The future belongs to those who show up

What were some of the key messages during your childhood years? When I was growing up my father wanted me to “be a man” first and “a gentleman” second. Not much guidance beyond those key points. “Being a man” was largely defined through his WWII United States Marine Corps lenses (a toned-down version of Gunnery [...]

By |2021-01-19T09:45:43-04:00July 26th, 2016|Life, Things I Believe|0 Comments

Business models matter

"There was a time not so long ago when giants roamed the countryside. Enormous smoke-belching, fire-breathing giants that roared like rolling thunder as they tore through the night, stitching the nation together with shining ribands of steel. We called these monsters trains. Few who have heard the whistle of a speeding train in the night [...]

Change begins with inquiry

My friend and colleague, Jim Kranzusch, is a chimp. I'm pretty sure he's always been a chimp. He has even turned "chimp" into a verb ("I chimped him."). Jim has a track record of being an effective manager, a natural leader, and a wise counselor - all due in no small part to the fact that [...]

The best story wins

Monty Roberts is a horse whisperer. He is one of a few horse trainers that use specific methods to start horses rather than break them. Roberts notes that the “secret” to his process is clear and in the open for any and all to see: horses have their own ways of communicating, el lenguaje del [...]

By |2021-01-19T09:46:12-04:00October 11th, 2010|Communication, Competence, Leadership, Things I Believe|0 Comments

Speak as if you’re right; listen as if you’re wrong

Do you ever feel like you're arguing with idiots? Most of them actually aren't (idiots). Some probably are. For those, remember, "It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument." (Wm. G. MacAdoo) In most business and professional discourse someone has to be the grown up and it might as well be you. Here's [...]

The really important things in life are simple, just not easy.

To say that I was an eager first time father would have been a great understatement of the facts. I was excited. Scared. Thrilled. Uncertain. Confident. Expectant (in a somewhat different way than my wife). The main thing I wanted was to be prepared; I'd never been a father before and I didn't want to [...]

By |2021-01-19T09:46:14-04:00August 28th, 2010|Competence, Things I Believe, Thinking Differently|0 Comments

Why we do things is more important than what we do

"Anything you can do I can do better; I can do anything better than you." is one of the most memorable lines from the song Anything You Can Do which was composed by Irving Berlin for the 1946 Broadway musical, Annie Get Your Gun. The song is a spirited duet, with one male singer and [...]

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