I’d been absent from the air waves for a couple months. Why? Mainly because of one key decision in 2018: to take the Portland Underground Graduate School class, Financial Freedom 101 (FF101).FF101 blew so many things out of the water for us in terms of what we “thought” we had to do in order to retire. It taught us things about money and time that we just can't "unsee" now. We realized we have options to "buy our time back" sooner but only if we make some different choices. Choice … [Read more...]
February 21, 2022 By Leave a Comment
Several years ago while visiting my mom, I stopped by to find her watching "Shark Tank," a TV show where entrepreneurs seek investments from wealthy "sharks" to help them take their business to a new, and sometimes substantial level. Back then, my mom was a little old lady in Indiana with no illusions of starting a business. I asked her why she watched it and she said she got a kick out of the show, that the sharks were "characters," and that she really loved that Mark … [Read more...]
February 21, 2022 By Leave a Comment
Raise your hand (or drop me an email) if you love being told what to do! I’m guessing there aren’t a lot of hands raised out there nor will I get a lot of emails from most of you. Whether you’re a teenager being told to pick up your socks or professional going through a process or system change, most of us don’t like being told what to do. It’s common for people to want control over your own destiny or, at a minimum, to feel like you are being brought along on the … [Read more...]
August 13, 2017 By Leave a Comment
DIY: Live the Life You Love with a Career Map The job market has been HOT the last year or so and yet many people feel edgy, like we are living in uncertain times. Maybe it's the summer heat or the crazy politics in Washington. who knows! Whatever the reason, there is one thing you can do NOW to take charge and feel confident about your future. Build your own career map. Let's begin with two simple truths... 1) Only You Can Own Your Career. No one can do it for you, nor should … [Read more...]
August 13, 2017 By Leave a Comment
Recently I went to Vegas to speak at an HR Strategy a conference. I was so zero chill about this trip because: Well, it’s Vegas of course, YOLO (You Only Live Once) If I hadn’t accepted the gig it would have led to a major FOMO (Fear of MIssing Out) Okay, okay, some of you probably have no idea what I just said and others of you are probably laughing your ass off because I’m totaling destroying your slang. For a short glossary of terms, scroll to the end of this … [Read more...]
October 12, 2016 By Leave a Comment
“Hey, do you have a minute? I want to run something by you. But, it’s really important that you keep this confidential.” “Can I talk to you about something? I’ve got this situation going on but this has got to stay between you and me.” People tell me things. All the time. Despite the double dog dare secrecy, most of the things people tell me aren’t gossip or trade secrets. It’s way worse than that because they share their grisly details of conflict, miscommunication, … [Read more...]
July 10, 2016 By Leave a Comment
Raise your hand if this has never happened to you: you see a picture of someone from high school online and think, “Wow, what happened to Bob*? He looks like an old dude now!” Maybe this says a lot about my age, some deep-seated shallowness, or an inability to feel social shame. I’m hopeful it says more about perception. Perception is our way of understanding or interpreting something. It's our mental impression and the stories we make up about the way things are. It gets a lot of … [Read more...]
September 15, 2015 By Leave a Comment
Joseph Campbell once said, “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” Reading a quote like that takes me to a mythical place, somewhere lofty, and expansive, where I wonder what it would be like to make a BIG difference to an entire company, country or all of humanity. And then my email dings, and I snap back into the present and I start to think about a different kind of heroics. The kind I hear about with certain types of clients … [Read more...]
April 12, 2015 By 1 Comment
What's the before and after shot for your team? Lately I've been working with teams going through tough stuff: conflict, confusion, misunderstanding, things not getting done, you name it. I wish I had before and after shots of the teams I work with – you know, like the ones you see in magazines when someone or something gets a makeover? Since I don't have photos (and wouldn't share them even if I did), here’s my take on what's in and what's out when it comes to helping your team with a … [Read more...]
April 9, 2015 By Leave a Comment
It’s been 3 years since I started Positive Disruption and in that time there’s been a lot of reinvention. Like reinvention from my cushy corporate life to the nail-biting that can sometimes come along with starting up a business. There’s been any number of iterations on what is it that I really do, or don’t do – are you a consultant or a trainer, do you do coaching, or what? Finally, in the last year it became crystal clear to me: I am at my best helping client teams navigate the … [Read more...]