The office lights are on, but plenty of seats stay empty. Employees have heard the policy, nodded at talking points, and then organized their week around what helps them live well. That quiet opt-out shows up in badge data and calendar behavior, and it’s reshaping how leaders must think about performance, loyalty, and space. The gap between formal rules and lived practice isn’t a blip. It’s…

In this article I’m looking at Shunryū Suzuki’s beginner’s mind in Zen and Heinz von Foerster’s ethical imperative. Readers of my blog know that I love connecting the dots often in seemingly varying fields.

Suzuki said something useful: “In the beginner’s mind, there are many possibilities. In the expert’s mind, there are few.”

Suzuki didn’t mean that expertise is bad. He…

Ask anyone in manufacturing or in a project-driven company who has the most difficult job, and without hesitation they will say: the scheduler/planner.

It’s no wonder. Foolproof scheduling is critical to the smooth operation of most companies. Yet, planning and scheduling the workflow is akin to juggling 150 different balls at once. Except the balls are all different shapes and…