Far Wise in Knowledge Management

Can we read too many books?

[I had this post in draft version for a long time, but never finished it. The question "Can one read too many books?" is again relevent now I'm member of the jury for management book of the year 2019 and I had to read a large selection of management books for the first round]

A while ago I read a Dutch article, called "The 6 dangers of reading too many management books". I wanted to post a comment about it, but I'm so annoyed now to see that I didn't save the link! So, all I can reflect on is the title.

Can one read too many books, or management books in particular? I love books, so for me it's easy to say "No!". I don't see it as a waste of time and I believe books help me in providing a different point of view and to learn new things. Last year, as member of the jury for Management book of the year 2018, I read about 70 books. I didn't read all of them fully from front to back, still it was a lot of reading. What I can say is that there are not many "good" management books, whatever that qualification means. Of course, a book can still be usefull for a certain reader group. The jury uses a number of criteria for selecting the management book of the year, such as: originality, actuality, lasting and use of reference materials.

Actually, I think there is more danger in reading too few (management) books. I once had a VP who had one favourite book, his Bible, which he referred to all the time (of course, the whole department had to read that one book). Because he hadn't read other viewpoints on the same topic, I found that his viewpoint was too optimistic. That is one thing reading multiple books or articles does, give you several points of view on a topic. 

Maybe a danger of reading too many books, which applies to me, is that they don't stick. I don't use enough what's inside or don't reflect enough on my actions based on what I read in the book. Hence, I don't learn enough from the books that I read. I know it and I always intent to, but then there are new books appearing and I continue reading those books. I think I'm not alone here, otherwise there won't be so many books appearing each year. 

Intelligent Swarming - Tricentis case

A bit more than a year ago (December 2017) I started working with Tricentis (an Austrian software testing company) on our first Intelligent Swarming adoption. I don't think I ever wrote about swarming in this blog, so I have some catching up to do! In short, in an Intelligent Swarm there are no levels 1, 2 or 3, but support engineers collaborate to solve complex issues. To find the right people to make a "swarm", profiles are needed based on skills, experience and interests (hence the "intelligent", for intelligent matching). 

For Tricentis, the change from a tiered support organization to a swarming organization worked out quite well. They soon saw metrics go up and although there were still some hurdles to take, it seemed like the right way of working for Tricentis. I was asked by the Consortium for Service Innovation (that created the Intelligent Swarming principles that we used) to write a case description about Tricentis. You can find it on the website of the Consortium. Even better, I'm currently working on a manual about Intelligent Swarming with the Consortium. This manual is going to be presented at the Member summit in April, so I'll update when it's ready.

Being a shy extrovert

I always thought that I'm an introvert and I've heard people saying it too. I didn't however recognize myself in the book Quiet by Susan Cain and when I did a test, it showed that I'm extrovert. First, I just didn't believe the outcome, but I started looking into the topic introvert / extrovert and think I'm probably a shy extrovert (not scientifically proven though). I love to be around people and love working in teams. I just need to get over the hurdle of the first conversation and please, don't put the spotlight on me. Reading more about it, I see why it's easy to confuse an introvert with a shy extrovert person. Most extrovert people I know are of the outgoing type (and maybe I'm making the same mistake too, by thinking someone is introvert, while being shy extrovert). Over the years I've gotten less shy, apart from the spotlight aspect.

Knowledge management standard (ISO 30401) continued

Although I'm very interested in the development of the ISO knowledge management standard, I completely missed the recent BSI webinar about the standard. Luckily Nick Milton blogged about the webinar, including links to the slides and the webinar recording. Browsing through the slides, I see that there are also answers to questions like, who can use it, is certification necessary etcetera. The process will be continued (see here for the timeline).

Factfulness (Hans Rösling)

Our knowledge of the world is outdated. That is why we think the world is much worse off, for example with girls' education, than it really is. Would we do a test about our knowledge of the world, we would most likely score worse than chimpanzees that give random answers. (Btw, this article refers to a test that seems similar to the test in the book). Hans Rösling wants to put this straight with the book Factfulness, which he wrote in his deathbed and which was finished by his son Ola and daughter in law Anna Rösling. I read this book in Dutch (titled: Feitenkennis).

 I first saw Hans Rösling presenting at Le Web 3 conference in Paris (2006) and was impressed (like all the other people in the room) by his animations (Gapminder). Later I saw many of his TED-presentations and enjoyed them very much. When I heard that he had written a book (which was published after he died), I bought it as soon as it was published in Dutch and put it on my reading list. The book review for Managementboek.nl appeared in Dutch. This post is the translation of this review. Most people know Rosling from his presentations with nice animations and jokes about serious stuff, trying to tell us how the world has changed. Apparently he didn't feel that his job was done, so this book is literally his last try against our ignorance.

 

Books I'm reading or want to read

Summer is the perfect time for reading books. I always have a book with me, either on my e-book reader or a "real" book. Fiction and non-fiction, I read them both and usually I have more than one book I'm reading. Here is a list of the books that I'm currently reading or about to start. I will refer to the English title, although some books I'm reading in Dutch. And let me know if you have books that you can recommend!

1. Factfulness by Hans Rosling. I bought this book when I heard about it, but I haven't finished. I really want to take the time to read this book, give it full attention but haven't had the chance to do that. I always liked Hans' TED talks, so I hope I will like the book just as much and I hope it will give food for thought. 

2. Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson. I started this book as e-book from the online library, but I think it will be better to get the real book. It's full with pictures and sometimes I want to go back to a certain picture, which is not so easy in an e-book. I'm interested to learn more about Leonardo the genius, his work, his life.

3. The Monk of Mokha by Dave Eggers. I started this book a few weeks ago and I'm going slowly through this one, few pages at a time. I'm learning about coffee, it's history and culture. Also about Jemen, which I hardly know anything about. 

4. Warlight by Michael Ondaatje. I haven't started this one. In general I like his book, so I put it on my reading list.

5. Donut economics by Kate Raworth. Someone gave me this book (in Dutch), but I haven't started it yet.

Next to these, I have some "light reading" on my bed side, such as the books by Katherine Pancol and Tatiana de Rosnay (both I tried to read in French, but then it's no longer "light" for me). Random books that I pick up from the library. My book case also has many books that I need to finish... Now I just need to sit down, with my cat Bolt on my lap and read!

 

 

Learnings from training for a mountain trail

I posted about my first mountain trail, which I ran in July. I don't often reflect on my running here, but I think this trail taught me some things, especially because it was all new to me. With new, I mean the mountain and elevation part, not (trail) running itself. However, it was enough of a challenge, so I didn't know for sure beforehand if I could do it. On the other hand it was within my possibilities (not if I had chosen to run the 101 kilometer), so when signing up I knew it wasn't impossible.

This is one of the learnings: having the ability to estimate what is possible, based on the level of fitness I had and what I did in the past, and the confidence that I could do it. This was a great drive for the training that lay ahead. Although my fitness level wasn't great when we signed up, I knew I had enough time to prepare. 

I then started to collect information, learn from others how to train for this race. In particular how to train for the elevation in our rather flat country. The (trail) running community is so willing to share information and to answer questions, it's such a useful source. Not only live advice, but on YouTube as well, there are many "how to.." videos. Learning from others helped me in my preparations.

Of course, it's hard to say beforehand if I had done enough. I wanted to do more, but there are always injuries, social events, work trips that are unforeseen, which made I had to change plans. Most important in this phase was to stay positive and keep the confidence that the race is doable. 

The days before I wasn't nervous, like some other runners. I didn't sleep well because of the high room temperature in the hostel. My worry was that I would have difficulty focusing when I would get tired in the end of the race, and trip. The fear of tripping was the only concern that I wasn't able to shake off, and it blocked me in the race. The trails in the mountains are very rocky and technical and I was very careful in running them. Too careful, as I was passed by many runners, which annoyed me a lot. I was able to stay focused and I didn't trip, but if there is one learning here, it would be that I apparently avoid taking risks. Trail running has more risks than normal road races but the good runners don't think (too much) about them. It did block me from running down and I felt frustrated. It's also a matter of practice, or non-practice in my case. I'm sure that it would be better had we more opportunities to train this type of surface. On the other hand, almost none of the other Dutch runners had the opportunity to train this and they did much better than I. For me, this trail was way out of my comfort zone. Yes, I finished it, but did it give me the good feeling (of finishing, the medal)? No, not yet. I still have the struggle in mind (the journey). I finished, but not the way I liked. What is more important? Apparently for me the journey called for improvements. Of practice, confidence, awareness of where I block (thinking & doing).

This trail was all about knowing myself, my capabilities, learning from others, practicing, getting out of my comfort zone and finding room for improving. Who says that running (and other sports or hobbies) is not related to work?

For a while I had enough of trails and took it easy on running. Yesterday I signed up for a new trail run. This time I choose a short distance. I want to enjoy this one especially, to give me back my good feeling for trails and running.

 

Eiger Trail E35 - our Swiss adventure

The decision to run the Eiger Trail in Grindelwald (Switzerland) was made a year ago. We then hesitated so long with registration that the 51 km that Emiel had wanted to run was already full. We both signed up for the 35 km (E35) at MudSweatTrails. Well enough in advance to think how we should train for a mountain trail. Just look at the elevation (2500m+), how do you train that in our flat country? We took every opportunity to run (powerwalk) hills, including on the so-called Rotterdam Alp. Running this ski hill up and down a good number of times. We also visited the French mountains for a week for the necessary meters elevation. Would it all be enough for the Swiss adventure? July 14, we would know the answer ...

 

Going offline

Is it me or is there a trend of people who (temporarily) get rid of their smartphone or social media, for real or as experiment? Maybe it's because I just read two books about this topic and I suddenly see many news items about the same topic. Within a few days after reading these books, I read in EllE Magazine that author Zadie Smith has no smartphone and the Dutch newspaper NRC has started an experiment in which 8 people change their smartphone for 6 months for a simple Nokia mobile phone.  I'm sure there is a name for this phenomenon, just like when you buy a red car, suddenly there are red cars everywhere.

One book I read (in Dutch) tells the experiences of a guy (Johan van Houten) who went offline completely for a year. (Sidenote: another trend, I think, is doing something weird for a whole year and write/blog/insta about it). His experiences are sometimes funny, sometimes ironic (when a company refers him to the website for more information). Is it doable, a year without internet and mobile phone? According to this book it is, although it's not easy. Is it the solution to stress, distraction and so on? I don't think so. There is value to having internet and mobile access. It's just our behavior that's off. The author agrees and suggests a balanced online and offline life.

That's where the other book I read becomes useful. Catherine Price suggests in her book "How to break up with your phone" a 30-day plan to get into a better relationship with your phone. Both books are aimed at making us aware of our mobile phone behavior and changing it so it becomes more healthy and less stressful.

Personally, I think I'm less attached to my phone than both authors describe. Maybe it's because I have many offline distractions (running, reading, knitting) and didn't have TV for many years (we have Netflix now). On the other hand, I use my smartphone a lot for e-mail, searching for information (for example, train departure times), social media and online banking. I wouldn't want to do without it, but i don't feel addicted. Still, it's good to become aware of one's behavior and I'm probably more hours online than I think now. Of the two books, the second book is most practical with a plan instead of a range of tips.

About networks

A long time ago (the year 2000), some colleagues and I wrote an article in which we compared task groups to communities and networks. Unfortunately I can't find the article online, so I'm not able to link to it. I was reminded to our comparison when I was reading a Dutch management book about networks.

In our description, a network was about connections and had a 'loose' shape, its boundaries are not fixed. Compared to a community or a task group that has more fixed boundaries. With this in mind I found it hard to read the book initially, as I was constantly comparing the way network was described in the book and our thoughts about it.The definition of a network in the book was: "a joint effort of individuals, organisations or small groups that are connected temporarily and equally to an assignment, a theme or challenge". Interestingly enough, the definition suggests to be in the area where we would position communities or even task groups.

The examples confused me even more. They were a mix of all three types that we tried to distinguish. I think the book took a far more overarching definition of network, anything that connects people and has a purpose. A community is a network, as well as a task group. It's about connections.

Of course, it's a comparison of definitions and nobody is right or wrong here. To be able to read the book, I really had to let go of my old picture of networks. For example, when the book discusses the topic of 'leadership'. In my image of networks, there is no real leader, although I agree that each group will have an implicit leader.

(Note that the picture I selected reflects my 'definition' of a network, the picture of the authors of the book would be different)