Recently, I read a famous story told by James Clear: “By 1918, Charles M. Schwab was one of the richest men in the world. Schwab was the president of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation, the largest shipbuilder and the second-largest steel producer in America at the time. The famous inventor Thomas Edison once referred to Schwab as the ‘master hustler.’ He was constantly seeking an edge over (Continue)
Personal Development
Life Was Good and Then Everything Changed
The year was 1973, and life was good: I had just graduated with honors from our local state university after only three years at the age of 20. I had just concluded serving as the President of Student Government (PSG) at a university of over 4,000 students. By the conclusion of my term, I was able to lead with more Student Senate legislation approved by the University President (Continue)
The Wonder and Wisdom of Disney
Walt Disney’s brother, Roy said, “It’s not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” Okay, before you pass over that quote and let it flow down the river of “that’s nice, but let’s get going” I suggest we pause and think about it. Life and business can be hard. The workplace is full of challenges; the marketplace is teeming with competitors. What’s a leader to (Continue)
Smile More in 2018 With These 5 Goal-Setting Tips
Think about some of the most gratifying times in your life. I'm talking about the moments that brought a smile of satisfaction to your face. If you’re like me, the reasons for such times vary, and include: Accomplishing a task or project Living into one of my primary life roles in a meaningful way (Husband, Father, CEO, friend, etc.) Achieving a dream or goal (Continue)
Dare to Dream
It’s that time of year. People are busy planning and shopping for Christmas. Many of us are stuffed full of stuffing and already thinking about how we will lose those extra holiday pounds. It’s also a time when we start to think about the coming year. What will 2018 look like? What do I want to happen in the coming year? Every new year, after I have reflected over the last year (see (Continue)
See How You Can Get Your Employees to Think Like Owners
Years ago, several of our moving trucks began to show their age and required a significant amount of maintenance. It was time to shop for replacement trucks. Instead of making an executive decision and informing the rest of the team after the fact, we pulled the drivers and crew members together to talk about buying new trucks. And what followed was amazing… (Continue)
Plan your Best Summer Vacation Ever!
Good things happened when we asked our two older sons, who had already married, and our youngest son, who was near finishing college, to help plan a holiday vacation! Specifically, we asked them to get involved in the decision-making process to find a common place where everyone could meet for a family vacation during Thanksgiving. (Continue)
What Do Chili Dogs Have To Do With Success?
As a young boy, Saturdays were my special days. Often, my dad would take me to lunch at a tiny downtown café where the specialty was chili dogs. I always had mine with cheese, onions, and extra mustard. To this day, those were the best chili dogs I have ever eaten. (Continue)
Three Bold Predictions for 2017
I try to stay out of the prediction business. It’s a prescription for inevitable failure. Think about the weatherman. He’s right about half the time only because he’s wrong the other half! Peter Drucker expressed it this way, “Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window.” That said, I’ve got three bold (Continue)
What Are Your Dreams for 2017?
Recently, a friend and I were talking about setting goals for the new year. One of my questions to him was, “What do you dream to accomplish in 2017?” He replied, “That’s a good question”, then paused for a while and eventually said “I can’t answer your question, because I don’t know what I would dream to accomplish this year. I really have not thought about it!” (Continue)