John Dewey

Choose Momentum Over Applause: Dewey’s Pragmatic Call

Yet chasing applause can distort incentives. Goodhart’s Law (1975) warns that when a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure. Public approval often rewards spectacle, not substance, tempting teams to optimize for clicks, awards, or headlines. Eric Ries’s The Lean Startup (2011) names these vanity metrics—numbers that rise without improving the engine of learning. To stay aligned with results, organizations can neutralize applause by privileging testable hypotheses and actionable metrics. When success criteria are tied to behavior and outcomes—retention, error rates, time to insight—performative work loses oxygen. In this way, we preserve morale without sacrificing momentum, keeping attention on signals that genuinely predict improvement. [...]

We Do Not Learn from Experience... We Learn from Reflecting on Experience — John Dewey

Reflection encourages critical thinking, helping individuals derive lessons and meaning from their actions. [...]

To Be Able to Ask a Question Clearly Is Two-Thirds of the Way to Getting It Answered - John Dewey

A well-phrased question helps streamline the problem-solving process, enabling quicker and more effective solutions by directing attention to the core issue. [...]

To Know What You Can Now Do, Is to Know What You Should Do – John Dewey

This quote suggests that understanding our capabilities comes with a sense of responsibility. Once we recognize what we are capable of, we should take action accordingly. [...]

Consider the Rights and Feelings of Others - John Dewey

The message encourages thoughtful decision-making in conflicts. By considering others' perspectives and emotions, it offers a path to resolving disputes in a way that prioritizes cooperation over confrontation. [...]

Acting on a Belief Often Leads to Discovery - John Dewey

This quote emphasizes that taking action based on one's beliefs can lead to new understanding or knowledge. Learning often comes not from theory alone, but from real-world experiences and activities. [...]

The More I Read, the More I Meditate, and the More I Acquire - John Dewey

John Dewey expresses that learning becomes a virtuous cycle. The more knowledge one gains through reading and reflection, the more one’s capacity for continued thinking, analyzing, and learning increases. [...]