HTML wasn't developed until the 1960s, but it liberated text and transformed data and personal communications everywhere in ways that seem only to accelerate by the decade. HTML may seem a bit tedious, and yet the power to link, reference, and collect data online are all important for inventing ways of working in the future. I think students need to be conversant with the basics. Steve Jobs may be right that people don't read much anymore.

The term "organizational culture" is used loosely. Some try to plot an measure it with survey questions. Some try to change it, but those who do find it hard to do so. That's because 'culture' is not simply a set of values or norms -- it's also a living force which constrains behavior. Linda Ford has some useful ways of talking about the Gorilla in the room, and the Gorilla God that runs most of our lives in organizational contexts. Culture is memory, and often the product of unconscious learning about what works, what doesn't, and how to deal with the situations that occur.

Good video on brainstorming in general. It all sounds so easy, and yet it's so rarely practiced in earnestness. There are some refreshing comments here from people who have been through a guided experience and achieved profound insights -- realizing that their practice of these simple tools had not been up to par. There is gold in this direction if we'll practice.

Gone are the days in American organization when power is accumulated only with formal position in long tall hierarchies. Increasingly, managers who reach out and make connections and build links through the horizontal reaches of the organization are getting appreciated. Largely this is a matter of building personal networks. The terms of joining and getting support in networks many not be easily understood.

Some very powerful and useful observations by Carol Kinsey Goman, whose book should be a must-read. The points out how eye contact can create misunderstandings through unconscious signals of submission. Her tips on "professional" eye scanning vs. the "social" kind provide important tips for women in particular, who are often challenged to get guys to take them seriously and professionally.