It’s been a wet winter here, so our yard is a reeking mud marsh dotted with swampy pools deep enough that we’ve attracted nomadic geese. We are in COVID-19 lockdown (Day 7). Our internet is spotty and overloaded, and my nine-year-old iMac chose today to fully embrace dementia. Our sump pump is blocked. A skunk … Read more
Doctors ask us to keep two meters apart to reduce transmission of COVID-19. But don’t let physical distance lead to emotional disconnection. We need each other more than ever right now. Whether you are passing people in a hallway, sitting a safe space away, or speaking via video or phone, Smile. When you smile on … Read more
This month’s post was inspired by a blog from one of my favorite mentors in the consulting world, Alan Weiss. This short excerpt sets the stage and my thoughts follow: An asteroid three times the size of the Empire State Building shot by the Earth last week, “only” three million miles away and traveling … Read more
What Does It Mean To Be Present? Remember, Leadership is not about a title; anyone can be a Leader who creates a positive experience for others. I typically end my essays with a tip like above, but today let’s start with a reminder that leaders are people who make a difference for others, usually through … Read more
A friend recently told a story to a conference crowd: A traveler climbing a hill saw another man ahead of him running and running. Then he saw the man stop. Then he began running fast again. And again, he stopped. Over and over he repeated this cycle. Eventually the traveler caught up to the … Read more
Last week I attended a global conference for coaches held in Prague, Czech Republic. I knew it was going to be one heck of a learning journey when my head was already popping with new ideas from the conversations I had at the opening reception, before attending any learning sessions! My own talk on day … Read more
Why do we make Happiness feel so damn elusive and unavailable? Why is it always about the pursuit of Happiness? Can we, for just a moment, notice that it is sitting RIGHT NEXT TO US and all we have to do is turn to it, say “Hi!” and enjoy its company for a moment? Breathe … Read more
Talking About Death and Happiness Death—and its relationship to life—has been pushing onto my agenda in the past month, so much so that when I sat down to write this month’s post, I found it impossible to not write about it. “But Jim, “you are possibly thinking, “isn’t this site about happiness and leadership?” Well, … Read more
My focus on six-word wisdoms last month generated much positive reaction, quite possibly because our attention spans have shrunk to under nine seconds – less time than it’s taken you to read this sentence aloud! Here are a few more, for fun: Ask, “In what ways might I?” You’ve been trained your entire life to … Read more
I love to play with tight language, which is why Haiku has always been my favorite poetic form (17 syllables and rigid rules, yet infinite possibilities). I also love the brutal simplicity of six-word essays, a format over which I obsessed in high school (see https://www.sixwordmemoirs.com for more) Since January I have attended 28 … Read more