I write one of these every year, but this year, I decided to do one for young people – live. I made this for my daughter’s middle school class after staff there asked me to come speak to these kids. Make good choices today and honor the men and women who gave you that right.
The question isn’t about whether individuals are “essential” or not. The question behind the shutdown is about whether the government has the legal right to spend money. It isn’t a mistake that our government has fumbled the right to spend money. It isn’t trivial that our government can’t agree with one another enough to setRead… Read more »
You’re busy. Things fall off your plate. Failure to follow up can and will hurt your career. So follow up! Here’s a simple way to help you get and keep your follow ups under control. This system costs nothing to use (there is a small fee if you want advanced features), and it will keepRead… Read more »
“Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.” – Dale Carnegie Government employees spent a lot of time in meetings. Stepping up your game at these meetings is not hard. When you do, it can have a positive effect on your career and can makeRead… Read more »
I’m not sure who got more out of our time together, Miguelito, my employees, or me. He was nine when I met him. Both of his parents were serious alcoholics. I was stationed overseas and living by myself in a modest two bedroom concrete house in the mountains. Miguelito (Spanish for “Little Michael”), like theRead… Read more »
“We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us.” – From Star Trek, First Contact As a teleworking manager looking in on a traditional office environment, the dangers of the office often seem frighteningly similarRead… Read more »
Bottom line up front: Some of my finest memories are of you. For the 3AM chats in the dark while on watch: Thank you. For all the times you had my back: Thank you. For being afraid, but doing it anyway: Thank you. For the extra hands you offered to lighten the load: Thank you.Read… Read more »
I recently had the opportunity to meet with someone who explained her success to me in a way that made me smile. “What’s your secret?” I asked. “I saw you step into this project three times since we started it. You were there in the beginning to get things started. Then you left and thingsRead… Read more »
Ever want something to become a reality in your life, but you’re not sure how to make it happen? Maybe you want to be a millionaire, or you want to travel, or maybe you’ve always wanted to be sitting around a comfortable table with a gathering of friends, eating cheese and sipping wine. No prettyRead… Read more »
You step up to do the same thing you’ve done a million times before. You’re good! It always worked like magic. But something is different about this time. It’s not working. What gives? If whatever you have to do depends on a team, maybe the team hasn’t gelled yet. Don’t ignore this critical step! AboutRead… Read more »