BLOG

Much has been written about leadership lessons that can be learned from flying flocks of geese. Their formations, how they support each other in takeoff, the way that they rotate leaders and communicate (as in honk) have all been well documented. But this gaggle demonstrated their form of leadership from the ground level.

The following were my takeaways:

1. Maintain priorities – As all of this was going on, the adult geese made sure to keep everyone in line and care for their young. Sometimes leaders can get so caught up in their projects or problems that they fail to keep their ship in order, keep folks informed, and consider everyone’s needs. Steady leadership demands that even in the most difficult situations leaders remember those that are most vulnerable and also critical to their success, namely their people.
2. Stay the course – It would have been most logical and obvious (at least from my perspective) for the geese to simply fly off in the face of danger. Perhaps they didn’t because their young wouldn’t have been able to keep up (see #1 above). Either way, they showed a sense of calm commitment to the course and were able to get where they wanted despite the obvious threats that surrounded them.

Read More

Check out this video to learn more and remember to leave comments below!

Read More

One of the most powerful tools that a motivational speaker can have in his or her arsenal is a “setback to comeback” story. In essence, this is a story in which the individual experienced a powerful, potentially debilitating setback or set of circumstances and yet managed to turn that perceived deficit into the basis of their future success.

Whether it’s Jim Rohn speaking of life as a penniless husband and father who was inspired by a mentor to set goals and create a plan for success, Les Brown describing his adoption by a domestic servant and adolescent diagnosis as “educable mentally retarded” while still finding success in music, politics and inspirational speaking, or Tony Robbins recounting his rocky childhood without a father (who had walked out on the family) or enough food to eat and how that motivated him to want to help and feed others, audiences rally around and connect deeply with messages of individuals who overcame hardship and pain and used that to achieve great things.

Read More

After years of commuting to work with an old minivan (it was really nice when I first bought it), I recently leased a midsize sedan. To say that it drives better than my old hunk of junk is an understatement. It handles well, doesn’t guzzle nearly as much gas, and is far more enjoyable to drive.

Despite all of these benefits, I am much more mindful about accidents than I used to be. The van, to be polite, is not in the best of shape anymore. It has its nicks and bruises, not to mention substantial underbelly rust from 15 combined Chicago/New Jersey winters. Any further damage at this point is not much of a big deal.

In contrast, when I drive the sedan I tend to tense up more quickly, grip the wheel with both hands more often and more firmly than before, while also pulling in my shoulders as if I can somehow make the car narrower that way. Though I took out a damage waiver on the car, I still want to preserve its pristine condition and have been driving much more defensively to avoid contact.

Read More

Last night’s marathon 18 inning affair between the New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs, in which my home team (Yankees) completed the sweep of my nostalgic squad (Cubs – I lived on Chi-Town’s North Side for twelve wonderful years) had all of the drama that a baseball aficionado could possibly ask for. The game pitted two of the best teams vying for victory on nationally televised Sunday Night Baseball. There was great pitching, timely hitting, great defense (did you see that catch by Kyle Schwarber?), a new record set for strikeouts (48), depleted benches and bullpens, and more. You name it, this game had it.

But the part of the game that most resonated with me began in the bottom of the 9th inning. The Yankees brought their dominant closer, Aroldis Chapman – the slayer of the Billy Goat Curse as a Cubs reliever this past October – in to close out a three ruin lead and achieve a series sweep. But a funny thing happened along the way (not so funny if you root for the Yanks). Chapman blew the lead, through a series of walks, well-placed hits, and, to top it off, a hit batsman. With their closer failing to close, manager Joe Girardi had to go to the pen to salvage a tie and move the game into extras.

Read More

Recently, I participated in a Passover hotel retreat with my family in the Catskill Mountain region of New York State. The program organizers worked hard to keep everyone – old and young alike – busy throughout the week with entertainment and activities that offered fun and recreation. One such activity was a game room, which was set up in the hotel’s expansive lobby.

My eleven year old son asked me to play some of the games with him. One game in particular, a basketball game, had two small hoops within a close distance of each other and a collection of rubber kid-sized basketballs. The objective was to score as many baskets as possible within a 30 second timeframe. I did pretty well all things considered (I hadn’t shot for a while, just sayin’,) but after each round ended I looked up to see that my son had beaten me yet again.

I am pretty confident that had I played him on a regular basketball court with a standard-sized ball he would have stood little chance of achieving even a single victory. Not that I am so great, mind you, but my size advantage and experience would have carried me to victory. However, once the playing field changed, with different equipment, a playing field of different proportions, and no defense, all of my competitive advantages fell by the wayside.

As I considered my neutralized position in this indoor game of hoops I began to reflect upon other situations where people seem to hold advantages, not because they are intrinsically better or more talented, but because of some other factors or considerations.

Read More

Every person and organization should have a "why statement". Here's mine. Thoughts? What's yours?

Read More

Today was just one of those days.

I sat down at my computer bright and early knowing that I had a website security issue to resolve, but with no background on how to achieve it.

My chat with customer support was not helpful (he directed me to my IT guy, which is ME!). I waited until their customer service rep hours began, so that I could have an actual conversation (remember those?) only to discover that I was now talking with someone half way across the world with limited English skills. Subsequent efforts to reach a native English-speaking rep were frustrated by long wait times and continued pushes into the company voice mailbox.

In the meantime, I started to experience internet connectivity issues, which was compounded by slow computer responsiveness.

This was a real bummer, as I was spending far too much time updating my book website's 46 In 46 campaign. 

Read More

I recently had a conversation with a financial executive who we’ll call Dan. At one point the conversation shifted to personal matters, such as where he lives and details about his family. Dan told me that he lives in Central Long Island (NY) and is the proud father of four children. I asked Dan if he had a boat and he responded that he once did and that the kids used to love going out on it. But the two best days of boat ownership for Dan were the bookends, the first day that he got it and the day when he got rid of it. The time in between was full of more anguish, between lack of function and reliability, as well as maintenance and care, than he ever would have signed up for.

I asked Dan what happened to the boat during Hurricane Sandy. A big smile spread across his face as he thought back to that event from 5 years ago, not because of the general impact, but due to its specific effect on his boat. Dan was really hoping that Sandy would put him out of his marine misery but carving the boat into countless pieces. This would have gotten him an insurance check without having to go through the trouble of selling his erstwhile vessel. But when Dan went out to inspect his boat at the docking harbor after the storm had passed, he found that while all of the other nearby boats were in ruins, his was ironically untouched, as if God was playing (not so) funny games with him. And so he was forced to stay in this unwanted relationship a little bit longer, until he finally moved forward with a sale.

As I pondered Dan’s maritime tale, I thought about just how many of us do the same thing all the time. We encounter a problem, whether it’s a foul relationship (with a boss, coworker, spouse, etc.), a product (car, boat, home, etc.) that we regret purchasing, a program that we wished we had never signed up for, or some other issue in our lives, and hope that somehow we will be miraculously saved without having to put in any effort of our own.

Read More