Please Scroll Down to See Forums Below 
http://www.csun.edu/~dgw61315/thetwothings.html
The Story of the Two Things
A few years ago, I was chatting with a stranger in a bar. When I told him I was an economist, he said, “Ah. So… what are the Two Things about economics?”
“Huh?” I cleverly replied.
“You know, the Two Things. For every subject, there are really only two things you really need to know. Everything else is the application of those two things, or just not important.”
“Oh,” I said. “Okay, here are the Two Things about economics. One: Incentives matter. Two: There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”
Ever since that evening, I’ve been playing the Two Things game. Whenever I meet someone who belongs to a different profession (i.e., a profession I haven’t played this game with), or who knows something about a subject I'm unfamiliar with, I pose the Two Things question. I also posed the Two Things question on my blog, where it elicited many responses in the comments section and on other blogs. This page is a collection of responses to the "Two Things" question, collected from various pages on the web, with credit given when possible.
The Two Things about the Two Things
1. People love to play the Two Things game, but they rarely agree about what the Two Things are.
2. That goes double for anyone who works with computers.
Business
The Two Things about Accounting:
1. The trial balance must balance.
2. There's a lot of "grey area."
-abdabs
The Two Things about Managerial Accounting
1. The “cost” of any item depends on what you need the information for.
2. Since managerial accounting information is used for decision-making, it should be relevant rather than verifiable.
-Shahid Ansari
The Two Things about Being an Executive Assistant:
1) The boss is always right.
2) The boss is always wrong.
Comment: Any secretarial type will immediately see exactly what I'm talking about
-speedwell
The Two Things about Human Relations:
1. We serve the company's, not the employees', interests.
2. Compliance, compliance, compliance.
-Babylon Sister
The Two Things about Innovation:
1. Innovation is inversely proportional to organizational strength.
2. Organizational strength increases with time.
-Steverino
The Two Things about Project Management:
1. The schedule will slip.
2. It's about how you manage the schedule slippage.
-Nicola O.
The Two Things about Industrial Automation:
1. Electricity
2. Control
-Lori Dee
The Two Things about Non-profits:
1. You have to look like money to get money
2. Everything is mission-critical
-RainCityChick
The Two Things about Quality Assurance Systems:
1. Plan and document what you need to do.
2. Document that you did it.
-Sakti
The Two Things about Trading
1. Buy low.
2. Sell high.
-Anna Trueblood
The Two Things about Investment Management (or Portfolio Management):
1. It is not about returns, it is about following rules
2) If you don't get returns, you will have no assets by which to follow the rules.
-Garth
Micawber's Two Rules of Finance
1. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen six, result happiness.
2. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.
-Nicholas Kronos
The Two Things about Marketing:
1. Know existing customers.
2. Recruit more customers.
-Racehorse
The Two Other Things about Marketing:
1. Find out who is buying your product.
2. Find more buyers like them.
-Racehorse
The Two Things about Marketing:
1. Identify who you are trying to reach (target audience).
2. Don't just reach them, grab them by the balls (market penetration with compelling message).
-winger
The Two Things about Marketing, Redux:
1. Say it clearly.
2. Say it often.
-winger
The Two Things about Advertising:
1. Get people's attention
2. Overwhelm them with charm.
-Milty
The Two Things about Wireless Communications:
1. There is no "added value," only the perception of added value.
2. If it has bells and whistles, and your end-users want it, BUY IT, regardless of whether or not it actually provides coverage where you live, work and play.
-Jim N
The Story of the Two Things
A few years ago, I was chatting with a stranger in a bar. When I told him I was an economist, he said, “Ah. So… what are the Two Things about economics?”
“Huh?” I cleverly replied.
“You know, the Two Things. For every subject, there are really only two things you really need to know. Everything else is the application of those two things, or just not important.”
“Oh,” I said. “Okay, here are the Two Things about economics. One: Incentives matter. Two: There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”
Ever since that evening, I’ve been playing the Two Things game. Whenever I meet someone who belongs to a different profession (i.e., a profession I haven’t played this game with), or who knows something about a subject I'm unfamiliar with, I pose the Two Things question. I also posed the Two Things question on my blog, where it elicited many responses in the comments section and on other blogs. This page is a collection of responses to the "Two Things" question, collected from various pages on the web, with credit given when possible.
The Two Things about the Two Things
1. People love to play the Two Things game, but they rarely agree about what the Two Things are.
2. That goes double for anyone who works with computers.
Business
The Two Things about Accounting:
1. The trial balance must balance.
2. There's a lot of "grey area."
-abdabs
The Two Things about Managerial Accounting
1. The “cost” of any item depends on what you need the information for.
2. Since managerial accounting information is used for decision-making, it should be relevant rather than verifiable.
-Shahid Ansari
The Two Things about Being an Executive Assistant:
1) The boss is always right.
2) The boss is always wrong.
Comment: Any secretarial type will immediately see exactly what I'm talking about
-speedwell
The Two Things about Human Relations:
1. We serve the company's, not the employees', interests.
2. Compliance, compliance, compliance.
-Babylon Sister
The Two Things about Innovation:
1. Innovation is inversely proportional to organizational strength.
2. Organizational strength increases with time.
-Steverino
The Two Things about Project Management:
1. The schedule will slip.
2. It's about how you manage the schedule slippage.
-Nicola O.
The Two Things about Industrial Automation:
1. Electricity
2. Control
-Lori Dee
The Two Things about Non-profits:
1. You have to look like money to get money
2. Everything is mission-critical
-RainCityChick
The Two Things about Quality Assurance Systems:
1. Plan and document what you need to do.
2. Document that you did it.
-Sakti
The Two Things about Trading
1. Buy low.
2. Sell high.
-Anna Trueblood
The Two Things about Investment Management (or Portfolio Management):
1. It is not about returns, it is about following rules
2) If you don't get returns, you will have no assets by which to follow the rules.
-Garth
Micawber's Two Rules of Finance
1. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen six, result happiness.
2. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.
-Nicholas Kronos
The Two Things about Marketing:
1. Know existing customers.
2. Recruit more customers.
-Racehorse
The Two Other Things about Marketing:
1. Find out who is buying your product.
2. Find more buyers like them.
-Racehorse
The Two Things about Marketing:
1. Identify who you are trying to reach (target audience).
2. Don't just reach them, grab them by the balls (market penetration with compelling message).
-winger
The Two Things about Marketing, Redux:
1. Say it clearly.
2. Say it often.
-winger
The Two Things about Advertising:
1. Get people's attention
2. Overwhelm them with charm.
-Milty
The Two Things about Wireless Communications:
1. There is no "added value," only the perception of added value.
2. If it has bells and whistles, and your end-users want it, BUY IT, regardless of whether or not it actually provides coverage where you live, work and play.
-Jim N
