Fast forward a few years… My wife and I had gotten married. We had settled into a small local church. During that time, I wasn’t afraid to challenge the status quo. – I asked questions. – I challenged assumptions. – I invited change. Whether because of immaturity, ignorance, or reasons beyond my control, I ended up…

I loaded my most important belongings into my beat-up white Toyota Corolla that my brother had bought from a friend for $1. I had: – a duffel bag of clothes – my laptop – and a Pearl drum kit Yep, the essentials! I had to maneuver the bass drum into the passenger seat. I barely got…

My first ‘real job’ was as a software developer. I’d started coding when I was 8 years old. For a kid in rural Kansas, getting a job as a software developer was a dream come true. Paid better than almost any other job. The only places I could maybe have done better would have been…

This is for all of my misfit friends… For much of my life, I’ve been in environments that have demanded me to be something that I’m not. I grew up in what I would call a high control religious group & with dysfunctional dynamics. I’ve resisted saying it out loud for a long time… – what…

why partnerships don’t work & how to fix them 1 – the overeager partner antidote: hit the brakes by getting clear on requirements & expectations If partnership is a sales process, this is where sales is a disqualification process. What are the things that MUST be true: – timeline – delivery – values – contribution…

“I can’t decide” can mean a lot of things. But it might mean… You’re not looking at what you really want You’re trying to choose between 2 second best alternatives. And you’re ignoring CHOICE #1. But because of Fear Doubt Insecurity Arrogance You won’t entertain it. What’s the choice you really want… … that you…

if you’re an EMPLOYEE, you’re on your own for this (and no boss ever told me this) It’s the myth of the ‘heaven on earth’ workplace, and here’s what I mean… Every business is, at some level, optimized for profitability. It’s a sliding scale between ‘do good’ and ‘make money’. If they slide too far…

Today, this comment reminded me of something that I’ve taken for granted. Several years ago, one of my mentors firmly instructed me, “You’re going to have a lot of people coming into your life. You need a way to keep notes with everyone you meet.” I started immediately. I notes from conversations with 391 different people.…

how to run efficient meetings (tactical post) First, differentiate between meetings, ceremonies, and social gatherings. Ceremonies are cadences with a fixed, recurring agenda. One of the best meetings I ever implemented was a financial heartbeat ceremony which includes: – review of financial transactions – review of income statement and balance sheet – review of cash…

the real work that I do (not software, marketing, or sales)… In everything that we do… – there’s always the work that people see – and then there’s the REAL work that’s underneath it On Thursday, I got on a call with a client of mine. We’d just wrapped up a few projects, and we…