Three years ago I boarded a crowded, somewhat dirty bus and set off for Wat Suan Mokkh, a Thai forest monastery. The grounds featured giant monitor lizards and bats that would fly low at dusk, almost touching you with their wings. Though the bat-filled evenings were a highlight of my trip, they were not my […]

“Are you tired, run down, listless? Do you poop out at parties? Are you unpopular? The answer to all of your problems are in this little bottle!” This quote, from Lucille Ball on I Love Lucy, is both hilarious and timeless. Her Vitameatavegamin bottle made some pretty large promises that only required an alcohol content of […]

Time management is about scarcity, because time is fixed. You only have 24 hours in a day, 168 hours in a week, 8,760 hours in a year (tack on an extra 24 for leap years). Until someone invents a time-stretching machine, that’s all we’ve got. The thing that you can actually manage is your energy. […]

In corporate training, I use meditation to help teams to be mindful or present. It can really transform the workplace. Not only does it improve productivity and efficiency, but studies show that companies who have implemented meditation training and encouraged employees to take time out for meditation each day have happier and better-rounded employees. This […]

In life and in business, there are a lot of distractions. It can be fun to run down those rabbit trails, but it’s easy to lose track, and hard to get back to doing the most important things for the time that we have. I am a husband and father of 12 children. I am […]

The idea that working ever harder and longer leads to better results is as American as apple pie, despite all evidence to the contrary. Chronic overwork is unproductive, unhealthy, and destructive of a balanced life. Yet against the evidence—and against the advice of incredibly successful people such as Henry David Thoreau and Henry Ford—overwork remains […]

In the 2007 film “Music and Lyrics,” an absent-minded lyricist played by Drew Barrymore drives her high-strung musical partner a little crazy by insisting that they take breaks throughout the day. Each time they take a walk or run out for food, however, the lyrics come to her as if by magic. Sometimes, as an […]

It’s no secret that entrepreneurship is a difficult path, with many pitfalls along the way. According to Merriam-Webster, the very definition of an entrepreneur is someone who “assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.” There’s no magic solution that’s going to remove that risk or guarantee your business will succeed. When you set out […]

In the face of new volatility in the financial world and a tightening labor market, how can you find and keep the talent you need without simply throwing more and more money at the problem? If that’s the question you are asking, you’re on the right track. Here’s why: I know many leaders who’ve tried […]

Your ambitious goal isn’t impossible to accomplish—and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. The first step in making any endeavor possible is dismissing the naysayers who insist that the possible isn’t.

Certainly, you shouldn’t think that you can defy Newton’s Third Law of Physics or pretend that gravity doesn’t exist. You can, however, learn three priceless lessons from those who defied the skeptics.

Fear is universal. The gymnast fears stumbling instead of sticking the perfect landing. The singer fears a moment of wavering pitch. The serious speaker fears laughter; the joker silence. We all fear failure. How we respond to fear, however, varies considerably and determines whether this emotion will help us achieve our goals or leave us […]

Starting and growing a company is tough stuff. Just ask the 80 percent of entrepreneurs who fail within the first eighteen months of hanging their shingle. With data like that, it’s not surprising that those who do stay in business want to celebrate the big wins—and the smaller ones, too. And if you’re looking for […]

My life is full of celebration. There are happy dances for finished dishes, celebratory puppy cuddles for when our rescue dog makes it around the block without barking, and obligatory family clapping when my son eats anything other than bananas. He really loves bananas. That’s my home life: dances, cuddles, and clapping. There are also […]

Good leaders practice the fine art of celebration. Recognizing both team achievement and individual contribution is rocket fuel for morale. Yet for many high achievers, the need to celebrate is a blind spot. Often, they cannot see their own accomplishments or are reluctant to commemorate them. I know this because that was my experience until […]

Celebrating with your team is one of the best ways to show your appreciation for their effort and achievement, but that takes intentionality. With a bit of creativity, you can transform the culture of your team by celebrating achievements together. Celebration and appreciation are two sides of the same coin. So, when you take time […]

He stood awkwardly in the front of the room. I remember him shifting on the balls of his feet as he read a script from behind the podium. We were called into the auditorium to hear the vision of the company. Rumors of impending layoffs circulated, increasing the tension in the room. Many years later, […]

Company culture can make or break a business and those who are a part of it. According to a study by Deloitte, half of workers agree that culture has the strongest effect on their experience and engagement, beating out the environment and even the tools and technology they use on the job. For a company […]

Comedians refer to an audience that hasn’t heard any jokes yet as a “cold room.” It is thus the job of the comics who go first or second in the night to warm them up. You tell some jokes, suggest a convivial mood for the crowd, and hope they’ve brought their funny bones. I have […]

Martin Luther King’s path to the Nobel Peace Prize took him to several countries and included encounters with J. Edgar Hoover, and the founders of the British civil rights movement. But it began with a Quaker in Philadelphia. Colin W. Bell, a career charitable worker, wrote the first nominating letter that led to King’s award, […]

“How could we have been so stupid?” The question was posed by none other than John F. Kennedy in the aftermath of the 1961 Bay of Pigs fiasco, the a failed invasion of Cuba by CIA-backed Cuban exiles. The disastrous plan, strongly recommended by top advisors and approved the President himself, resulted in over three […]

Seeking a working definition of leadership is one thing, but seeking examples of defining leaders can be more valuable. We embrace the familiar adage, “more is caught than taught,” because many of us are visual learners. We have to see leadership in action and not just read about it or talk about it. Defining leaders […]

Martin Luther King Jr. had many successes in his life. His first desegregation campaign in Albany, Georgia, wasn’t one of them. It started in late 1961. Local and national black groups had been trying to desegregate the city’s parks, bus facilities, and businesses. So far, they had racked up many arrests and fines through protests […]

Before starting Praxis, Isaac Morehouse needed an investor. He didn’t need an investment of money or of time. He didn’t need a website built, a curriculum designed, or a market analyzed. What he needed was an investor of passion. He needed someone to believe as firmly in his vision as he did, someone “to believe […]

History affords countless examples of great leaders made greater by the inspiration of a spouse. Of course, there are also plenty of seemingly successful leaders in the past who had bad marriages too. But in certain historical cases, you can see clearly how a long-lasting marriage helped turn a person into a giant in their […]