As a parent, I always want to clean and bandage a cut on my children to avoid infection and promote quick healing.  I know wounds left to themselves can cause serious problems to the health of my children. Issues at work, within a friendship or at home that are left alone can be dangerous as […]

“At Acme Inc. our core values are Integrity, Trust, Innovation and Community.” That statement or something similar can be found on just about any organizational website.  Most companies and individuals believe having values is important. They say it.  So it must be true…Right? Just because a contestant on American Idol claims they can sing doesn’t […]

“You are one of my projects.  I want to help you and teach you some of the things I’ve learned the hard way.”  Mitchel took a drink of his beer, looked at me, nodded and thanked me. I had just transferred to a new geography. Mitchel and I were peers.  The only difference was I […]

Direct TV warns us:  “Don’t have a grandson with a dog collar.”  While I am tempted to blame my issues on the cable television industry, especially their “customer service centers”, I believe my issues, particularly my character issues are internally derived. Let’s look at my life to illustrate the point. Played out negatively (because it […]

No one ever gets in shape by reading a fitness magazine or by going to the gym once. We get in shape by actually breaking a sweat. You have to do more than read the principles in a book or article. You need to DO them. You have to DO what you want to BE! […]

When I use the phrase Low Maintenance Team, the most common response is, “I wish I had one of those.”  The more I hear that phrase the more I realize Low Maintenance Teams (LMTs) are not common. There is a path I developed that allowed me to build my Low Maintenance Teams.  I know I […]

Why does one person get hired over another?  Why does one person get fired over another?  Performance is a good reason.  Values are an even better reason. A hypocrite is someone who says one thing but does another.  Therefore, an organization that claims values that they do not demonstrate is hypocritical and so is its […]

There is a woman I know who does nothing but serves others. Every time I see her, she is helping or offering to help others. I am amazed at her energy and her constant giving. She is always in a good mood! Who are the biggest servants you know? I am talking about the people […]

The Dad’s Against Not Keeping Score Society of Iowa Board of Directors met monthly.  Since the local chapter of the DANKS started, little progress had been made.  There had been a lot of meetings held but not a lot of decisions made. The Chairman of the Board was Dan Slakovski.  He ran one of the […]

Character is now a buzzword.  I use the term buzzword here to describe words that we hear frequently yet are rarely defined by the speakers.  The GOP nomination fight is full of buzzwords.  I hear athletes described on Sportcenter using some of the same buzzwords as the politicians use.  The problem is, if you dig […]

Leaders when I say the words Low Maintenance Team a lot of you smile and think about a favorite team from your past. Some of you are wishing you had a Low Maintenance Team right now. I’ve had both low maintenance teams and high maintenance teams. And I know, WE ALL WANT TO LEAD LOW […]

Below is the You Tube video to David McCullough Jr.’s speech to the graduating Class of 2012 at Wellesley High School.  This is an in your face yet inspiring speech to the coming generation. The Bottom Line: His last words to them are about being selfless.  Being selfless is truly the most likely way any […]

Most people do not look in the mirror and think – hypocrite. But, if we pick and choose when we act with Integrity, what should we call ourselves? Answer: Hypocrites Part time Integrity is not really Integrity. It is hypocrisy.  If we only choose Integrity when it is easy, what are we? Answer:  Hypocrites. Continue […]

Self-awareness sounds like some new age, kumbaya, talk show topic.  As an aspiring man’s man, my low sensitivity level has not always allowed me to consider things like self-awareness.  But, obviously I have or I would not have been able to write that last sentence… Self-awareness is a critical element for the success of a […]