Category: rants

Criticism

One of the odd things about people criticising you on the Internet is how often they read the wrong things into words.

A case in point are the replies to this Smart Company column.

The funny thing is I agree with every point he makes and if he left it at that all would be sweet and the reader better informed.

But he doesn’t and he drops this little bomb;

The notion that it “cost them nothing” is also misleading as unless you think though the consequences of beginning such engagement, say through Twitter, then it can cost you a lot more than you are prepared to give.

Misleading?

Accusing a writer of misleading readers is pretty serious. It’s even more galling when the quote is taken out of context.

This is the strange thing about the Internet, people do silly things and it hurts their credibility.

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The Future Summit 2: Artificial divides

I took a lot from the Melbourne Future Summit, many good and some worrying.

One of the worrying aspects was the hostility from the “creative thinkers” towards Engineers and scientists.

I took a lot from the Melbourne Future Summit, much of it good and some of it worrying.

One of the worrying aspects was the hostility from the “creative thinkers” towards Engineers and scientists.

This was apparent in the Innovation Imperative seminar where many of the panel’s and audiences’ comments were notable for their hostility towards Engineers and scientists along with their view it was time for some “creative thinking”.

Most of questioners from the floor went as far to blame Engineers and scientists for the Global Financial Crisis.

This is odd as scientists and Engineers are no more responsible for the banking sector’s financial engineering any more than artists are responsible for the bankers’ creative accounting.

Creating artificial barriers between “creative” and “scientific” thinkers is dangerous and foolish. Our greatest Engineering and scientists are creative thinkers by definition. Many great artists have applied science to their work.

If we force people into these pigeon holes where an Engineer can’t be creative and an artist can’t use science then we are all the poorer for it and less equipped for the challenges ahead of us.

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Computer hostility

While at the Sydney CeBIT last week, a speaker made a comment about how getting managers to accept social media is a big step given many  proudly complain they know nothing about computers and care even less.

A few days later when flying down to Melbourne for the Future Summit, I read an article by Glenn Wheeler telling how he smashed his computer after getting a virus, an act he said “sent a warm feeling through my body.”

Bizarre.

I’ve long lost count of the people who tell me they are proud to know nothing about computers but I still get rattled by people who are openly and proudly hostile to technology.

The problem for these people is they are being left behind, just like the Luddites they are well on their way to becoming a historical curiousity.

That’s fine for Glenn and other individuals, it’s good not to know anything about anything if you wish to be ignorant. But a business that chooses to ignore technology is quickly losing ground to smarter competitors.

Ignorance isn’t a good look at any time, but it’s even worse when it’s killing your business.

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The bravest man in Australia

Federal Finance Minister Lindsay Tanner

Federal Finance minister Lindsay Tanner’s now repeated claim the “worst is over” will either make him a prophet or a fool. Either way, he’s pretty brave to make that statement.

What makes his courage even more impressive is his belief is based on IMF, Treasury and Reserve Bank advice.

These three groups, along with almost the entire economic world,  failed to see this crisis coming  and have consistently understated the effects since it arrived.

For Australian business owners, more worrying should be policy responses of our politicians.

While China’s stimulus package includes funding for building railways, roads and hospitals, Canberra’s response is to repeat the mistakes of the previous government by ramping the property market.

To compound the problem, the Federal government seems obsessed with keeping Australia in the 1950s. While the Chinese government is encouraging investment in the IT industries, we’re pouring our resources into propping up a vehicle manufacturing industry.

Even worse is the NSW Government’s blind faith in the ratings agencies. It’s a shame Nathan Rees won’t show Lindsay Tanner’s courage in telling these corrupt and incompent fools where to stick their phoney triple A ratings. 

Instead he chooses to further reduce our investments on infrastructure and the state’s future.

The lesson to business owners is clear; you’re on your own and you cannot expect any help from the state or Federal governments.

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