Bad gets worse when you try to ignore it
While it may be appropriate to be deliberate in your approach, to observe or monitor a problem for a while, one should rarely, if ever,…
Details Create Success
“I believe in the basics: Attention to and perfection of, tiny details that might be commonly over-looked. They may seem trivial, even laughable, but they…
Many a False Step Is Made by Standing Still
Even when you are on the right track you’ll get run over if you just sit there. Doing nothing (aka Decision by Indecision) is still…
You Can’t Hide You
Just like you cannot not communicate, you can’t hide you either. Your daily behavior teaches your values; every action reveals the belief system that motivates…
Hard Work Alone is Never Enough
Much has been made of the theory that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to master a skill. The idea was popularized by Malcolm Gladwell…
Learned Helplessness, Learned Effectiveness
Learned Helplessness is a mental belief that you are unable change a situation and a resulting unwillingness to continue trying; a sense of powerlessness that…
Dreams are Easy
Anyone can have a dream and anyone can daydream their life away. But are you willing to commit to a viable action plan to make…
You Will NEVER Get it ALL Done
Face it, Live with it, Deal with it: You will never get it ALL done. And if you think you have, it’s an illusion. And…
How Strong is a Chain with a Broken Link?
Q: How strong is a chain with a broken link? A: Not strong at all. The same holds true in large measure for any service…
Train It, Trust It
“Train it, then trust it” is a mantra for athletes about releasing worries in the moment of performance and having faith in the depth of…
Who is in Control?
What (or who?) runs your life? Where do you think the locus of control lies? Folks divide up into those that believe the locus of…
Leaders that Don’t
To be effective, a leader must be comfortable being in charge, at ease with being in command. They must give direction with the calm confidence…
Something Stands in the Way
There is always something in the way of anything meaningful, anything of significance you wish to be or accomplish. If there weren’t, you’d already have…
Effective Caring
As emotionally evolved humans, we all want a better world so at one level we care about many things, most beyond our ability to impact…
How Strong is a Chain with a Broken Link?
“How Strong is a Chain with a Broken Link?” is a rhetorical question if ever there was one: a broken link = a broken chain.…
Playing the Insurance Game
In the context of business, what I call ‘”Playing the Insurance Game” is when someone, particularly one in a position of responsibility or authority, does…
THE CYCLE OF INQUIRY
“There is very little difference between people but that little difference makes a big difference.” – W. Clement Stone One little difference that makes a big…
The Power of Upstream Thinking
You are walking by the side of a river when you hear screams of distress: a child is drowning. You plunge into the water and…
Caging Your “What If Monkey”
“What If Monkeys” are always asking “What if it doesn’t work?” And while there is certainly a need to evaluate risks and have plans to…
Making the Leap: From Supervisor to Advisor
The common fallacy, usually unspoken but scrupulously adhered to nonetheless, is that someone is made a supervisor because of their “super” vision i.e. superior talents.…
How to Build a Ship
“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work and give orders. Instead, teach them to…
The Five Deadly Traps of Mediocrity
Mediocre performers: Sap managers’ energy so they have less time for top performers Reduce quality of group discussions, lowering teams overall IQ Force others to…
The Big Secret Theory of Life
Many subscribe to some version of the “Big Secret” theory of life. The big secret theory is that there are short cuts, bags of tricks,…
Three Questions That Determine the Success of Your Pitch (And That Your Boss May Not Realize They Are Asking Themselves)
Quite frankly, ideas are a dime a dozen, even good ideas. It’s in the EXECUTION that most ideas succeed or fail. And odds are that…
Bitter or Better? Which Do You Chose?
Life happens. Good things, bad things. Sometimes we are dealt a good hand, sometimes a bad hand. Most everyone reading this blog has won what…
Riding the J-Curve of Accountability
Change is often more valued in the abstract than in reality; as the saying goes “Change is good, you go first.” Change, even in the…