More than a living

Tough question, and one that shouldn’t be answered too quickly.
A referral, a reference, a recommendation - these things just happen on the fly, over casual lunches and at backyard barbecues. At little league. Over beers. So easy for someone to make.
This is how service people get work. Earn a living. Do a good job, people […]

Why, why, why is it so much easier to be bad than good?
I think one of the primary reasons is that there are a wide variety of excuses for being bad (”I didn’t have time,” “I’ve been meaning to do that,” “Someday…,” “I didn’t realize…”). When was the last time you used an excuse for […]

Sometimes, these things just write themselves. Or I write them, when I’m doing something else. Either way, this little ditty I composed seem worthy of inflicting upon the masses.
I’m going to elaborate a bit on a problem with which I’ve struggled my whole professional life. (I’m sure Toby will be willing to corroborate this.) It […]

Some people call me “underwhelmed,” but fact of the matter is I tend to wear my heart on my sleeve.
Negative feedback or lack of progress or failure often crushes me. At first.
But then, it becomes the seed of motivation.
Take sixth grade for example.
One day, Ms. Elton took me aside.
“Your handwriting,” she said. “It’s horrible.”
Okay, now […]

Are you failing successfully?
I can’t help but think that I am missing many opportunities by not failing enough (or learning from the minor daily failures around me). Having just found Jaired’s Life’s Lessons and post “The Art of Failure and Side Effects of Social Praise” put this question in mind.
When I’m launching into new territory, […]

What kind of employee would you prefer to have (or be)? A naturally intelligent one focused on performance, or a hard worker focused on learning and growth? According to Stanford professor Carol Dweck’s research described in her new book Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, you’re in much better shape choosing the hard worker who […]

Nothing is more disrespectful than showing up late to a meeting. It is almost better to completely blow it off, at least then people can assume you had a scheduling conflict.
I know you know that it is disrespectful. I know you know that YOU hate waiting for the key decision maker to arrive. But the […]

Well, well, well. It’s been a few weeks since the beginning of the new year. All full of promise and intrigue.
We were really going to change some stuff this year, weren’t we? Really put our mark on things. Come out of the gates with both guns blazing and whatnot.
Boy, it was going to be good.
Yeah. […]