Category Archives: Blog

Two Phrases That can Change Your Life

To develop meaningful and mature relationships at work or at home we need to develop two filters. The first filter protects you from other people. The second filter protects other people from you. Mistake 1: Not protecting yourself from others. I once worked [...]

How To Design Your Life’s Mission Into Your Career

When web designer Ben Blumenfeld was working for a major TV network, he was responsible for creating websites for mainstream shows. One day, he made a breakthrough that led to a significant uptake on a show, but the success struck [...]

How to Say No Gracefully

Saying no to a senior leader or customer seems almost unthinkable, even laughable, for many people. However, when saying yes is going to compromise your ability to make thehighest contribution, it is also your obligation. We would expect a CFO [...]

If You Don’t Prioritize Your Life, Someone Else Will

“A ‘no’ uttered from the deepest conviction is better than a ‘yes’ merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble.” So said Mahatma Gandhi, and we all know how his conviction played out on the world stage. But what [...]

The Most Important Hour Of Your Life

An executive called me up a few months ago in existential pain. He had spent the last several years pursuing a career path he now admitted was not right for him. He had overstayed his time building a software company [...]

Reduce Your Stress in Two Minutes a Day – Harvard Business Review

Bill Rielly had it all: a degree from West Point, an executive position at Microsoft, strong faith, a great family life, and plenty of money.  He even got along well with his in-laws!  So why did he have so much [...]

Two Questions to Ask Yourself Every Morning

I recently spoke at a conference in Silicon Valley and I was pleased to stay for the rest of the event afterwards. The final speaker, Connie Podesta, said something which struck my curiosity. She said, “I am going to share [...]

How To Simplify Your Life In 5 Minutes A Day

The situation for many of us is that life is fast and full of opportunity. The complication is we think we have to do everything. The implication of this is that we make a millimeter progress in a million directions. [...]

The Simplest Way to Avoid Wasting Time

I recently met with a capable executive who is passionate about his work and good at it. The problem is he pursues so many initiatives that by the end of the year people don’t really know what he has accomplished. [...]

Why Being a Perfectionist Can Hurt Your Productivity – Harvard Business Review

Do you ever “back door brag” about being a perfectionist? Unlike other obsessions and addictions, perfectionism is something a lot of people celebrate, believing it’s an asset. But true perfectionism can actually get in the way of productivity and happiness. [...]