professional development

Is the talk of the upcoming 2020 presidential election already making you shudder when you look at your social media channels? Is tuning out is the answer? Maybe that’s a good option for the current political cycle, but I think there’s too much tuning out on other fronts. Consider how many of us are tuning…

We don’t just leave our feelings in the car when we walk into our workplace. They’re part of who we are and we can’t ignore them. But it’s how we face them that’s important in our relationships and communications – business and otherwise. Feelings are a response to the way you perceive the world around…

It’s human nature not to want to admit when you’re wrong. We all hate being wrong. But let’s face it, sometimes we are wrong – as I’ve mentioned before. If I take a look in the mirror and look hard, I might be able to more easily admit when I’m wrong. Because when I look…

People who know me know that when I think people aren’t paying attention, it drives me crazy. Too often we see people who don’t pay attention. They’re looking at their phone instead of driving. They’re reading email instead of paying attention to the webinar that they’re logged onto. They’re typing on their keyboard during a…

The last time I checked, there were no perfect people in the world. Certainly, many are striving for that goal – think of celebrities, professional athletics, Olympians and those in leadership positions. If we’re entirely honest with ourselves, we know that we can’t be perfect. But does that mean we shouldn’t try to do our…

Labels are very important in life, aren’t they? We look at labels on our foods, drinks and medicines to find out if there’s anything in them that we – or our loved ones – are allergic to. You could even say that labels could mean the difference between life and death in this case. Too…

Yes, I know it’s cliché to say the only constant in life is change. In fact, maybe change is just becoming the ‘normal’ because it seems like changes are coming at us almost every minute, every hour, every day. Last year, an article in Forbes suggested that “changes in technology represent the main challenge facing…

There’s something about sharks. I think it might have started with the 1970s movie Jaws, but today we have a whole week dedicated to them on Animal Planet. Every time I hear about them on TV, I wonder — what is it about sharks that makes them so intriguing? I’ll admit that my favorite sharks…

I was meeting with a client recently when he told me that a potential vendor told him that they could provide “X” service, plus they could also do a press release. And he indicated some concern about that – wondering why a firm that claims to be an expert in X, would also have the…

“Talent is cheap; dedication is costly.” It’s said to be a remark by an Italian art teacher to the great Michaelangelo very early in his career (see more at  https://bible.org/illustration/talent-cheap-dedication-costly). I first heard this phrase a few months ago when my pastor used it in a sermon. And I’ve been thinking about it on and…