A placebo is a medical treatment that doesn’t contain any kind of medicine. In fact, it contains no active ingredients at all. But in many cases, placebos can have a therapeutic and sometimes dramatic effect.Doctors would give placebos to patients that had little else to offer or seemed to have nothing wrong with them. They might give a patient a tincture of sugar water, or a pill filled with nothing but sugar, hoping that the patient’s belief in the medicine or trust in the physician would help relieve the symptoms.

The Placebo

To determine if a new drug is more effective than no therapy at all, researchers must account for the placebo effect. Simply receiving medicine is likely to influence some patients. This suggests when testing a drug, a response does not necessarily mean the medicine is superior to doing nothing.

Nothing Is Better Than Something

Today’s “gold standard” of drug testing is the double-blind, randomized controlled trial (RCT). In an RCT, some of the patients receive the actual drug; others receive a placebo. Neither the researchers nor the patients know who gets the drug and who gets the placebo, hence the “double-blind.” Experts won’t approve a drug if it is not more effective than a placebo.

The Double-Blind Test

Researchers have observed placebos producing changes in blood pressure and heart rate, as well as relieving pain, depression, anxiety and irritable bowel syndrome. Sham injections seem to work better than sham pills, large pills work better than small ones, and two pills are better than one.  In one study, a surgeon gave patients a sham knee surgery, where the surgeon made an incision, but did nothing to the knee before sewing it back up. The patients were just as likely to find relief as those who underwent the procedure.

Sham Injections, Sham Pills And Sham Surgeries

It’s still a mystery how the placebo effect works. Some say it’s a matter of expectations. Some think it’s <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780123750006000902">classical conditioning</a> at work. We’re conditioned to feel better after taking medicine, so we do. The placebo effect on pain could be activating natural opioids in the brain as a response to the relationship between the physician and patient.

Why The Placebo Effect Works

But one thing is not a mystery. For all the good a placebo might do, lying to patients is not ethical. In clinical trials, the participants know that they may be in the group that gets a placebo. However, experts could take advantage of the placebo effect without fraud — pious or otherwise. One of the most intriguing things about placebos is that they can work even when patients know they’re getting a placebo.

The Ethics Of Placebo

If your doctor gave you a pill that contained nothing but starch and water, yet your headache got better, you’ve experienced the placebo effect.

Stashed ideas

The Placebo Effect: A Mystery in Potential Therapy

Trees have enchantment and self-clarification to artists. “The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing which stands in the way,” wrote William Blake.

The artist and trees

In a 1924 lecture about the creative process, German artist Paul Klee has insightfully intersected the canon of sylvan metaphors with the canon of theories of creativity.
"The artist has studied this world of variety and has, we may suppose, unobtrusively found his way in it. His sense of direction has brought order into the passing stream of image and experience. This sense of direction in nature and life, this branching and spreading array, I shall compare with the root of the tree.
From the root the sap flows to the artist, flows through him, flows to his eye."

Paul Klee likens the artist to a tree

Klee cautions that It is rather the work of transmutation for which the artist is both the agent and the vessel: "Nobody would affirm that the tree grows its crown in the image of its root. Between above and below can be no mirrored reflection. It is obvious that different functions expanding in different elements must produce divergences.[...] And yet, standing at his appointed place, the trunk of the tree, he does nothing other than gather and pass on what comes to him from the depths. He neither serves nor rules — he transmits."

The work of art is not a direct translation of the subconscious

How an Artist is Like a Tree: Paul Klee on Creativity

When projects are green-lighted, one of the most important things to do is to hold a kickoff meetingThe aim of the meeting is to:<ul><li> Cover the main contractual parts of the project and ensure understanding from both sides and alignment on how the project will be executed.</li><li>Cover the project procedures to be followed during execution.</li></ul>

The Importance Of A KickOff Meeting

Projects can have so many documents and procedures to consider that it is really easy to get lost in the sea of paper.The project manager needs to read ALL of the documents so that he/she can properly delegate tasks as needed as well as identify any areas that may compromise the team's ability to execute.

Clarify Any Points In The Project Documentation Received From The Customer

During the kickoff meeting, these procedures, rules of conduct, and communication methods need to be clearly addressed so that the teams know the course of action in case of a conflict or contractual dispute.

Establish Rules Of Engagement For Both Sides, Including The Third-Party Providers

When project documentation is analyzed, priorities have generally not been set and they can also evolve over time. For this reason, it is a good practice to ask if any priorities have been set by the time of the kickoff meeting and also include the expected impacts on the agreed-upon baseline schedule.

Identify And Address Project Priorities As Well As The Main Risks

Change is always disruptive and causes unwelcomed re-work for all those involved in the process.If both parties take a reasonable approach to this process, then the Management of Change (MOC) process can be streamlined so that neither side change orders the other side to death.

Define And Streamline The Management Of Change (MOC) Process

Kickoff meetings can last several days or even weeks, depending on the number of stakeholders, sites, and time zones to consider.Once the meeting(s) wrap up, the project manager needs to issue the Minutes of Meeting (MOM) to cover all of the points addressed during the meeting, while being sure to list ALL of the people who participated.

The Bottom Line

When projects are green-lighted, one of THE most important things to do is to hold a kickoff meeting.Higher overall project success and, more importantly, improvements to the bottom line are among the many benefits of holding an effective kickoff meeting.

6 Reasons Why You Need To Have A Project Kickoff Meeting

Everyone has opportunities to take the wheel at work. In fact, it might help to think of your business as an entire fleet of vehicles. Every time a team member serves as the lead on a project or proposes an idea for your consideration, they are in the driver's seat. When team members advocate for themselves or the team, they've got their hands securely on the wheel.
The more often your team has the opportunity to take responsibility and ownership for their performance, the more committed they become to you, the project, and each other.

You Team On The Drivers Seat

As a leader, you are used to being in the driver's seat -- and you may think that you have to be there at all times. But the truth is that you can't be in the driver's seat all the time. It simply isn't sustainable. 
If you never teach other people how to drive, who will take the wheel when you go on vacation or get sick? Will they even think to step up, offer new ideas, or take initiative if they never see an opening or are invited to do so?

Meet Each Member Where They Are

To determine the best way to engage your team in their work and entrust them with greater responsibility, you first have to know where they're sitting.In the workplace, the people in the driver's seat are the ones who take full responsibility for themselves, their actions, and the well-being of the team. They are self-aware and understand their internal landscape and how their emotions, coping skills, and behaviour impact others. They have a vision, are mindful of the environment in the workplace, and are tuned in to their colleagues' states of mind.

The One Sitting In The Drivers Seat

In the workplace, the people in the passenger's seat take full responsibility for themselves and their actions, and they share responsibility for the team's well-being. Like drivers, they are more self-aware than most people; they understand how they function best and the impact of their behavior on others. 
Passengers tune in to the driver and take an overhead view of the situation, but they also play well with others and are mindful of the group's purpose and performance. They are usually good at communicating with team members but may not be as comfortable talking with the driver.

The Passengers

Many backseaters will also spend time in the front seat, but once they complete their work, they can sit back and enjoy the view. 
In the workplace, the people in the backseat generally fall into one of three categories: respite seekers, coasters, and backseat drivers.

The Backseat

Respite seekers are comfortable sitting in the front seat, and they can jump up front when needed. They have proven leadership skills, communicate well with others, and are able to prioritize their well-being.
They probably won't stay in the back seat for long, but while they are, they can rest easy knowing that the people in the front seat have everything under control.

Respite Seekers

Coasters are often hyper-aware of their surroundings and want to avoid making waves or drawing attention to themselves. They are often very tuned in to their colleagues but don't always know how to communicate their needs and desires. 
Although generally competent at their job, they sometimes lack confidence or motivation. Encourage them to observe the people in the front and how they work together to achieve their goals.

The Coasters

Backseat drivers take little responsibility for themselves and their actions. They either aren't aware of how their behavior impacts others, or they simply don't care. They can also be critical of those in the front seat instead of productively communicating their needs and frustrations. 
Some backseat drivers are bored or frustrated and have cause to feel undervalued and unappreciated. Others never committed themselves to their work, the team or the company and are unlikely to do so now.

The Backseat Drivers

In a high-performing team, every member spends most of their time in the driver's seat or the front passenger seat with shorter periods in the back seat. To help your team get into the front seat and stay there, you need to foster a culture of open and honest communication.
It starts by committing to your team and turning towards each member so you can help them advance in their careers and become more and more valuable to the organization.

Open Communication

You have to meet each person where they are and give them opportunities to grow

Do You Want to Build a High-Performing Team? Put Them In the Driver’s Seat

Cross-functional teams are made up of people from different functional areas within a company. These teams can take many forms but they're designed to be working groups that improve coordination and integration, span organizational boundaries, and reduce the prodution cycle time in new product development. Bringing people together from different disciplines can improve problem solving and lead to more thorough decision making.

Cross-Functional Teams

<ul><li>Cross-functional collaborations bring out fresh perspectives</li><li>There is adequate communication between each team member and those who have certain questions about something that is unfamiliar to them they can easily reach the person with experience in said topic</li><li>Cross-functional teams also hone management skills because in order to work with divere backgrounds and work styles they must develop special skill sets to effectively collaborate and/or lead.</li><li>Cross-functional teams will know the strengths of other teams and understand each others' efforts.</li></ul>

Benefits of having a Cross-Functional Team

This workshop is where we can look for key stakeholders that we can place in a room together for the specific purpose of ideating and defining the project objectives, requirements, and expected outcome. Whilst the benefits of cross functional discovery workshops are clear, there's also a downside that includes: limitation in imagination of product and design and the fear of prospect building will arise most especially when it's seemingly complex.

Cross-Functional Standups and Discovery Workshops

Cross functional teams are a modern take on what has always been at the heart of successful, productive companies; groups of people working together to achieve shared outcomes. However, if executed badly, these teams can feel like a pressure timebomb. In order to execute it properly you must:<ul><li>Find the right balance of skillset</li><li>Have proper goal setting</li><li>Have durable support systems</li></ul>

Implementing Cross-Functional Teams

How to Make Cross Functional Teams Work - Department of Product

Turning from negative behaviour at work may mean that people will not automatically see you as changed. Instead, they may continue to interpret your behaviour through a certain box they've put you in. As a result, they may be cautious about offering higher-profile projects or leadership opportunities, as the stakes may feel too high. 
Speak candidly to your manager about your changed behaviour and see if you can get more opportunities, but moving on might be the only way to really start over.

An opportunity to reset a bad reputation

Career

‘Can I Recover From a Bad Reputation at Work?’

"Async first does not mean async-only."

<ol>
<li>Building bonds - creating a sense of community is way easier to do when you can hear your new team members' voices, their tone, facial expressions, and build upon the connection.</li>
<li>Timely decision-making - Async communication is slower by definition so during emergency situations it's crucial to be on call with relevant parties.</li>
<li>When you need to discuss very detailed or complex topics with your team.</li>
<li>Discussions that involve emotions.</li>
</ol>

Irreplaceable Meetings

Don't hold meetings that leave out important participants!
If not everyone who is essential to the meeting will be unable to attend then turn the meeting into a detailed written communication that allows everyone to participate instead.

Important meetings

<ul>
<li>Feedbacks that are well thought of and articulated clearly are extremely helpful.</li>
<li>Reviews that are async allow team members to provide approval outside of meetings will avoid having groupthink -- the phenomenon where the group's desire for consensus hinders open debate or voicing of the opposition.</li>
<li>We are able to truly gather our thoughts and provide honest assessments outside of a time-pressured meeting.</li>
</ul>

Reviews, feedback requests, and approvals

Once a project has been started, you can actually still get a lot of things done even when apart. Work can happen effectively without the need of huddling the team up as long as you all have well-written and well-organized communication with each other.Tip: Create an easily searchable thread for the problems that your team encounters and needs solving, and tag the people involved.Ad hoc conversations in group chats only leave jumbled information or get hidden in email chains.

Moving Work Forward

Put everything you need in a written format - doing so clarifies everyone's scope, timelines, and responsibilities.If there are more than a handful of things to work through or work schedules to align and the many unknown scopes of the project, a meeting should be held. But, do not forget to transfer outcomes into writing so that everyone stays on the same page.

Kickoffs and Planning Meetings

Traditional brainstorming meetings don't work because of the time crunch and the pressure it places on everyone involved.Often, we get a few good ideas here and there but it's not an inclusive practice at all.Async brainstorming needs more than an hour - which could last for days or at most two weeks in order to produce well-thought-out outcomes.

Brainstorming Meetings

These can be done without needing to gather everyone. You can keep everyone updated through a well-written, detailed, check-in post.

Status Updates

It's inefficient to have all your team members to sit through a meeting where most of the topics don't involve everyone directly.Announcements should be made available to everyone instead and let them peruse it on their own time. The information that will be shared should be well-designed that is easily readable which can be skimmed for big-picture takeaways or scrutinized for the nitty-gritty details.

Announcements

Here's how to get rid of meetings you don't need with email or Twist—and which meetings you should keep on the calendar.

The 7 Types of Meetings That Should Always Be Async (and 4 That Shouldn't)

A technological transformation has been happening around the world for a few decades. Automation can potentially benefit us in highly innovative ways (like curing rare diseases, fixing global warming) but large companies have a different motivation for using technology: replacing workers.
The promised innovation and transformation of the businesses is still a pipedream and companies are simply trying to do the work more efficiently with fewer human resources.

The Age Of Automation

Just like things weren’t smooth during the industrial revolution, the ongoing AI (Artificial Intelligence) revolution is also breaking a lot of eggs.
AI isn’t just replacing manual labour, but is also rapidly replacing repetitive cognitive labour, which are high-value jobs usually done by people with decent salaries and respectable profiles. The result is that old jobs are disappearing faster than new jobs are being created.

AI Revolution: Disappearing Jobs

Algorithms aren’t just for recommendation engines on Youtube but are nowadays used to determine many government and private job vacancies, marketing campaigns, public housing and benefits eligibility.
These algorithms are highly-priced and kept in the vault by companies. They are the new ‘secret recipes’ and no one knows how they work, as they don't have any accountability.

Algorithms Rule With No Accountability

Throughout history, man has been programmed at school or in college to become more like a machine, in order to work efficiently. We are teaching our kids to learn computer science, to do engineering, to become productive, or to optimize their lives in the most efficient manner. It is almost as if we are being programmed to be like an android.
We should have been teaching them to be more humans, not machines.

Being Human Not Machines

The following profiles are safe from A.I. and automation:
<ol>
<li>Surprising Work: The kind of work that involves complex rules, unexpected variables and changing environments.</li>
<li>Social Jobs: Jobs that involve making people feel things like healthcare workers, nursing therapists, social workers would be safe. It should have a level of emotional connect to qualify as a social job.</li>
<li>Scarce Work: Work involving high-stake situations, a rare combination of skill sets, or super expertise would not be touched by automation/AI. Example: 911 can be easily operated by computers, but that work is still done by people, as one expects to talk to a person to help them with their emergency.</li>
</ol>

Futureproof Categories Of Work

New York Times tech columnist Kevin Roose says we've been approaching automation all wrong. "We should be teaching people ... to be more like humans, to do the things that machines can't do," he says.

The Age Of Automation Is Now: Here's How To 'Futureproof' Yourself

The argument is that while remote employees may be more personally productive, the team creativity and innovation suffer. People really need spontaneous interactions at the water cooler or break room or at happy hours to foster serendipity that drives innovation.
People who support the Office-Serendipity Theory of Innovation like to cite Jobs' views to support the idea that "most people should work in an office." But the theory suffers from anecdotal evidence of chance office encounters.

Argument against remote work

Leaders who say remote teams can't be innovative fail to see the potential problem as a starting point for innovation. 
Logic also would suggest that early adopters of remote work are indeed more likely to be innovative and open to new ideas and ways of working.

Arguments for remote work

<ul>
<li>One research-backed argument favouring co-located teams is that teams are more collaboratively efficient and solve problems faster.</li>
<li>An article covering IBM's move to shutter their remote workforce in 2017 states that business today is more like a series of emergencies that needs to be diagnosed and then receive a quick-and-dirty solution, get feedback, course-correct, and repeat. But a team in constant reactive mode is neither productive nor innovative.</li>
<li>Instead of optimizing for workforces that respond to emergencies, companies should be optimizing for workforces that limit emergencies.</li>
</ul>

Research in favour of in-office collaboration

The kind of asynchronous communication embraced by many remote-first teams allows for more thought-out responses, fewer interruptions, and more focused work.
But when emergencies happen, remote teams need systems and protocols in place to handle them efficiently. Even here, remote teams are often still better as they always have people awake during working hours to deal with problems.

The advantage of slower problem-solving of remote teams

Remote work opens companies up to a literal world of new talent - people from other towns, states, countries, and continents.
Research shows that groups representing a diversity of race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation, bring unique information and experiences to bear and are consequently more innovative.

Diversity of perspectives

In 2012, Google found that psychological safety was the most important to making a team succeed, not the smartest teams or the ones who socialized outside the office. Psychological safety is a shared belief that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking. The team will not embarrass, reject or punish someone for speaking up.
Remote-first teams embrace values of trust and transparency out of necessity. Trust and transparency make people feel respected, valued, and safe to voice dissenting opinions. Teammates can read of people challenging ideas and presenting new viewpoints and having their perspective acknowledged. It gives them the confidence to do the same.

Psychological safety

<ul>
<li>Some of the most innovative software projects are open-source, developed remotely and asynchronously, such as the Linux kernel. As of 2017, roughly 15,600 developers from all over the world had contributed to the kernel. </li>
<li>In 1962, "Freelance Programmers" was founded. The work-from-home contract programming company was instrumental in helping develop software standards, management control protocols, and other standards that were eventually adopted by NATO. </li>
<li>Automatic, the company behind WordPress, is fully distributed with 1,335 employees in 77 countries speaking 99 different languages. </li>
<li>Remote-first companies GitLab and Zapier are currently valued at US$6 billion and US$4 billion with 1,289 and 350 employees, respectively.</li>
</ul>

Examples of remote innovation

Remote work isn't perfect and won't be a good fit for everyone. It can be lonely and feel awkward connecting with new coworkers. With an emphasis on results over time spent working, remote workers also tend to work longer hours. Remote workers can consist of diverse or uniform teams, positive or toxic cultures, innovative or stagnant remote teams.
Remote teams need to be proactive in creating opportunities for people to get to know one another. They need to help employees craft their workdays to fit their needs.

Remote teams are not utopia

Remote work critics argue there's no replacing the serendipity of the office when it comes to team creativity. Are they right? Here's what the research says:

Can Remote Teams Be Innovative?

We don't get to pick our coworkers. Sometimes we end up with a coworker we don't like.
While you can find ways to avoid them, it doesn't solve your problem. If you want to grow and move forward, you have to find a way to work with them.

Working with a co-worker you don't like

There are moments you want to run away, but they are often the moments when you should stay and work through the situation. They are your growth moments.
Those who can figure out how to work with difficult people are the ones people want to be around. When you are liked, you gain influence.

Growth moments: What you gain by not avoiding problems

Is it them, or is it me? The hardest part to accept is that it is both of you. 
We tend to blame out flaws on external factors, yet we blame other people's flaws on their character. If you're late for work, you can claim heavy traffic. If they're late, you think they're lazy. This is the time to remember that it's not necessarily their character; it might be something about the environment.

Just because you don't like a person doesn't mean nobody does

You can't change other people, but you can control your response to them.
Every situation mirrors your emotional state. If you are intolerant by someone's behaviour, then their behaviour shows you that you have anger and intolerance inside. Instead of thinking "You're doing this to me!", think, "Why am I reacting this way?"

You can only change yourself

We tend to judge ourselves first, then base our judgments of others on our own self-judgments. That makes it highly likely that whatever bothers you about your coworker you will find in yourself.
If you find someone intolerable, pinpoint the specific traits that bother you. See if there's a speck of those traits in yourself.

We judge others how we judge ourselves

Be upfront about it. You might want to try saying, "We're not getting along that great, what can we do? Let's try to figure out what's getting in our way." See if you can find a pattern. Are there topics or problems that trigger you both? 
See if they'll meet you halfway. In the end, it's about how you can fix this together. If the other person is not willing, let it be. You know that you made an effort.

If you both don't like each other...

There is potential value in considering another's point of view. It is an opportunity to practice empathy.
Every relationship takes work. Spouses get on each other's nerves, and friends annoy each other. But with these relationships, you mostly give the other person the benefit of the doubt. Next time, ask yourself what about this experience can help you grow. It forces you to look for the positive in a negative situation.

An empathy opportunity

You can find a million ways to avoid someone, but this doesn’t solve your problem. If you want to evolve and move forward you have to find a way to work with them.

The Placebo Effect: A Mystery in Potential Therapy

How an Artist is Like a Tree: Paul Klee on Creativity

6 Reasons Why You Need To Have A Project Kickoff Meeting

Do You Want to Build a High-Performing Team? Put Them In the Driver’s Seat

How to Make Cross Functional Teams Work - Department of Product

Jackson E.