The Power of “Yet”
Three statements: I don’t know how. This isn’t working. There isn’t a way. Three statements, oh so slightly, yet so powerfully different: I don’t know…
Expect Unexpected Opportunity
Truth is, what most call luck is really most often the intersection of opportunity with preparation. Inadequate preparation? Luck goes on to knock at another’s…
A Simple, Easy to Learn Technique that will Impress your Boss
Follow up and follow through. That’s it. It’s not much but few do it and fewer yet do it consistently. Follow-through means to see something to completion,…
Define Your Average as Above Average
When you are average, you are as close to the bottom as you are to the top. There are many things in life that are…
Little Things Make Big Things Happen
The details matter because big success is just the steady accumulation of small wins piled one on top of another. Everything is connected, all is…
Do YOU think YOU are Worthy? And Worthy of What?
As Marianne Williamson famously said: “You playing small doesn’t serve the world.” We are put on this world to be our best selves, to develop to our fullest potential…
Always Look Under the Hood
The literal meaning of “look under the hood” comes from the process of buying a used car and refers to the importance not merely going…
Powerful People Perpetually Prioritize Prioritization
“I don’t have time” is often a soothing self-lie; the hard truth is that it is not a priority: if it were, you’d find the…
Project Management: The Proper Place for Pessimism
While we might not think of it as such, we are all “Project Managers” at some point in our lives. We all have things we…
Expectancy Effect: Make it Your Ally, Not Your Foe
The “Expectancy Effect” is the phenomenon by which folk’s perceptions and behavior change as a result of their or others prior beliefs i.e. expectations. It…
A Leader’s Highest Leverage Point
Yes, a leader must show the way, articulate the vision, light the fire and yet… all that eventually is little use if a leader does…
First Rule of Project Management
Create a Timeline! Far more than just a final deadline, a timeline lays out, in sequential order, a schedule of all the events AND the…
W.W.W.
W.W.W. stands for “Why am I doing this?” “Why now?” “What else could I be doing?” W.W.W is an important acronym to help you prioritize…
A Thought-Provoking Question
A Team Member asked me the other day what they needed to do to get promoted. In the moment, I couldn’t come up with anything…
Beware the Thomas Becket Pitfall
In any organization, there is a natural desire to please one’s boss. In general, a good, even excellent thing. However, when rules are cast aside,…
Two Lies Leaders Should Never Tell Themselves
Lie #1: “I’ve unique stress others don’t so understandable if I…” Even if the first part of the statement is true, the second is definitely…
To Live your Greatest Life, the Most Important Trait is…
Courage. The willingness to enter the cave you fear, to do the hard thing first, now, not later. To step, no, RUN out of your…
Three High Leverage Psychological Skills Happy People Cultivate
A Love of Learning is one of the highest leverage habits one can adopt for it strengthens and supports all other areas of your life.…
Five Different Things Successful People Do that Others Don’t
#1 Successful people are possibility thinkers. They believe in themselves and in others and their ability to make things happen. They do not accept the…
Question: How to get Traction Starting Out?
Recently, The Collier Companies Team Members submitted over 100 “Questions to the Chair” as part of our upcoming Conference of Champions. Here’s one: Q: What’s…
Two Questions Highly Productive People Ask
1. What are the highest value tasks before me? Value is usually more of an emotional call then aught else, especially once beyond the base…
The Remarkable Resource Every Successful Person Cultivates
Imagine: You debut as a starting NFL quarterback and your initial pass is intercepted and returned for a TD. Your next play, you botch a…
Leaders are NOT Problem Solvers
This may be heresy to some traditional thinkers, but the primary role of a leader is NOT to be a problem solver per se but…
How Bad Do You Want It?
At The Collier Companies we have a long tradition of Book Clubs which typically read 3 or 4 books a year. Which is good and…
New Year’s Resolutions are for Novices; Here are Hints for Being a Pro
First and Foremost! Start Small, Build on your wins. Make it hard to quit, build in rest stops, plan for plateaus! i.e. I will play…
Directed Learning Beats Drifting and Dreaming
When I interview folks for a managerial or leadership position, I frequently ask about their preferred learning style. “Hands on” is the most frequent answer.…