Get Newmind’s take on “the linchpin” in this week’s most popular posts [2/16/2015]

Have you been keeping up with our new content? Check out this roundup of our popular posts of the week, or our previous weeks’ Best of posts.

1) Add art to your work

Ben Morris wrote this Linchpin post last Spring, in response to the book Linchpin by Seth Godin, which was on our office reading list in 2014. In the post, Ben looks at how Godin compares the modern worker to an artist, and how autonomy and passion come together in the work environment.

“Nick is one of the incredible artists here at Newmind. One of Nicolas’ passions is process. He has a passion to constantly improve the processes around him. It is such a foreign thing for me to connect with art and passion but it is clear when you watch an artist work. As Godin says, ‘There are artists who work with numbers, business models, and customer conversations. Art is about intent and communication, not substances.’”

2) Collaborate like a Linchpin

James Duke wrote part 5 of our Linchpin blog series in response to the book Linchpin by Seth Godin, which was on our office reading list in 2014. James takes the idea of collaboration, and views it through the lens of three of his favorite teams—the 1992 US Men’s Olympic Basketball Team (AKA the Dream Team), the crew of the Starship Enterprise, and the Wu-Tang Clan.

“Method Man sums it up with this picture when describing de-facto Wu-Tang leader GZA: ‘He the head, know what I’m sayin’? We form like Voltron, and GZA happen to be the head.’ GZA (the Genius) is the unofficial head not because the Clan fears him, but because his smarts are recognized and respected by all other members and the hip hop community at large.”

3) MACUL: Recommended apps, extensions & add-ons

Ryan Hawkins put together this list 16 awesome essentials mentioned at the 2014 MACUL edtech conference in Detroit, for educators who weren’t able to attend the event in person.

“Easybib – Alright, this one makes me truly jealous of the students today. Another tool that is both an app and an extension, Easybib makes it easier for students to cite their sources, organize notes, and evaluate websites. With the extension, you can “cite a site” within one click.”

4) Defining Newmind’s Connected Classroom

One of our edTech gurus, Lance Busdeker, details Newmind Group’s Connected Classroom initiative, a hands-on professional development showcase of offerings from edTech providers such as Google, Securly, and Hapara.

“We are excited to showcase the Connected Classroom at individual schools and at potential conferences. We’re working to spread the word that the opportunity is out there for Newmind Group to come to individual school districts, conferences, and professional development days.”

5) Newmind’s Dan Jefferies talks “innovation” at DESIGNEDtoLEAD conference November 14th

The founder and Chief Happiness Officer of Newmind group has participated in a number of conferences and panels at WMU, and in November he gave students a talk on practical innovation. Get a snapshot of his session in this article.

“I think we can all be innovators to a greater or lesser extent, it’s just about having an idea and trying to make it a reality. It doesn’t have to be a new idea to the world, it can just be new to your target group.”

 
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