Thanksgiving was a few days ago here in the US and I’m intentionally ringing this bell AFTER the holiday because I want to reinforce that the act of giving thanks should be a consistent practice, not an annual event. Considering the things you are thankful for changes your brain chemistry for the better and elevates your perspective above the immediate … Read More

The Thanksgiving holiday is this week in the US and I’m guessing many of you are gearing up for one or two extra days off. Enjoy! You could probably use the rest. Turn the computer off. Bake a pie. Stop checking your email on your phone. Watch some football. Forget about work for a minute. Read a book. The impact … Read More

I want you to consider something you want. Maybe it is a promotion, an experience, or an object. Do you have something in mind? Okay, now I want you to think about the kind of person who already has that thing. What is different about the way they ACT and the way you ACT? Skip the part about how their … Read More

I used to think it was the role of a leader to diffuse tension. When tempers flared or circumstances became overwhelming, it was the leader’s job to turn down the dial on the tension so that everyone could operate with less stress and frustration. It sounds good on the surface, but sometimes we actually need a leader to turn the … Read More

I was recently at an event that featured a boxed lunch for each participant. Upon opening my lunch I discovered my box contained an objectively horrifying flavor of chips called “jalapeño.” (It might be important to understand that I really don’t like flavor of almost any variety) I told my neighbor that I had an extra bag of chips if … Read More

I was recently talking with a prospective client – who is an incredibly successful professional – and they told me the saddest story about a meeting they once had with their boss. In this meeting, they shared with their leader an aspiration to advance to a specific role in their organization, a revelation that was met with a profoundly inspirational … Read More

There is a black and white photo of me that has been famous in my family for better than 40 years. It features a 3-year old me holding a stick with some fishing line attached to the end (weighted down with a metal nut) over a mud puddle at a camp site somewhere in Alaska. It’s adorable, of course, but … Read More

Imagine yourself at the starting line of a speed skating race. The buzzer sounds to announce the start of the race and you promptly fall on your face. It’s over. Give up. Go home. Right? This was the premise of a video I recently watched on LinkedIn, but as the race unfolded I was fascinated by how the skater in … Read More

As unpopular messages go, this might be the grand slam of unpopular messages. But, if you really want to go further, faster and take your effectiveness to a new level, it’s an important one. Just stick with me for a few more seconds. When there is a project or relationship that just isn’t working, the most effective among us are … Read More

In this BONUS episode of my podcast, Effective on Purpose, my incredible assistant, Trúc, and I riff on the importance of delegation, the value of working with an assistant, and how we got started together. This conversation is for YOU if: you are worried that your inability to delegate is reducing your capacity for impact OR you are curious about … Read More

There is going to be a moment, certainly this week, likely tomorrow, in which you will want to convince someone of something. Perhaps you will want them to partner with you on a project or simply order take-out from your favorite restaurant. The (often failed) approach most people take is to express all the reasons their solution makes sense TO … Read More

If you are looking for a great way to fail, just try to change everything all at once and see how it goes.  Whether you are trying to change your eating habits, improve organizational culture, or become a stronger leader, making widespread, wholesale changes all at once isn’t always an effective path to take. Instead, where appropriate, you could try … Read More

Here is a completely simple way to increase your influence and help others reach new heights: be like Moriah. Two or three times a year I get an email from Moriah in response to one of the messages I share and every one of them is like one of those power-up mushrooms that make Mario double in size.  They are … Read More

Here’s a simple and effective way to change your career over the next 12 months: invite someone you appreciate professionally to lunch once a month. It’s easy, just send a text or an email that goes something like this: “Hey, PERSON, I really admire the way you go about your work and I’m hoping you will let me buy you lunch … Read More

Here’s a perspective shift that might melt your brain: When you say “yes” to something, you say “no” to EVERYTHING else. But when you say “no” to something, you’ve only eliminated one possibility. (This is, of course, assuming you are bound to the same 24-hour day as the rest of us and have to allocate chunks of time you will … Read More