Plan
Empty Your Mind
I don’t know about you, but sometimes I have a lot on my mind. If I’m not careful, then pending deadlines, pressing issues, personal commitments, and my grocery list will take up simultaneous residence in my grey matter. When this happens, their good friends, anxiety and distraction, aren’t far behind. I recently had the…
Read MoreRelationships Matter
Last week, I had the opportunity to visit with Doug Parker, Chairman of American Airlines. Our conversation occurred only days after he finished a nine-year sting as CEO of the airline. It was a great discussion filled with numerous lessons. I took lots of notes. The next day, I sat down to review what Doug…
Read MoreChef or Ingredients? How to Scale, Systematize, and Sustain Success
In a recent conversation with Ken Natori, President of The Natori Company, I gained a valuable insight. We were discussing growing and scaling a business when Ken shared an analogy. He said, “success can come from a chef or the ingredients.” The analogy is a helpful way to consider an entity’s success. Allow me to…
Read MoreUnleash Your TEAM
About a month ago, my teammates and I were discussing a project to develop a new leadership offering. The project was important, but I felt that we needed to wait until Q3 to start the effort and that we would likely need to hire a contractor to complete the development work. I also assumed that…
Read MoreFrom Breakthrough to Boring
I recently had a conversation with a renewable energy entrepreneur about the challenge of bringing new ideas to market. Experience taught him that when his team innovates a unique solution, the key to successful user adoption is to take the offering from breakthrough to boring as quickly as possible. His point was that if the…
Read MoreRight Standards for the Right Reasons
I was out for a walk the other day and I came across a scooter on the sidewalk. It was a rental scooter that a user can access via a smartphone app, ride around town, and then leave behind for someone else to rent. The last renter had finished using the scooter and decided to…
Read MorePosition Yourself for Success
We all fulfill several positions in our lives. I am a business owner, a professor, a father, a husband, a dog owner, an author, a speaker. You may be an accountant, a sister, and a choir director. Throughout the year, we can take on a new position without fully understanding performance expectations or examining the…
Read More7 Sources of Problems
When I sat down to write this article, my mind was filled with the news of the day. The headlines tell us that we are collectively facing a great number of problems: COVID-19, a struggling economy, divisiveness at every turn, geopolitical instability, the list goes on and on. Beyond the national and international issues, I…
Read MoreLevel-up Your Leadership
Have you ever watched a home remodeling show where a dilapidated house is stripped down to the studs and turned into a spectacular home? I’m always amazed by the before and after comparison shots. The contractor manages to turn a cramped bedroom into a luxurious sleeping space and an oddly configured living room into a…
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