A coaching client recently lost a dear aunt to cancer. “She was like a mom to me,” he explained. A day after our last meeting, he wrote to ask for some help. “Hey, Jim, I was talking with my cousin today. He said that his dad isn’t doing well with his wife passing. He cries … Read more
It was a bitterly cold snowy day when I arrived, and I was one of only four donors at the Red Cross Blood Services center. “I’m so glad you came in today,” said Valerie, the phlebotomist who served me. “This weather has forced cancellation of a lot of blood drives, and we are really in … Read more
Are you already failing on your resolutions? Here’s why: The world often places obstacles on our path to happiness in life and work. But you know what? We often do a lot more to mess up our own happiness. I see this in my coaching clients all the time, and you are probably doing some … Read more
Cheryl and I celebrate our 35th wedding anniversary this month, and for many years we’ve promised ourselves a Big Trip to celebrate. We were into our second month of planning when a family event got scheduled on top of our travel dates. We were at first irritated that it cut into our vacation time. We decided … Read more
Just as you hold a story about yourself, you hold assessments about others. This is a human thing – to create assessments about others as a shortcut to interaction. Notice that when you are in a leadership role, your assessments matter a great deal more than if you are merely a coworker. The theory of … Read more
The root of human suffering lies in our inability to know the difference between an assessment and an assertion. ~Byron Katie, Loving What Is If you’ve ever taken a personality assessment (like MBTI, DiSC, or a host of others) you know that for all the uniqueness of the 6 Billion people on earth, we all … Read more
One of my mantras is that you — and you alone — are responsible for your own happiness, that it is your decision. And if no one else can “make” you happy, it stands to reason that you cannot make other people happy either. Right? Well, sort of. Just because you can’t make someone … Read more
When you are in charge (and whether you like it or not) everyone looks to you for a “mood reading” every day. What you bring into work flows down to everyone in your reporting stream. If you’re having a toxic day, that affects your team – the same is true when you’re having a good … Read more
My ambition for this post is to share highlights from a year of Learning. So I sat down to review a year of writing and journaling, seeking the Big Wisdom of 2012. Yet that’s not how wisdom emerges. It’s not a lightning strike. It’s more like the accumulation of dust. Tiny particles of learning and … Read more
It’s never too early to start planning for SUCCESS in your life. This post offers ideas you can start on now to build a better 2013