iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Bob Sutton

Dana Milbank @danamilbank.bsky.social · 25/07/2025

We are losing our humanity. I am searching for an antidote -- and I need your help. My column about my new @washingtonpost.com column. Gift link. wapo.st/472i9Gz

wapo.st

Opinion | We are losing our humanity. I am searching for an antidote.

The challenge of our time is to recover what we have lost: in nature, and in our communities.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 30/10/2025

"When you throw shit at other people, some always end up on you in the process." Advice I got from a wise lawyer long ago. I am reminding myself of it more and more these days, as the vicious circle of angry times and ease of insulting and demeaning others on social media is so tempting to join.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 18/10/2025

Scam alert to friends. If you get an email from a Hotmail address "from" me, it is a scam. I do not have a Hotmail email, do not have cancer, and did not get 250K from the "The Administration of Federal Benefits." I am fine. Delete the email--and don't give them any personal information.

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford @casbsstanford.bsky.social · 02/10/2025

🎙️ NEW CASBS PODCAST EPISODE Colin Camerer: Econ's Neurovisionary @sweiwang.bsky.social chats w/@cfcamerer.bsky.social on his work on the neuroeconomics of habit formation, building & scaling behavioral models, & neuroscience as a wide-open field for economists 🎧 casbs.stanford.edu/podcast#coli...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 29/08/2025

Got a pitch from a company that provides Amazon reviews to authors that pay them. I don't know if this is legal or not (they say it is), but ain't kosher. I guess you can buy anything! This is the company: www.manuscripped.com

manuscripped.com

Home | Manuscripped LLC

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 01/08/2025

I was delighted to be interviewed by Dan McGinn, Harvard Business Review's editor, for this retrospective on my 2009 HBR piece "How to Be a Good Boss in a Bad Economy" (2009). My evidence-based advice for making painful workplace changes humanely-- in good times and bad. hbr.org/2025/07/qa-p...

hbr.org

Q&A: Professor Robert Sutton on Communicating Difficult Decisions as a Leader

In today’s uncertain economy, leaders must navigate the delicate task of delivering bad news, such as layoffs or project cancellations, with empathy and transparency. Robert Sutton’s framework, origin...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 31/07/2025

"Botholes" is my proposed to term for AI tools (such as AI assistants) that are massively efficient at wasting other peoples' time, nagging them incessantly, or otherwise acting like rude and selfish humans.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 17/07/2025

Great to see this new research Fabrizio...that stars often aren't as "portable" as it seems. Your findings also remind me of related research that, for leaders, shows promoting from within results in better performance than hiring those (often dazzling) external candidates.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 15/07/2025

Some advice from the late great Warren Bennis: "Don't take a job at a place where the best you can be is a perfect imitation of those who came before you." He said that to me 40+ years ago, seems as pertinent as ever.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 29/06/2025

Check out this nuanced argument on why our institutions are under siege and options for repairing them. I was surprised to learn Marshall McLuhan believed that becoming a global village would unleash unprecedented tribalism and violence. He might have been right! digitaltonto.com/2025/the-end...

digitaltonto.com

The End of History All Over Again… | Digital Tonto

Before 1789 the world was ruled by the divine right of kings and the feudal system. Yet that year would prove to be an inflection point. The American Constitution the French Revolution and the first I...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 19/06/2025

“Interdependence is the reason why nothing comes out quite the way one wants it to.” I was thinking of this wonderful old line by Jeff Pfeffer and the late Jerry Salancik as I declined an invite to join an interesting group.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 18/06/2025

I love talking with @ericries.bsky.social. Eric wrote the blockbuster "The Lean Startup", launched Long-Term Stock Exchange , and so much more. We both believe companies can thrive financially and innovate, and treat employees and customers well, at the same time. www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_Zc...

youtube.com

The playbook for fixing toxic culture, pointless friction and broken systems | Bob Sutton (Stanford)

YouTube video by The Eric Ries Show

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 12/06/2025

Are you worried about turning into bad boss? Are you struggling with a boss who is nasty, incompetent, or both? Jamie Woolf and Dr. Christopher Bell have a wonderful new TEDx talk on such things. Join us for a watch party on June 18th at 930 AM PT. Here's the link: us06web.zoom.us/j/8488163408...

us06web.zoom.us

Join our Cloud HD Video Meeting

Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise cloud communications.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 06/06/2025

Most amusing take I've seen on the on the tit-for-tat spat between Elon and Trump.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 06/06/2025

I love talking with @ericries.bsky.social. We both believe that capitalism and caring about people (rather than acting like a selfish asshole) are compatible and desirable goals.

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Adam Grant @adamgrant.bsky.social · 28/05/2025

The most important part of an apology is not saying sorry. It's taking responsibility for what you did wrong and taking action to make it right. Admitting mistakes doesn’t mean you're a bad person. It's an effort to be a better person—and a display of care for another person. link.chtbl.com/RTAdam

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 24/05/2025

The wise @pahlkadot.bsky.social uses this slide with "Hill staffers who ask me what they should do to improve the performance of an underperforming agency." The key contrast is "something is wrong with these people" vs. "something is wrong with this system." Friction-fixers are system-fixers!

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, Stanford @casbsstanford.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

Awesome hosting CASBS fellow @decelles.bsky.social for a CASBS podcast recording. Fmr fellow & Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist @johnmarkoff.bsky.social chatted w/Katy on topics engaging her research on organizational design, human interactions & behavior We'll publish the episode in a few months!

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 23/05/2025

My friend Ferose just taught me a phrase, a goal, that I keep rolling over in my mind. That much good can be done for the human spirit by striving to make things "Unnecessarily Beautiful." Makes me think of Steve Jobs, Enzo Ferrari, Joni Mitchell, and the late Bill Moggridge (IDEO co-founder).

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 17/05/2025

Ah. Love the science of assholes. There is a lot of serious research on bullshit too.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 16/05/2025

Ah, the roach motels are still open. Checking in is easy, checking out mighty hard. An ordeal of many clicks and trick questions. Why I won’t try a trial subscription to @economist.com. Last time, it was so hard to end. Note @netflix.com does this right. #frictionproject

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 15/05/2025

It was humbling to be honored by @casbsstanford.bsky.social, a beautiful behavioral science think tank where I spent three sabbatical years Thank you to my friends and family for gathering to celebrate--it was so fun and so touching. Something I will always savor www.linkedin.com/posts/casbs-...

linkedin.com

On Thursday, May 8, a festive crowd gathered at CASBS to celebrate Bob… | CASBS at Stanford

On Thursday, May 8, a festive crowd gathered at CASBS to celebrate Bob Sutton, three-time CASBS fellow (1986-87, 1994-95, 2002-03). Friends of Bob raised funds to forever endow CASBS study #11, now ma...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 14/05/2025

Yes U.S. Govt has much sludge + waste. No cruelty, impatience, incompetence, opaqueness ain’t the way to do it The @financialtimes.com unpacks DOGE’s ineffectiveness, damage, + excessive claims by children’s crusade that powers it Seems it will cost more than it saves—and destroy vital capacity

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 04/05/2025

Question for organizational scholars: Does the fast, deep, & scary impact of Trump's reign undermine arguments "the impact of leadership on performance overrated?" Or, as Jim March speculated, perhaps leaders are like light bulbs: They all work pretty much the same unless you pick a broken one!

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 01/05/2025

After battling some ugly jargon monoxide, this Hemmingway quote popped in my head: “The most essential gift for a good writer is a built-in, shockproof, shit detector. This is the writer's radar and all great writers have had it.”

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Al Roth @alroth.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

I wrote a letter to the editor replying to a JAMA viewpoint that said we shouldn’t experiment with being more generous to nondirected donors of kidneys for transplant. JAMA readers won’t see my letter, but you can see it below. #econsky #lawsky #medicine marketdesigner.blogspot.com/2025/04/jama...

marketdesigner.blogspot.com

JAMA declined to publish this letter on kidney donation

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Pam Herd @pamherd.bsky.social · 23/04/2025

The trope that universities are "dependent" on the federal government fundamentally misunderstands how vital this partnership has been for the US. The private sector can't replace it. If we kill it, we're all worse off. From @donmoyn.bsky.social and me: donmoynihan.substack.com/p/are-univer...

Moreover, these funds serve the public interest. Universities do things private companies with research capacities cannot: train research talent, conduct basic research with uncertain payoffs, and distribute knowledge as a public good. And the rewards have been enormous. Everything from the internet to pharmaceutical and health care innovations evolved from such investments. We are richer and healthier for the investment.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 23/04/2025

A big thanks to Louisa Kamps at @nytimes.com, and @adamgrant.bsky.social, for selecting my book "The Asshole Survival Guide," as one of "6 books to help you deal with difficult people." www.nytimes.com/2025/04/22/w...

nytimes.com

6 Books to Help You Deal With Difficult People

These six books can help ease tensions.

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 17/04/2025

RFK Jr. says there are no autistic poets, so we interviewed one. Hear from Elizabeth McClellan, @popelizbet.bsky.social, an award-winning poet, attorney, and legal educator based in Memphis, Tennessee.

motherjones.com

RFK Jr. says there aren't autistic poets. We asked an autistic poet.

"I will challenge RFK Jr. to write a poem as good as me any day of the week."

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 15/04/2025

I wrote this little love letter to David Kelley, the "lead" founder of IDEO and the Stanford d school. As I said, David has probably influenced me more than any other colleague during my 40+ years at Stanford. www.linkedin.com/feed/update/...

linkedin.com

This old picture of David Kelley warmed my heart. David is probably the… | Bob Sutton | 33 comments

This old picture of David Kelley warmed my heart. David is probably the Stanford University colleague who influenced me most during my 40+ years here. He is among the most creative, giving, and acti...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 11/04/2025

A government lawyer's absurd effort to justify a $200 bottled water expense @pahlkadot.bsky.social: "an enormous amount of the waste in government (and what some might call abuse) comes from people trying very hard to avoid the perception of waste and abuse" www.eatingpolicy.com/p/the-water-...

eatingpolicy.com

The Water is a Mirror

A lot of what you might call government waste is our fault.

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Ethan Mollick @emollick.bsky.social · 02/04/2025

The public colleges of New York, Texas, and California are great engines of social mobility in America. They move many born in the lower 20% of income to the top 20%. Our most elite universities move smaller numbers from the bottom 20% income to the top 1%. Paper: www.nber.org/system/files...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 30/03/2025

A new field experiment in the Journal of Applied Psychology found real teams (in a manufacturing firm) trained in design thinking had greater improvement in performance (compared to after action reviews and a control group), including efficiency (i.e.,time savings) psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?d...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 28/03/2025

The rhetoric and action by the DOGE gang remind me of something my late dissertation advisor, Bob Kahn, once said to me about architects of organizational change: "The descent from theory to practice is often painful."

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 28/03/2025

Can a certified asshole be rehabilitated? Do they deserve forgiveness? That's what the VERY NASTY Oscar winning director Scott Rudin wants--he's back after a period of reflection, therapy, and (he says) apologies to some of his victims. #noassholerule www.nytimes.com/2025/03/28/t...

nytimes.com

Scott Rudin, Producer Exiled for Bad Behavior, Plans Return to Broadway

Rudin stepped away from show business four years ago amid reports that he had bullied assistants. He says he has “a lot more self-control” now.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 24/03/2025

In 2011, the first time Trump threatened to run for U.S. President, Garry Trudeau used ideas from my book "The No Asshole Rule" to portray Trump as a "certified asshole" in this Doonesbury Sunday cartoon. Unfortunately, this strip has aged well. www.gocomics.com/doonesbury/2...

gocomics.com

Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for May 22, 2011 | GoComics.com

Mark: Only one story today... better get to it! Okay, so lately I've been thinking about this book I once read called "The No A------ rule." Everyone knows what an a----- is - an obnoxious, narcissist...

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Mark Cuban @mcuban.bsky.social · 23/03/2025

All you need to know about Twitter

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 22/03/2025

Leidy is MR. SUBTRACTION. Right now I am looking out the window of my San Francisco hotel at a beautiful view of The Ferry Building. Because of some bold subtraction—Mayor Willie Brown led the charge to tear down the ugly Embarcadero Freeway after the 1989 quake. A story in Leidy’s book!

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 16/03/2025

Much has changed since a small group of us joined David Kelley in 2004 or so to start Stanford's d. School. Part of David's genius was playing off "b.schools" to clarify our mission. I stumbled across this graphic from "Creating Infectious Action," which @metacool.bsky.social and I taught in 2006.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 13/03/2025

Those Meta lawyers are serious.The author is muzzled. I'm half way through the book. It is quite entertaining, and while I can't check the facts (Ironically, Facebook ended its fact-checking program),it rings true. Order it before the lawyers pull it off the market! www.nytimes.com/2025/03/12/t...

nytimes.com

Meta Seeks to Block Further Sales of Ex-Employee’s Scathing Memoir

An arbitrator has prevented the employee from promoting her book and disparaging the company until private arbitration concludes.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 07/03/2025

This "searing insider account of Meta’s company culture" was announced one week before publication date 3/11/2025. I have never heard of that before. Perhaps so Meta's lawyers don't have time to stop publication? Just a guess. www.rollingstone.com/product-reco...

rollingstone.com

'A Rotten Company Culture' -- 'Searing' Memoir From Former Facebook Official Drops Next Week

'Careless People' is written by Facebook's former director of global public policy, and calls the company's executives "callously indifferent."

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 06/03/2025

"The Friction Project" has been my main mission for 8 years The key lesson from my book with Huggy Rao: The best leaders are TRUSTEES OF OTHERS TIME, friction fixers with the will and skill to make the right things easier and the wrong things harder for others www.amazon.com/dp/125028441...

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 06/03/2025

Huggy Rao and I define leadership "clusterfucks" as decisions that are made and implemented by people who are plagued by: Impatience Illusions Incompetence The Trump tariffs are classic example of this disease

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 04/03/2025

Hmm, now, could Adam be talking about the new President of the United States? Nah, couldn't be!

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 04/03/2025

4 lessons for speakers and organizers from 4+ decades of teaching, keynotes, and workshops: It is better to leave people wanting more than wanting less The smaller the audience, the more they should talk, and the less the speaker should talk The HIPPO should talk least and last End on time

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 03/03/2025

The CA DMV story is the anti-DOGE. Head Steve Gordon visited all 180 field offices during the transformation. Put 50k miles on his car. And no layoffs! Listened to and trusted frontline civil servants.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 28/02/2025

To understand why government is broken and how to fix it, read @pahlkadot.bsky.social: A case for more "Hamiltonianism which favors centralized authority and expert-led bureaucracy" and less "Jeffersonianism, which champions individual freedom and decentralization" open.substack.com/pub/eatingpo...

open.substack.com

Why Nothing Works

Even amongst the chaos of the moment, the left must grapple with the challenge Marc Dunkelman describes in his important new book. In fact, because of it.

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Reposted by Bob Sutton

Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 26/02/2025

What happens when the SSA closes field offices? *People have a harder time getting access to services that they are eligible for because of crowded offices. *People with more severe disabilities, lower income and lower education are most adversely affected. www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=...

We study the effect of application costs on the targeting of disability programs. We identify these effects using the closings of Social Security Administration field offices, which provide assistance with filing disability applications. Closings lead to a persistent 16 percent decline in the number of disability recipients in surrounding areas, with the largest effects for applicants with moderately severe conditions and low education levels. Disability applications fall by only 10 percent, implying that the closings reduce targeting efficiency based on current eligibility standards. Increased congestion at neighboring offices appears more important as a channel than higher travel or information costs.

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Bob Sutton @bobsutton.net · 27/02/2025

Question for academics. Is there now agreement on how power impacts selfishness, rudeness, rule-breaking, and such? My past reviews found some researchers argued power brings out the worst in all of us or most of us, And others argued it simply is “disinhibiting” and reveals our true selves.

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