Every morning I post a new quotation on Twitter, Facebook and Google+. The quotation on February 9th, 2012 was from Jerry Weinberg, one of my mentors in the IT industry. The quotation was:
“It may look like a crisis, but it’s only the end of an illusion.”
Many years ago, I copied this quotation to my list of favorites when I read one of Jerry’s books, “The Secrets of Consulting: A Guide to Giving and Getting Advice Successfully.” And when I recently reread the quote taken out of the context of the book, it struck me at first as a kind of wisecrack — the kind of thing you’d say as a quick rejoinder to someone’s Facebook post about a problem they’re having.
But then I read it again and, even without going back to the book for context, I saw how profound it is.
One dictionary reference defines crisis as:
1. a stage in a sequence of events at which the trend of all future events, especially for better or for worse, is determined; turning point.
2. a condition of instability or danger, as in social, economic, political, or international affairs, leading to a decisive change.
3. a dramatic emotional or circumstantial upheaval in a person’s life.
But these are point-in-time definitions — they define a crisis based on what’s happening now. Instead, we need to consider the entire timeline over which a crisis develops. For example, the BP gulf oil spill didn’t [more…]
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