Jet Blue Founder, David Neeleman, said this on Guy Raz’s How I Built This podcast. I’ve been thinking about it ever since. First, if you’re not listening to Guy Raz’s How I Built This podcast, you should be. Every episode features a long-format interview with the founder of a successful business. Guy does a great…
If you’re my age, you might remember when the song was first released by B.J. Thomas in 1969 or covered by Blue Suede in 1974. Or your first exposure to the song might have been when it was part of Chris Pratt’s mixtape in Guardians of the Galaxy. Either way, it’s a classic. And it has…
“If you chase two rabbits, both will escape.” A sign with this Chinese proverb hung on my office wall for a long time. A reminder of the penalty for a lack of focus. However, I’ve built my consulting practice around the need for eight essential disciplines – Build a Healthy Culture Hire, Keep, and…
It was simultaneously the best and worst feedback I ever received. I was in my late 20’s and was offered a job interview by a friend from church. Suffice it to say his coworkers who interviewed me were not impressed. I was rising through the ranks in my corporate job, but like lots of 20-somethings,…
The movie, not the annual event in Punxsutawney, PA. Most of you have seen the 1993 movie starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell. I asked AI to summarize it. A cynical TV weatherman, Phil Connors, finds himself trapped in a time loop, reliving Groundhog Day endlessly in Punxsutawney, PA. Slowly, repeated failure and despair force…
Decades ago, my boss told me this as a compliment. When I did research for this post, I found out the phrase is also pregnant with political meaning. As part of Mussolini’s rise to power, he took control of Italy’s large-scale public works projects which included rebuilding the railroads after WW1. As Prime Minister, he…
Actually, I’m re-gifting a valuable insight from former Intel CEO Andy Grove and, in reality, it’s more of a gift for you. In his book, High Output Management, Grove discusses at length Task Relevant Maturity. Understanding it well and applying it successfully can drastically improve outputs and can free you from the polar opposites of…
What can you and I learn about ourselves and our organizations from a 20th century French writer? I have to admit, I’ve never read one of Anaïs Nin’s books – her genre isn’t my thing. But since the first time I read this quote many years ago, I’ve thought about it hundreds of times and…
Most business leaders are looking for three things in the fourth quarter – a strong finish to the year (in some industries, this might be your best quarter), solid preparation for a fast start to next year, and some quick wins to keep your team engaged, growing, and productive. How about a quick win activity…
Thanks for inviting me. While you’re enjoying the Photoshop version of me awkwardly crashing your staff meeting, I hope you’ll carefully ponder your answers to the questions. For all of these, I’d want to go around the table and hear from you and your leadership team. What are you working on right now that has…