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Originally posted in our November 2021 Top of Mind Newsletter. As we close out our discussion of building entrepreneurial culture, let’s consider one more option for fostering innovation: the side project. In his recent essay, Paul Graham thinks through the beauty of a self-directed project. That is, a project “that you’re doing voluntarily, rather than merely because someone told you to, and…that you’re doing it by yourself.” Graham shares the wealth of positive emotions that come…

Originally posted in our November 2021 Top of Mind Newsletter. As we think more about creating an entrepreneurial culture, we must consider various ways to promote the behavior. For example, in a recent blog from Matt Clancy, we see more evidence that social influence promotes entrepreneurship. In this piece, we see that entrepreneurial co-workers increase the likelihood of entrepreneurial activity in us. And, it is even more likely if we have other things in common such…

Originally posted in our October 2021 Top of Mind Newsletter. “Is good ethics good for business? Crime and sleazy behavior sometimes pay off handsomely. People would not do such things if they didn’t think they were more profitable than the alternatives.” With topics of climate change, societal inequity, and governance at the forefront of many big thinkers’ minds, we need to talk about the role of ethics in business. This piece suggests that while unethical behavior…

Originally posted in our October 2021 Top of Mind Newsletter. Following on from our discussion of virtues and character development, we move into a discussion of ethics. An exciting resurgence of Aristotle’s ethics, Neo-Aristotelianism, provides a deeper understanding of how we develop ethics. Much has been written about Aristotle’s good and virtuous life. And, there is a movement among policymakers, psychologists, and philosophers towards these teachings again. The goal of eudaimonia, or the highest form of…

Originally posted in our October 2021 Top of Mind Newsletter. As we think about how we structure our work in established organizations and more autonomous settings, the idea of character often comes to mind. Sometimes seen as a polarizing subject, studies have linked character development to the culture around an individual. Furthermore, if we want individuals and societies to flourish, we need to examine how we intentionally or unintentionally develop characters and virtues in our students.…