Dan Erwin

The Big Disconnect on the Development of Expertise

There's a great deal still being written and emphasized about the 10,000 hours of practice for the development of expertise. It's important, however, to have a significant crap detector about the entire notion of practice. Anders Ericsson's “deliberate practice” is not built solely on the notion of practice.   

In their attempts to understand deliberate practice, I’ve noticed that people get the practice bit fairly well, and that they’re trying to figure out how to stay motivated and persevere in their practice and development. 

The big disconnect
Pay close attention: Practice, practice, practice can reinforce some very poor...

To the Givers Go the Spoils: The Hidden Dimensions of Networking Success

Shift your networking orientation from getting to giving and your long term success is assured.

It’s a proven fact that those with the best networks usually get the most job opportunities, the fastest promotions and the top salaries. Yet building a great personal network is not as easy as many think. Recent research confirms what I’ve found to be true in my own business: effective networking is more about giving than getting. 

Adam Grant of Wharton, the hottest organizational researcher of his generation, shatters the myth that greed is the path to success. With personal research as well as an exceedingly knowledgeable base of research on career success, Grant reveals how and why you don’t need to be a selfish asshole to...

It’s a proven fact that those with the best networks usually get the most job opportunities, the fastest promotions and the top salaries. Yet building a great personal network is not as easy as many think. Recent research confirms what I’ve found to be true in my own business: effective networking is more about giving than getting. 

Adam Grant of Wharton, the hottest organizational researcher of his generation, shatters the myth that greed is the path to success. With personal research as well as an exceedingly knowledgeable base of research on career success, Grant reveals how and why you don’t need to be a selfish asshole to...

Three Unique Perspectives on Voting

If you've got a jaundiced view on governmental politics, just look at business politics.

I get drawn into a lot of presidential candidate conversations by my friends. Though I often just listen, I'm eventually asked about my perspective. Inevitably, eyes roll and sometimes bring laughter at my sanity response, no matter their party or orientation. Furthermore, if the colleagues are intrigued, I add an inevitable caveat that applies to any candidate's disposition. So how do I maintain political sanity, especially when, like today, I'm not thrilled by...

The Upside of Flip-Flopping

Are you a flip-flopper? Do you evolve, or just stay the same? “Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything,” wrote George Bernard Shaw.

In career development, it’s usually the little things that derail a manager or exec. Thus, I typically focus on granular career issues. For example, I’ve never quite understood why, even when it’s done rarely, flip-flopping is such an evil. So I was intrigued to read Adam Grant’s recent article on the “virtue of contradicting ourselves.”

Flip-flopping and inconsistency, according to the well-known Wharton prof, can be virtuous. But...