# Welcome to Don't Overthink This We explore and connect ideas about work, philosophy, and analytics without overthinking it. [[Don't Overthink This|More About Us]] >[!summary] Check out our book >Want to improve your analytical thinking skills? [Thinking Analytically: Five-Minute Reflections on Data, Analysis, and Organization](https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Analytically-Five-Minute-Reflections-Organization/dp/B0C9SF26CK/ref=asc_df_B0C9SF26CK/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=663385636736&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=7901942609251486504&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9005959&hvtargid=pla-2188523740513&psc=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwvfmoBhAwEiwAG2tqzHZlSFp6nDoUoop61c9VHNgufiTxPBvFXojccgxhwdmw6ysbCFxa5xoCUgoQAvD_BwEL) --- > [!tip] Checkout our podcast > > Episode 40: [[The Social Experiment of the Olympics]] > Episode 39: [[Truth, Facts, and Rhetoric]] > Episode 38: [[The Politics of the Working Class]] > Episode 37: [[A Magic Carpet Ride]] > Episode 36: [[The Impoverished Creativity of AI]] > Episode 35: [[Sabbatical, Conferences, and Existential Inertia]] > Episode 34: [[Surviving the Organizational Politics of Now]] --- ### Recent Posts ### [[Opinions and Facts]] *Ross Jackson - September 13, 2024* >Never hold an opinion when a... [[Opinions and Facts|Read More]] ### [[Knowledge and Analysis]] *Ross Jackson - September 11, 2024* >There is no knowledge without... [[Knowledge and Analysis|Read More]] ### [[Things Done and Undone]] *Ross Jackson - September 10, 2024* >Task-oriented people like to accomplish things. When an assignment is given, they tend to set out and work on it until it is resolved. These people then look for the next assignment. Based on this perspective, tasks, once fulfilled, are considered finished... [[Things Done and Undone|Read More]] ### [[The Societal Truth Mistake]] *Brian Heath - September 10, 2024* >It's impossible to know what is true. This makes many people uncomfortable, but we always operate under uncertainty. The issue is that we have successfully transformed our native existence and understanding of uncertainty into mathematical and scientific terms... [[The Societal Truth Mistake|Read More]] ### [[A Society in Decline]] *Ross Jackson - September 9, 2024* >A society can have great wealth, power, art, and technology, but it is still in decline. The social fabric is knitted together by something more than those things. There is a tendency to want to knit the social fabric in nationalism... [[A Society in Decline|Read More]] ### [[Difference Detectors]] *Brian Heath - September 9, 2024* >If one believes Americans are largely not united in a single culture, one should visit and work in other countries. One will quickly see that the differences between Americans are relatively minor in comparison to the cultures of other countries... [[Difference Detectors|Read More]] ### [[Absurdity as a Service]] *Ross Jackson - September 8, 2024* >In the 2018 work *Bullshit Jobs: A Theory*, David Graeber estimates that over half of societal work is pointless. If one assumes that consultation is needed randomly across all work, that will mean, if Graeber is correct, that over half of all consulting jobs are pointless... [[Absurdity as a Service|Read More]] ### [[The Variation of Note-Taking and Societal Collapse]] *Brian Heath - September 8, 2024* >There are many "systems" to take notes. Some advocate for atomic notes, where each element is self-contained and only about one idea. Others advocate for less structured systems as they believe any form of taking notes absorbs, reflects, and recalls information... [[The Variation of Note-Taking and Societal Collapse|Read More]] ### [[Don't Break What is Working]] *Ross Jackson - September 7, 2024* >Organizations reorganize frequently. The first rule of reorganization is not to break what is working. This might seem obvious. It is tough to implement this rule in practice. It is so challenging to implement because it requires breaking a fundamental value... [[Don't Break What is Working|Read More]] ### [[Am I the Problem]] *Brian Heath - September 7, 2024* >Descartes said, "I think, therefore I am," as evidence for one's existence. Once one exists, one must figure out how to be in the world. This being is not trivial, but versions of it do come naturally. One looks for food, shelter, and water. One looks for mates, tribes, and friends... [[Am I the Problem|Read More]] ### [[All Sales and No Product]] *Ross Jackson - September 6, 2024* >What makes for a “good” salesperson? Any answer hinges on the definition of good. Some might say a person who can sell anything to anybody is a good salesperson. Perhaps a more nuanced definition is that a good salesperson can efficiently match potential clients... [[All Sales and No Product|Read More]] ### [[Turnover is a Bad Metric]] *Brian Heath - September 6, 2024* >Many organizations and human resource departments focus on turnover rate as an indicator of culture and costs if they are sophisticated enough to know the cost associated with turnover. It is assumed that turnover should be as low as possible because it means... [[Turnover is a Bad Metric|Read More]] ### [[What Does It Mean]] *Ross Jackson - September 5, 2024* >Communication is challenging. People think they are effective communicators. Whereas any determination hinges on what one means by “effective,” most people are not. Communication is ambiguous. What is said is open to interpretation and is often lacking... [[What Does It Mean|Read More]] ### [[Hello and Welcome]] *Ross Jackson - September 3, 2024* >Starting a new job can bring a mix of emotions for both the individual and those within the organization. On both sides, there is a degree of uncertainty. The organization is looking to find out if the new hire will bring sufficient value in a generally pleasing way... [[Hello and Welcome|Read More]] ### [[Social versus Work Networks]] *Brian Heath - September 3, 2024* >How many of those in one's work network have truly sacrificed something significant so one may benefit? Being a reference, putting in a good word, or asking how one is doing at work hardly qualifies. These are baseline expectations of someone who is a good citizen at work... [[Social versus Work Networks|Read More]] ### [[Three Phases of Execution]] *Ross Jackson - September 2, 2024* >Execution is typically viewed as an action-oriented activity. Execution is doing; it comprises the three phases: anticipation, doing, and reflection. As such, execution extends both before and after the doing. In some respects, the doing is the shortest phase... [[Three Phases of Execution|Read More]] ### [[The Left-Right Dilemma and Our Future]] *Brian Heath - September 2, 2024* >When one looks at the Left and the Right, one will often see that the Left is primarily united around post-modern ideologies with an undercurrent of ironic and often hypocritical capitalism. But, the paradox is hardly a concern. It is mainly an inconvenience because... [[The Left-Right Dilemma and Our Future|Read More]] ### [[Status and Resentment]] *Ross Jackson - September 1, 2024* >There is a tendency to measure well-being relatively. One looks around at others to assess how one is doing. Who one picks is determinative of the assessment. If one looks to those more well-off, one isn’t doing well. If one looks at those less fortunate... [[Status and Resentment|Read More]] ### [[Learning and Becoming]] *Ross Jackson - August 31, 2024* >One can learn about analytics. One can learn how to use various analytic techniques. One can learn the jargon associated with analysis. One can learn all these things and not be an analyst. There is a difference between learning about something and becoming something... [[Learning and Becoming|Read More]] ### [[Saying Goodbye to Go Forward]] *Brian Heath - August 31, 2024* >Most people do not develop their thinking beyond high school. If one develops beyond this, one will often leave these friends behind because one has other interests and things to discuss. Later, many do not develop their thinking beyond their 20s. They stay there forever... [[Saying Goodbye to Go Forward|Read More]] ### [[It's Not the Work, It's the Management]] *Ross Jackson - August 30, 2024* >In movies, it is not uncommon for the line “It’s not you, it’s me” to be used at the end of a romantic relationship breakup. During an exit interview, it is not uncommon for the employee leaving to express gratitude about one’s employment and to ensure the HR representative... [[Find a Way Then Improve|Read More]] --- ### Some Older Posts * [[Data-Driven Organizations and Decision-Making]] by *Brian Heath - August 30, 2024* * [[Find a Way Then Improve]] by *Ross Jackson - August 29, 2024* * [[Organizational Revolutions]] by *Brian Heath - August 29, 2024* * [[A Joyful Cynic's Guide to Work]] by *Ross Jackson - August 28, 2024* * [[Undervaluing Talent]] by *Brian Heath - August 28, 2024* * [[Knowledge at the Edge of AI and Capitalism]] by *Brian Heath - August 27, 2024* * [[The Elites]] by *Brian Heath - August 26, 2024* * [[Maintaining the Status Quo]] by *Ross Jackson - August 26, 2024* * [[Asking More Productive Questions]] by *Ross Jackson - August 25, 2024* * [[Occupational Hazard]] by *Ross Jackson - August 24, 2024* * [[Annoyances]] by *Ross Jackson - August 22, 2024* * [[The Selection of Norms]] by *Brian Heath - August 22, 2024*