“Put first things first” is one of those self-improvement prescriptions with a very high “Oh, duh!” factor. As in “Oh, duh! Everybody knows that.” Trouble is, almost everybody ignores the prescription. Sure, most people know that family is (or at least should be) more important than work. Sure, most people know that physical exercise, good…
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What do you do if you feel you’re getting ripped off by a service that’s crucial to your business? And what if you’re sure a lot of other people are equally disadvantaged and disgusted? If you’re Jim McKelvey, you start a new company that not only solves the problem but blossoms into an industry-changing phenomenon. …
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MacGyver, you probably thought, was a television show from 30 years ago. And it was. But MacGyver is also a verb, now officially recognized as such by the Oxford English Dictionary. The title character from the TV series was a secret agent who always managed to improvise his way out of critical situations. MacGyver’s extraordinary…
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For some people, “culture” is little more than soft and fuzzy stuff like beanbag seats and foosball tables in the employee lounge. But it’s much more than that. An organization’s culture includes all the values and “rules”—both written and unwritten—that affect people’s behaviors. It includes the way people interact, how they make decisions, how they…
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Late every year it’s college football’s championship bowl season. One more chance for the players to strut their stuff. And another round of post-game interviews with the coaches. Soaked in celebratory Gatorade, the coaches often sound as though they use the same crib sheet of clichés: “Our guys came to play.” “We managed to overcome…
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Do you sometimes disagree with even your best friends? Of course you do. But you work through the issues, possibly even joking about the divergent viewpoints. Then you move on to another topic. No harm, no foul. But what about disagreeing with someone who is not a best friend? Here’s where it can get tricky.…
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“Well, Excu-u-use Me!” That catchphrase, popularized in the 1970s by Steve Martin, was part of some of the funniest comedy routines of the time. Unfortunately, that phrase now captures the touchiness of current-day culture. It seems that no comment is immune from attack, no opinion is safe from an onslaught of ridicule. Consider the contrived…
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Parents represent the last stand of the amateur. Yet the very future of our world depends on the quality of their leadership. Yes, leadership. As a health pandemic encircles the globe, literally billions of parents find themselves in lockdown with their children. Sure, the economic damage to jobs and family incomes is real. But with…
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Quick question: Would you rather get a root canal than schmooze with a roomful of strangers? If you hesitated for even a second in considering that choice, you must not enjoy networking. Join the crowd. Networking may be one of your least favorite activities. But getting past your apprehensions and doing it right can work…
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