performance management routine must be simple, regular, future-focused, and tailored to each individual employee. Here are some things to think about as you design a performance management routine for your organization.

Singularity Explained: Decoding the Origin of Origins

What is a singularity? How do singularities form? A singularity is a point in space-time where density, gravity, and space-time curvature are infinite. A black hole singularity is formed when a massive star depletes its reserves of nuclear fuel and starts to contract, eventually collapsing into an infinitely small point of infinite gravity and density. Learn about the concept of singularity, explained in simple terms.

20 Mile March: Steady Progress Meets Business Goals

What is the 20 Mile March in business? What are some of its key characteristics? To 20 Mile March in business means to hit specified targets year after year with a long-term view in mind. A good 20 Mile March has these five characteristics: 1) it specifies both lower and upper bounds; 2) it’s consistent; 3) it’s customized; 4) it’s achievable, and 5) it falls within a reasonable time frame. This article spotlights the key characteristics of a good 20 Mile March and how to put it to work for your business.

The Magic of Thinking Big: Book Overview

Is David J. Schwartz’s The Magic of Thinking Big book worth reading? What do you think is the main contributor to success in life? The book The Magic of Thinking Big covers a wide range of ideas on what contributes to success. At a high level, the ideas split into two categories: mindset and behavior. Here is a brief overview of The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz.