VANITY TOYS charm bracelet (detail) © briserisvegliWhy is it so hard to keep a place or a room free of clutter? Why do empty surfaces fill up with clutter, instantly? Why do items start to gather at the very places we've just cleaned a moment ago, as if moved by a ghost's hand?

It's about more than just clearing and cleaning.

When we clean places up, we want to believe we're creating free space. However, we're just creating a vacuum. What's the difference?  » Read more

Brick wall © Les ChatfieldWhy are Projects so hard? Why do we fail here so often, even in workplaces featuring thorough planning and highly disciplined execution?

We do not fail despite, but because of these. We believe that turning a project into a success is like baking a pizza, while in fact, it resembles much more creating a pizza recipe.

Why? In our projects, we're not into producing identical results from identical ingredients. Every project is unique - it is like research & development, not like production. In R & D, diversity of results is what we strive for. In production, diversity is our worst enemy. We should be aware of this, however, we're making the same 4 mistakes, over and over again:  » Read more

Lipstick © Simon EvansDo you need what Stephen R. Covey calls a «Personal Mission Statement»? What for?

Let's leave aside what companies or political parties want to tell you about their so-called mission. Compared to these, drafting a Personal Mission Statement (and updating it from time to time) can be real fun. If you do it well, the statement will give you

• Orientation: What are the values that guide your life?
• Identity: How can you unfold your personality in a world that gets more chaotic, every day?
• Decision support: What should you stick with when you find yourself in a complicated situation?
• Sound relationships: What can other people expect of you?

How do you draft a great Personal Mission Statement? After some thinking, I arrived at a simple set of criteria. My statement shall be  » Read more