So Fast Company (which is up for sale if you want a once great publication) is chatting about Tom Peters whom I mentioned recently… look at this sidebar as a teaser and then check out the full article…

Sidebar: The Peters Principles

A sampling of some of the most important themes covered in Tom Peters’s new book, Re-imagine!

Destroy to Create

Forget about Built to Last. All companies, Peters says, are doomed to failure. Better to completely destroy your own company from the inside and remake it in a new, bold and creative way than fight old battles with old ideas — and eventually fade away into irrelevance.

Women Roar

They are the most important group in our economy. They spend and make most of the money. They make the key financial decisions. And yet they are talked down to, never designed for, not consulted, fundamentally ignored. The New Economy runs on the principles that women are used to — collaboration rather than command and control, for one — and until men realize that and change their approach, they are doomed to failure.

It’s an XF (Cross-functional) World

Nothing works without honest and open communication between decision makers. So you can be as idealistic and as big picture as you like, but you won’t get anywhere without the human element. Peters says it’s best to embrace the politics and demolish the red tape. Only then can you move on to the greater objectives of changing your company.

Power Dreaming
Successful companies such as Harley-Davidson and Starbucks work because they sell a lifestyle or an image rather than simply a product. For Harley, it’s the experience of the rebel; for Starbucks, it’s a place of refuge. Successful companies must offer a “scintillating experience” in order to set themselves apart in an environment where most competitors already provide a decent product.

Think Weird

The only way to effect true transformation in the workplace, says Peters, is to enlist the outliers in your organization to join your cause. Find the weirdos and the freaks, offer support for the projects they’re secretly pursuing, then get them to help you with your own revolutionary change ideas.

Design, the ultimate edge

In the world of Tom Peters, design is so critical that it should be on the agenda (along with a professional designer) of every meeting in every single department. Design, like lifestyle, is one of the few differentiating factors, and companies that ignore the power of elegant and functional design will lose.