Last week I talked to a friend who had an offer to pursue an opportunity which he had always desired. However, at the moment of decision, he found himself hesitating and fearful of making the commitment. Fortunately, before he turned down the option, we had an opportunity to discuss his feelings and decision-making process. Like many opportunities, this one came along at the wrong time. He was already at the limits of his capacity, both physically and mentally. Yet, …
Last week, 75 leaders had the pleasure of hearing Ari Weinzweig, Co-Founder of Zingerman’s, speak about his new book “A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Managing Ourselves” at my Leaders Connect event (Please enjoy the video of his presentation HERE). Ari emphasized the importance of self-awareness as a key to becoming a great leader. He described how over the years, he has developed a keen sense of himself and how he has helped his employees become self-aware, as well. Ari …
We all spend much of our “mind time” remembering. Unfortunately, too much of that time is focused on negative memories that make us feel bad: anxious, guilty, or ashamed. But what if we could have more control over our minds and focus on creating positive memories which make us feel joy, gratitude, and pride? Recently I read about the latest research on memory in the New Yorker. The article, “Partial Recall” by Michael Specter, explores how researchers are learning …
I read this today on Writer’s Almanac by Garrison Healer: “It is the birthday of Bel Kaufman (1911). Kaufman taught in the New York public school system for 20 years. She had a terrible time passing the oral exam to get her teaching certificate because of her Russian accent, but she finally did and eventually turned the frustrations of her teaching career into a novel. It was called Up the Down Staircase (1965), and the story was told through …
Our speaker at this Friday’s CEO/Leaders Connect, Dr. Vic Strecher, wrote his book On Purpose to help him come to terms with the death of his 19-year-old daughter, Julia. In reading his book, I realized that while we all experience loss in our lives, we are rarely prepared for it and always struggle to cope with it. Just this morning, as I was writing this piece, I learned the shocking news that a friend and colleague died suddenly of …
Vic Strecher, who will be the speaker at Leaders Connect on Friday May 2nd, writes the following on his website about “changing your life on purpose”: “Ever felt like your life had lost some of its meaning? It’s a feeling that can build up over time or show up like a tsunami seemingly out of the blue. Either way, you can be left empty and adrift. This happened to Vic Strecher when his younger daughter, Julia, died suddenly at …