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2024 (19)

• December 15 | Anxiety About A.I. & How To Find Your Purpose

  I just updated my A.I.-focused keynote talk and it taught me something I never expected...
  
• November 23 | The Structures That Help Us

  Plenty of our systems are draining. Is it possible to create structures that actually help us? Absolutely, and here's one of my personal favorites!
  
• November 17 | Return To Office Is Not About The Office

  If a Return To Office mandate isn't about the office, what the heck is it actually about?!
  
• November 9 | Remembering & Forgetting & Remembering

  Every time I get well after being sick I tell myself, "I will not take my health for granted!" But then I immediately forget. What in the world is this about?!
  
• November 2 | We (Really) Need To Talk About Politics

  Really, Josh!? You're going to talk about politics?? Right NOW? Yes, we need to! But it's not going to be about what you think...
  
• October 20 | Reality Check: Leaders, Your Systems Shape Everything

  Are current challenges the fault of leaders? Or of our systems? Or maybe we need a different understanding of what's happening?
  
• October 14 | Reindeer Antlers, A Haunted Mansion, & The Bliss Of Ignorance

  A short true story about reindeer antlers, a haunted Denver mansion, and the magical bliss of ignorance.
  
• October 6 | Where Sam Altman Gets It Terribly Wrong

  Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, recently posted an inspiring article called The Intelligence Age. But he gets something terribly wrong, and it's quite dangerous...
  
• September 29 | Gradually, Then Suddenly — How The Future Actually Happens

  “How did you go bankrupt?” Bill asked. “Two ways,” Mike said. “Gradually, then suddenly.” Apparently, this is how MOST things work; I just didn't really see it until now...
  
• September 22 | Why We Need A New Organizing Story

  Why do I think (and write and talk) about "work" so much? Is there a justified reason for this obsession? I think so, and it has everything to do with our stories...
  
• September 14 | 3 Things I Learned From Delivering A Huge Tiny Talk

  Got a big idea you need to share? How do you make it as powerful as possible in a very short window of time? Here are 3 tips to elevate your impact!
  
• September 7 | Failures That Aren’t Really Failures At All

  What is "failure," really? Is it the closure of a business you've worked on for 5 years? Or is that... something else?
  
• July 31 | Can Technology Make Our Lives Better?

  Is technology a distraction? Or could it actually be used to make our lives fundamentally better? Well, it depends...
  
• July 24 | Why Are These Plants Dying?!

  How does your organization think about "performance?" Most companies completely misunderstand how great performance actually happens, and it helps to know a bit about plants...
  
• July 19 | Brand New Website! New Tagline! New Speaking Topics! Lots Of Exclamation Points!

  So many new things to announce: new website, new speaking topics, new signature logo... come check it out!
  
• May 15 | My First Panic Attack

  In September of 2019 I had my first panic attack. I was in Paris, and honestly thought I was dying...
  
• May 6 | JAD = Future Of Work Speaker (Again!)

  I am speaking again! If you know of places looking for a Future Of Work speaker with specialty expertise in Mental Health, Change & Transformation, Leadership, and Company Culture please let me know.
  
• March 12 | 2023: Year In Review

  My (delayed) update reviewing 2023!
  
• January 8 | In Denver? Join Me In Person To Explore The Mind-Exploding Stuff I’ve Learned In The Last 4 Years!

  If you're in Denver, I hope you'll join me for an incredibly special in person workshop!
  

2023 (3)

• September 6 | The Corporate Way: Hide Everything

  Why is the hiding of "moderately unscrupulous" behaviors more common the higher up we go in an organization?
  
• August 28 | Don’t Work On “Company Culture” — Focus On Your Operating System Instead

  "Culture" is unreasonably complex. So leaders should focus on something else...!
  
• May 20 | 2022: Year In Review

  My (very delayed) update reviewing 2022!
  

2022 (1)

• January 17 | 2021: Year In Review

  2021, are you ready for me!? I was ready for you... mostly!
  

2021 (1)

• January 2 | 2020: Year In Review

  Whoa, here we go... let's review 2020. (What a year.)
  

2020 (9)

• October 30 | Should We Abolish The Electoral College?

  In some ways this article is different from what I usually write about. But in many ways, it’s about the exact same stuff I always talk about. If you’ve followed my work for any length of time, you know I’m obsessed with organizational systems. Typically, we’d probably use this phrase to talk about systems that […]
  
• October 26 | WorkRev Episode 4: The Future Isn’t What We Think It Is.

  Today I want to talk about something that’s on many people’s minds right now… The future. We’re kind of obsessed with “what comes next” — right now the conversation is mostly in relation to the COVID pandemic — but this is always a question we humans have, isn’t it? What comes next? Well today I […]
  
• October 19 | Work Revolution 3: The New Work Revolution Manifesto

  View the full transcript and Show Notes HERE Apple Podcasts Subscribe on YouTube
  
• October 12 | Work Revolution 2: What I Mean By “Revolution”

  View the full transcript and Show Notes HERE Apple Podcasts Subscribe on YouTube
  
• October 5 | Work Revolution 1: Do Something Different, We Must

  View the full transcript and Show Notes HERE Apple Podcasts Subscribe on YouTube
  
• September 28 | The Work Revolution Podcast

  Hello my friends! I apologize for the radio silence here on my blog for the last few months. Something you might not know is that when we all went into full-on quarantine mode, I felt deeply compelled to reboot a project that’s been dormant for the past couple years called The Work Revolution. The Work […]
  
• February 19 | “Avoiding The Catastrophic Technical Debt Of Sub-Par Culture” on Helios Blog

  Bear with me as I attempt to bring a slightly nerdy concept into relevance this week. I think you’ll see it’s a powerful idea that can help us work in better ways. Nice web site I buy vidalista from this https://buytadalafilmd.com/vidalista/ which I recommend In technology there’s an idea called “technical debt,” defined in Wikipedia […]
  
• February 12 | “The One Thing At The Core Of All Organizational Problems” on Helios Blog

  Nearly every big problem that persists in our organizations today comes from limitations that live in the mindset of the leadership. Bold claim? Maybe, but I think you’ll see it’s true. Let me explain… There are a lot of big, hairy problems in our organizations, ranging from turnover to disengagement to lack of agility and […]
  
• January 3 | 2019: Year In Review

  Goals For 2019 + Reflection 1) Regular yoga practice One word: FINALLY. After literal years · of · attempts, I was able to re-build this habit into my life. A special thanks to my friend and neighbor Ashil for being my mid-week yoga buddy and to Noelle @ the amazing Kindness Yoga for leading the […]
  

2019 (18)

• November 14 | “Colorado Public Radio Interview” on #lovework Blog

  CPR interview from Oct 31, 2019 (~15 mins): Click here to view it on CPR.org // starts around 5:30 mark // When we hear about this whole “self managing teams” thing, it can be easy to get a bit “triggered” by it. We all have a lot of conditioning to think about people in a Theory X kind of […]
  
• September 12 | “The Dirty Secret Of Diversity” on Helios Blog

  Intellectually, it’s easy to promote the value of diversity in our organizations. We endlessly proclaim pithy sayings about the added benefit of a diverse and varied constituency of employees, espousing the importance of mixing genders, races, generations, and lifestyles. In our minds, we “get it,” and for good reason — it seems almost self-evident that a […]
  
• August 22 | “Forget ‘Culture’ — Focus On Operating System Instead” in Culturati Magazine

  Culture is complex. By its very definition, “culture” is almost unreasonably complicated — read just a few lines in a dictionary, and you’ll quickly trip over phrases like “manifestations of human achievement regarded collectively.” Oof. Complex. The intricate nature of “culture” itself is actually one of its largest challenges, as its complexity makes it difficult […]
  
• August 14 | “The Two Fatal Flaws In Your Company Values” on Forbes

  The idea of having “company values” is nothing new. In fact, these days, it’s downright rare to come across and organization without them, even if the organization is very small. But the near-ubiquitousness of company values seems to be equally matched with the unsureness leaders have around how to actually make them useful in practice. […]
  
• July 25 | “Is Your Organization A Neverland?” on Helios Blog

  It’s one of the most common complaints I hear from leaders about the workplace, though it comes in a variety of forms and phrases… “People just don’t do what they’re supposed to do.” “We have an accountability problem.” “I don’t WANT to ‘manage’ people, but I feel like I HAVE to.” But these things are […]
  
• July 3 | “How Purpose Work Fails Your Organization” on Helios Blog

  Doing “purpose work” in organizations seems to be all the rage right now. And, again, for the most part, this is a great thing. But something has been bothering me about this, so today I’d like to show you exactly how “purpose work” can fail your organization. There are two primary ways this happens: It can […]
  
• June 27 | “Three Simple Ways To Create A Manager-Free Culture” on Forbes

  “I just love being micromanaged.” Have you met a lot of people who would say this? Have you even met one? I’ve been studying leadership and human behavior for the last 20 years, and I struggle to think of a single person I’ve met — ever — who would say they enjoy being micromanaged. Humans, by nature, seek […]
  
• June 20 | “Your Procrastination Is Trying To Tell You Something” on Helios Blog

  Nikola Tesla reportedly said, “If you wish to understand the secrets of the universe, think of energy, frequency, and vibration.” The more we lean in to an energy-based approach to work at Helios, the more we believe this to be profoundly true. “Energy” is an interesting topic, mostly because it’s not something we talk about much in regards […]
  
• June 6 | “Performance Isn’t About ‘Performance’ — It’s About Conversations” on Helios Blog

  Almost all approaches to “performance management” are pointless. Why? In a nutshell, they make a fatally flawed assumption about people, which is the belief that we can change our innate wiring. This is another way of saying if I’m not “performing” there’s something wrong with me. I’m inherently lacking… something— knowledge, skills, effort, tenacity, etc. — and if […]
  
• May 17 | “How To Find Your Purpose (HINT: You Don’t)” on Helios Blog

  Purpose has become a popular topic over the last decade or so. And for the most part, this is excellent — it’s great to have purpose-driven organizations and it’s a wonderful thing for individuals to think about their purpose and focus their work in that direction. But how does an energy-based approach to life and […]
  
• May 2 | “Profit Is To Business as Oxygen Is To Life” on Helios Blog

  In our business culture today, we have a relentless focus towards more— buying more, selling more, having more. We’ve even codified this unending expectation into our work lives in the form of “quarterly returns.” The explicit and implicit expectation set upon our most public organizations is unending growth, quarter after quarter, year after year, forever and ever. More, […]
  
• April 25 | “The Dirty Secret Of Burnout” on Helios Blog

  Burnout at work is quite literally everywhere. Perhaps you read the recent article in The Washington Post, or saw how companies are adopting four-day workweeks to try to combat this problem, or checked out the piece in BuzzFeed about how Millennials are “the burnout generation.” Or maybe you just looked in the mirror, or into […]
  
• April 18 | “Introducing the Helios Launch Experience” on Helios Blog

  I love creating learning experiences. When I stumbled into this line of work many years ago, I had no idea this was even a “thing” a person could do as a career, but it’s turned out to be a deeply fulfilling fit for my strengths. We’ve been the official certifying body for Strengthscope® in the […]
  
• April 11 | “Great Performance = Energy Alignment” on Helios Blog

  Performance is an important topic in most workplaces. Presumably, there’s a fairly typical, usually implicit, assumption that when you come to work, you’re going to perform your best. Companies spend massive amounts on “performance management” programs, compensation plans, feedback technologies, and incentive structures, all in the name of — you guessed it — greater performance. […]
  
• April 3 | “Human Energy = The Thing That Moves The World” on Helios Blog

  Helios is a growing tribe of change leaders on a mission to create a world where everyone can love work. There are probably millions of ways this could be approached, so today I want to explain our particular contribution to this herculean effort: human energy. Human energy — this is an interesting topic, because it’s the thing […]
  
• March 28 | “A ‘Strengths-Based Organization’ Isn’t The Goal” on Helios Blog

  Over the years, I’ve regularly heard people talk about a “strengths-based organization.” I’m sure I’ve used this phrase many times myself, and I’d venture to say that we probably have some client partners right now that think this is the “point” of what we’re trying to do with them. I’ve come to realize I don’t […]
  
• March 22 | I’m Back… And My TEDx Is Live!

  // “If you see me less, I’m doing more.” Toward the beginning of this year, I saw the above quote on Instagram. While I recognize the bold irony in this kind of statement being posted on a social network that was created to make people feel like they’re being seen more, it was resonant for […]
  
• January 1 | 2018: Year In Review

  My goals for 2018, and a reflection on each: 1) Regular yoga practice—average at least 2x/month Two words for this one: epic fail. Again, I failed to figure out how to put regular yoga into my schedule. While that is a total and complete bummer (and my body feels the consequences of this even more […]
  

2018 (2)

• September 13 | Helios & TEDx

  Wow, it has been awhile since I wrote you all! This year has taken some unexpected twists and turns — I didn’t anticipate this year to be positively exploding with transitions, but here we are. I’ll share two of the highlights that are right in front of us at this moment: 1) HELIOS Since the […]
  
• January 1 | 2017: Year In Review

  So… 2017. You were a doozy of a year, in so many ways. Overall, I can’t say I’m necessarily sad to see you go, though I will also recognize with gratitude all the wonderful things you delivered. First, a look back on the goals I set nearly 525,600 minutes ago… // My goals for 2017, and […]
  

2017 (6)

• July 10 | The Story Of Dynamizer

  Around three or four years ago, we started shopping the idea around. But nobody wanted it. Now, everyone loved the idea — in a nutshell: to create a product that would help kids discover and develop their strengths — but they didn’t have the bandwidth to do it, or they had other priorities, or any […]
  
• May 22 | “We Wish ‘Energizing Work’ Was More Complicated” on strengthscopeUS.com

  This article was originally posted on strengthscopeUS.com Last week I gave a talk in Los Angeles for International Coaching Week. As I was on the plane flying home I read through my feedback forms, and noticed a couple comments indicating the participants would have liked more examples of workplaces that help people work freely in […]
  
• April 17 | I’m Too Busy To Deal With ‘People Issues’

  This article was originally posted on strengthscopeUS.com We all assume work has to suck, but does it? Why shouldn’t we love what we do? It’s my mission in life to help companies create work environments that don’t suck by speaking, writing, consulting—whatever I can do to help companies see the big picture. Over the past […]
  
• January 21 | “The Technology Of Management Is An Insult To Your Intelligence” on HuffPost

  I was hanging out with a friend for coffee, making small talk about their work, when it hit me. It felt like someone had physically flicked their finger and smacked me right between my eyebrows, even though no one had touched me. In that instant something “clicked” in my brain—and it all happened because my […]
  
• January 12 | “One Diagram To Rule Them All” On StrengthscopeUS.com

  This week’s article is one I just wrote for my company blog—read the intro below and click the image or link for the rest! As we look into the fresh beginnings of a new year, I wanted to offer a bold idea that could absolutely transform your organization in 2017: What if you could replace your entire people strategy […]
• January 1 | 2016: Year In Review

  As we get started, I want to share something I learned toward the end of this year from a new friend and strategic business partner of mine, Chuck Blakeman. He shared something that was told to him by his mother years ago: “There are no excuses or even reasons—there are only priorities.” It’s hard for me […]

2016 (5)

• November 4 | “The Real Difference Between Leaders And Managers…” In The Huffington Post

  Don’t miss my latest article in The Huffington Post! Here’s a little teaser… It’s popular to make a distinction between “managers” and “leaders.” For example, if you were to type “difference between managers and leaders” into Google, you’d get over 20,000 results. (Try it out.) People love to discuss and debate this statement. As the traditional thinking goes, […]
• June 14 | The Meaning Of Life (Yes, Seriously)

  Originally posted on Excellence Reporter Almost 3 years ago, one of my best friends in the world died after a horrific battle with cancer. He was 34, quite possibly the most talented musician I’ve ever met (and I know a lot of these folks), and without question one of the finest human beings I’ll ever know. An experience […]
• May 12 | The Work I Do—And Why It’s Not “Soft”

  Originally posted on my consulting firm’s website. We often bump into the idea that the kind of work we do at Forte is perceived as “warm and fuzzy” by businesspeople. (My friend Shawn just expressed something similar on his site.) The work we do isn’t “fuzzy” or “soft,” but this is quite a persistent myth. Let me explain why […]
  
• January 28 | “Everything Runs On Energy…” In The Huffington Post

  Don’t miss my new article in The Huffington Post! Here’s a little teaser… Take a look around you. Yes, really. Right now. What do you see? You might see lamps that are on, providing light for your workspace. You might see heating/cooling vents, pumping air that keeps your office at a comfortable temperature. You might look out […]
  
• January 7 | 2015: Year In Review

  I’ve posted a Year In Review every year for the last 5 years (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014), and it’s become something I really look forward to doing. It helps me pause, remember, celebrate, and offer my gratitude for another really special year of life on this strange planet. This year, it’s been an absurdly monumental challenge […]

2015 (9)

• December 13 | Leaving Los Angeles

  In less than 2 weeks, I’ll be leaving the west coast. Of course I’ll be back for work as this particular coast is my business playground, but my family and I are relocating our home to Denver, Colorado. We’ve lived in California just shy of a decade, and as I look back on our time here it seems […]
• November 11 | What Makes DaVita Amazing

  David Hoerman, the chief wisdom officer at DaVita, says, “Our beliefs drive our behaviors, which drive our results. When we all share the same beliefs, the right behaviors follow that benefit our patients, our business and beyond. We call each other on our behaviors that don’t align with those beliefs.” DaVita’s revenue has exploded from […]
• November 2 | Collaboration & Apple’s Perfectionism

  “Ever since Steve came back [in 1997] and worked with Jony on redefining the entire process, the industrial design teams [and] the engineering teams are joined at the hip in the work they do,” Schiller said. “They think up solutions to problems together as the disciplines are merged into a seamless process.” Inside Apple’s Perfectionism […]
• October 15 | A Better System Of Care and The Work Revolution

  “When law firms and corporations lose talented women who reject lock-step career paths and question promotion systems that elevate quantity of hours worked over quality of the work itself, the problem is not with the women. The problem is with the workplace.” A Toxic Work World by Anne-Marie Slaughter — New York Times, Sept 18, 2015 […]
• June 12 | Workplace (R)evolution 2015

  I had the pleasure to be part of a panel at the Workplace (R)evolution 2015 conference this week. In preparation for the questions I was asked to be ready for I wrote down a few of my thoughts, and wanted to share them here! Provide a specific example of how you implemented a change within your […]
• June 1 | “The Way You Think About Business Needs A Revolution” in Brand Quarterly

  Honored to be featured in the latest issue of Brand Quarterly. Check out the excerpt below and visit BQ to read the rest! Stroll into the headquarters of most large organizations these days and you’ll find all sorts of interesting things—ping pong tables, free drinks, laundry service, paid sabbaticals, free snacks, dogs in the office, nap […]
• March 13 | Patrick Pichette’s Retirement & Two Terrible Choices

  The other morning I read that Patrick Pichette, the CFO of Google, would be leaving the company in order to spend more time with his wife. In fact, before going any further with this post, you should probably just take a moment and read his full statement here. I had a few reactions to this. First, […]
• January 16 | The 12 Best Songs You’ve Never Heard

  Music is one of my first loves, and even though I’m not performing or writing music at the moment, I am still terribly addicted to incessantly searching for new, amazing songs. Over the holiday break, I was sharing great tunes back and forth with a good friend in Michigan, and it occurred to me just how much […]
• January 9 | 2014: Year In Review

  My goals for 2014, and a reflection on each: 1) Increase overall revenue 50% over 2013 Made it! In 2014 my business revenue increased 64%. 2) Increase speaking revenue percentage from 5% to 15% of overall revenue I didn’t make this goal—it only bumped from 5% to 8%. Though I will say (as I also mentioned last year), a big […]

2014 (23)

• November 20 | Fresh Holiday Music From Josh

  If you’ve only bumped in to my orbit within the last couple years, there are a few things you might not know about me. The mystery item of primary importance for this post would be that I am a musician. Before I dove into the rabbit hole of company culture and making organizations great, I was convinced I […]
• October 24 | Quarterly Returns Must Die

  In our business culture today, we have a relentless focus towards more — towards buying more, towards having more, towards selling more. We’ve even codified this unending expectation into our work lives in the form of “quarterly returns.” The explicit and implicit expectation set upon our organizations is unending growth, quarter after quarter, year after year, forever and […]
• October 3 | Consciousness, Ownership, and Paper Towels

  Here in my comfy suburb of Los Angeles, I work in a tiny row of offices with a shared restroom at the end of the hall. There’s no fancy “office management staff” or anything here, and this means we all share resources — like paper towels to dry our hands. It occurred to me the […]
• September 12 | An Enormous Praying Mantis And A New Las Vegas

  By almost any measure, it’s safe to call Las Vegas a city of extremes. The casinos. The lifestyles. The entertainment. The climate. My hotel room must have been 60 degrees — I’m convinced, to somehow make a feeble attempt to compensate for the broiler-oven temperatures outside. If you’ve ever experienced this kind of desert heat, you […]
• August 22 | Stop Being A Pundit And Start Being Human

  I am drowning in information. Of course, you are too. From podcasts to blog posts to books to documentaries to white papers to research studies to op-eds to journalistic pieces… there is no shortage of people who “push out” information. What’s becoming far more scarce, though, are people who can absorb the information, make sense of […]
• August 8 | BlogTalkRadio Interview: PASOS

  Last month, my good friend Damian Goldvarg invited me to be a guest on his terrific podcast, PASOS. “Pasos” means “steps,” and this interview is all about how to create more wellbeing at work. I hope you enjoy the conversation! Go Here To Listen! (There’s a download link just below the play button if you want to […]
• July 17 | Self-Management Article on HuffPost!

  I’m proud to report that my first article on Huffington Post is live! A huge thanks to my friends at the Great Work Cultures tribe for including me in their initiative. I hope you enjoy this piece on the future of work and self-management. When I was doing the research for my book, Igniting the Invisible […]
• July 10 | We Need Less ‘Or’ and More ‘And’

  Are crazy polarities the only way we can think about life now?? We have to be a Republican or a Democrat. We have to be liberal or a conservative. We have to love Apple or hate them. We have to love Microsoft or hate them. For me to be right you have to be wrong. For my […]
• July 3 | No One Cares About Your Boundaries

  …if you don’t care enough to set them — and stick to them. This may seem like common sense, but even if it is, I’m pretty sure it’s not common practice. The reason I know this is because even though I write and speak about (and try my best to pay attention to) these things, I […]
• June 26 | What We’re Missing About The Science Of Strengths on ICF

  Almost ten years ago, I learned my strengths. It was life-changing. Before I learned about what I now call “a strengths approach to life,” I believed I was supposed to be all things to all people. I thought that if I wasn’t good at everything, the solution was to study more and work harder in […]
• June 20 | 3 Strategies To Thrive In The Future

  Awhile back, my friends at Switch & Shift asked me to participate in a video-based mini-series about the future of work and where business is headed. I recorded a (very short!) video illustrating three crucial principles that individuals and organizations must tap into in order to thrive in tomorrow’s emerging economy! I think we recognize that the […]
• June 4 | Conscious Capitalism In Los Angeles

  A couple friends and I are helping start a Conscious Capitalism chapter here in Los Angeles, and we’re throwing a launch party to get it going! Join us: Thursday, June 19 @ 7:00pm at PwrdBy HQ in Venice If you’re not familiar with Conscious Capitalism, it’s an organization that promotes a more purposeful and stakeholder-centric model […]
• April 7 | What Does A Great Workplace Look Like?

  Recently, I was invited into a circle of work revolutionaries who are drafting a “declaration” that accurately describes the essence of the global movement we’re seeing towards more life-giving organizations. Not a Declaration of Independence, but a “Declaration of Awesome Companies,” if you will. As part of this process, one of our tasks is to […]
• March 28 | Are Great Jobs A Human Rights Issue? Now On Switch & Shift!

  Today, our organizations are a lot of things… They are the economic engines of the world. For example, did you know that of the top 150 economic entities in the world, 58% of those entities are corporations — not nations/countries? They are the places where we occupy some most of our time. Where do we spend more of our life than at work? […]
• March 21 | Advice For My Daughter: ‘Real’ and ‘Tangible’ Are Not The Same

  It took me a long time to truly grasp this one, but you’ll probably be much smarter than me. Many people speak as though “real” things are the same as “tangible” things. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Here’s a quick list of things you don’t have to hold in your hands to feel […]
• March 7 | How To Work With Gen Y, Part 2

  One more thought on last week’s popular post: This one is about Gen Y and “business results.” We know the world of work is changing fast; perhaps faster than ever before, in all of human history. What we sometimes forget, in the haze of our frenetic busy-ness, is that this rapid pace means organizations who […]
• February 28 | How To Work With Gen Y

  When I started writing Igniting the Invisible Tribe, I began my research by studying generations in the workplace. I wanted to see if age-related conflicts could be the cause of the epic friction we feel in business today. While I eventually dismissed generational contrast as a root cause, I continue to hear about the difficulties […]
• February 21 | Advice For My Daughter: How To See People

  There’s a tendency among us humans to look at large groups of people — cultural groups, religious groups, gender groups, whatever — and point out how different “we” are from “them.” “Oh, my group would never do anything like ‘they’ do…!” We also like to make dangerous generalizations when it comes to individuals. We lump them — […]
• February 13 | How To Be A Better Person

  I used to think that the key to becoming a better person was, essentially, to know more things about how to be a better person. For example: Maybe I needed to learn new skills or tools to help me be better. Maybe I needed to get some new research about why I should be better. Maybe I […]
• January 31 | We’re Either Bent Toward Cooperation Or War

  We humans are all so inherently, ineffably different. The consequence is we can either have the constant, incredible desire to fight with each other because we are so different, or we can leverage our diversity to become the greatest collaborators imaginable. The challenge is that we can never do both of these things at the same […]
• January 23 | Advice For New Parents: Prepare Yourself For A Sh*tload Of Advice

  When you become a new parent, already-parents are guaranteed to tell you a lot of things. Guaranteed to be among these things is the statement: “Enjoy it; it goes so fast!” I meant what I said in the title of this post — there is a shitload (that’s a business term; I have an MBA, people) of advice […]
• January 17 | “Feeling Overworked? Don’t Blame Siri” on Forbes

  Sometime in the last few years you became an entrepreneur—probably without meaning to. In the blink of an eye, your credit card was charged, your account was activated, and you went from being a traditional employee with clear work boundaries to someone who would carry their job around with them 24/7. Your world changed forever. […]
• January 9 | 2013: Year In Review

  My goals for 2013, and a reflection on each: 1) Regular physical activity every day This goal was an epic fail for me (again) until about November, when I decided to use something I typically hate — the loss of sunshine when Daylight Saving Time ends — to my advantage and reclaim my extra hour […]

2013 (25)

• November 19 | “Your Business Has A Moral Center” On Forbes

  It’s easy to vilify business. Sadly, we’re usually justified in these feelings, too. For many reasons, over the past decades business folks have gotten the idea that it’s OK to screw over their employees, foul up the environment, and treat customers like garbage. But all these antics are covering up another (here’s the other I recently wrote about) […]
• November 7 | How To Not Be A Douchebag

  Today we have a serious issue to discuss: how to NOT be a douchebag. Now, I’m pretty sure we all have the potential to be a douchebag, but I don’t think any of us really set out to be one (“What would you like to be when you grow up, Little Timmy?” “Well…”). But sometimes […]
• October 10 | How To Start A Revolution On Switch & Shift

  After the Summit, I was going to write a poignant and insightful blog post reflecting on my time in NYC. Then my good friends over at Switch & Shift emailed me and said, “Hey! You should write something about the Summit!” So, I wrote it, but it isn’t here — it’s there. I hope you’ll […]
• September 3 | Advice for My Daughter: Ask Questions

  Today I’m launching an idea that I’m hoping will become a recurring column here called Advice For My Daughter, outlining the most important things I’ve learned (and continue to learn) about life on this strange planet. I hope you enjoy it as well! -Josh Dear daughter, One of the most important things you can do […]
• August 27 | Advice For My Daughter: You Can Do Anything A Boy Can Do

  As much as it pains my deeply idealistic heart to write, there will someday come a time when a boy will somehow indicate to you that you are inferior to him in some way, simply because you were born a girl. Here’s all you need to know about that: It is complete and utter bullshit. […]
• August 22 | Why I Disappeared For A Few Weeks

  Hello friends! Apologies for my absence — although, you may agree that I had a good excuse if you read all the way to the bottom. Here are a few fun and interesting things going on in my world… 1) Work Revolution ‘Stuff’ Is (Finally) Happening! The term “work revolution” has appeared in various forms […]
• July 9 | How To Build An Astonishingly Great Startup Culture on Forbes

  I’m happy to report that I’ve officially published my first article in Forbes! Click the picture below to click through and check it out. In the article I explore a new way for startups and entrepreneurs to approach creating their company culture — namely, in a much more “organic” fashion. This is a topic that […]
• June 26 | Why Big Companies Will Never Be Sustainable Places To Work

  Earlier this week I met for happy hour with a dear friend and mentor. We’ve developed a 2x/year ritual where we get together at a mutually delicious spot on Ventura Boulevard, eat chips, drink a pitcher of margaritas, catch up, and swap business-y stories. Towards the end of our conversation, after adding a quesadilla into […]
• June 11 | Impending Daddyhood & Just In Time Learning

  When you’re about to become a dad, one fact becomes clear very quickly: With parenting, there is WAY too much information to absorb at once. I can’t physically take in the amount of data that’s smacking me upside the head at every turn — opinions about baby nutrition; ideas about strollers; opinions about whether we […]
• May 15 | The People Who Run The World

  The people who run the world do so because they care to do so. They are not any smarter than you or me. They don’t have access to any better information. They’re certainly not of higher character or moral fiber (if that wasn’t proved to you in 2008-2009, you weren’t paying attention). They don’t have […]
• May 6 | The Dirty Secret Of Diversity on Switch & Shift

  In our heads, we “get” why diversity is so important in our organizations — in practice, though, diversity is, well… really freaking hard. Why is this the case? And why is it so much more difficult for us to capitalize on diversity than it is for us to understand why it’s crucial? This week I […]
• April 16 | Your World Is Made Of Stories

  The world we see is dictated by the stories we’ve told ourselves about the world. From… The stories we tell ourselves about people of other faiths The stories we tell ourselves about where human beings came from The stories North Korean leaders tell its citizens about the outside world The stories we tell ourselves about […]
• April 9 | Learning To Say No To Good Things

  Entrepreneurs never want to pass up a good deal. We thrive in the shimmering halo of possibility. We’ve learned through experience that one opportunity almost always births another, and that it’s our job to see the things others miss. We are always on the alert for the next Whatever. Our ears are constantly perked and […]
• March 28 | Borrowing Time (A Story About Couches & Mountains)

  I looked at the clock: it said 4:53 am. I rolled over, as one does in the middle of the night, and noticed my wife gone. This isn’t a rare occurrence these days, as the baby in her belly often wakes her up by practicing early morning ninja moves, or sometimes her crazy husband has […]
• March 26 | The Saga Of Father-preneurship: Health Insurance Edition

  I know health insurance in the US is complicated for just about everyone. I will say, though, if your health insurance is provided through a company you work for, I hope you’ll pause for a quick moment of gratitude — you are blessed, perhaps more than you know. Let me explain. For those of us […]
• March 18 | Rushing Through Life Is A Form Of Violence

  The rush and pressure of modern life are a form, perhaps the most common form, of innate violence. To allow oneself to be carried away by a multitude of conflicting concerns, to surrender to too many demands, to commit oneself to too many projects, to want to help everyone in everything is to succumb to […]
• March 12 | Thoughts On Marissa Mayer, Yahoo, etc.

  A couple of weeks ago, it seemed like everywhere I looked online I saw an article about Marissa Mayer’s new policy at Yahoo about not allowing employees to work from home. (If you missed it, you can read the actual leaked internal memo here.) After all the ruckus began, I had conversations about this with […]
• March 8 | The Magic Of Strengths-Based Coaching

  I had the pleasure of presenting a virtual class entitled “The Magic of Strengths-Based Coaching” to the ICF (International Coach Federation) a couple weeks ago. Over 140 coaches attended from around the world! Here was the gist of the class: Research shows that the most effective leaders in the world share one surprising trait: they […]
• February 26 | “No One Is Replaceable” @ Fast Company

  This month in Fast Company I take on one of the most popular business fallacies out there: the myth that “everyone is replaceable.” When someone leaves our organization, we often think that they’ll be easy to replace — but this is getting harder to do, isn’t it? Why is this? How can we respond to […]
• February 11 | “Why Your Organization Sucks” On The Agency Post

  Recently I did an article for The Agency Post, which is an interactive publication for ad, PR and marketing professionals. It starts with an excerpt from my book, but then goes on with a customized end to illustrate some very actionable steps forward — if, by chance, you’d like to “un-suck” your organization in some […]
• February 4 | A New Addition

  Over the years, I’ve been publishing article-like content here, which has been great fun and hopefully added value to your life in some way. This year, in addition to providing you with tons of new ideas around company culture design, I’m going to begin sharing more of my personal stories on this blog. I’m pretty […]
• January 28 | 4 Unconventional Ways To Market Your Book On Aleweb

  Recently, Tara Alemany, a friend of mine from the LeadChange Group, asked me to write a guest post for her blog, Aleweb Social Marketing: The Conversations Around Us. She asked me about my experience with Igniting the Invisible Tribe so far, and to write a post on what works (and what doesn’t) when marketing a book online. Here’s what […]
• January 22 | Interview On Rideau’s Real Recognition Radio Show

  For all of you who are tired of reading (or just want something different!), this week I’m pleased to share with you an interview that was taped a few months back with the tremendously cool guys at Rideau’s Real Recognition Radio show. It airs live today! (Note: if you’re viewing this on 1/22/13 and missed […]
• January 13 | Future-Proofing Your Company on Under30CEO

  As promised, there will be weeks this year where I’ll point to an original article written by me but posted elsewhere. This week’s post is a feature I did for Under30CEO called “The 3 Ways To Future-Proof Your Organization.” Here’s an excerpt to get you started: It all started with a simple question: “What in the […]
• January 6 | 2012: Year In Review

  My goals for 2012 were: Publish and release my book. Travel outside of the US at least once. Increase Strengths Doctors revenues and client list. Speak more targeted gigs (corporations, conferences, leadership institutes, etc.) and get paid regularly for them. Do yoga Get some form of physical activity/exercise and floss every day (hey, I like my […]

2012 (52)

• December 17 | Why I Love Christmas Lights

  Every year, the day after Thanksgiving, my wife and I have a rather odd ritual — we dig boxes out of storage and move our furniture around. We then proceed to construct a fake tree inside of our house, wrap stringy glowing bulbs throughout the “needles,” and adorn it with strange little keepsakes on hooks. […]
• December 10 | Life And Music By Alan Watts (With Transcript)

  Transcript: In music, one doesn’t make the end of the composition the point of the composition. If that were so, the best conductors would be those who played fastest, and there would be composers who wrote only finales. People would go to concerts just to hear one crashing chord — because that’s the end! But we […]
• December 3 | 33voices & Book Giveaway

  I have a couple fun things to share with you today! First, I had the great pleasure to meet a new friend named Moe Abdou last week. He has a fantastic program called 33voices that “bring[s] together the most influential thinking and thinkers on the planet to help entrepreneurs and business creators build great businesses and […]
• November 26 | Delivering A Crisis Of Purpose

  When we bring our message to executives about a work revolution, we are reinforcing the message that profit is no longer a good enough reason to be in business. This is flat-out terrifying for many company leaders, because their entire career they’ve been taught that “maximizing shareholder value” is the entire reason business exists. You […]
• November 19 | Read This: BURST

  Much to my own disappointment, I haven’t read very many books lately. To some this may not be a big deal, but I have always loved reading — which makes this fact a rather huge bummer. It seems there are times in life when business and life circumstances conspire to keep us from our regular […]
• November 12 | The Commoditization Of Everything

  Awhile back I wrote an article for Fast Company where I talked about the “death of ownership.” The other day, I got a nice note from a writer at HuffPo Canada about it, and we proceeded to have a fascinating conversation about how the nature of what it means to “own things” is changing. He will be […]
• November 5 | Need To Solve A Problem? Try Space!

  We come across lots of problems (challenges, opportunities, etc.) in our organizations. No matter what we call these issues, there are plenty of things that aren’t working properly and require fixing. Every day, it seems, something new happens. New fires start and need to be put out. Of course, if you work inside any kind […]
• October 29 | My New Book Is Available NOW!

  I am absolutely delighted to tell you my new book, Igniting the Invisible Tribe: Designing An Organization That Doesn’t Suck, is available now! Official site: http://invisibletribebook.com This book is a simple and straightforward way to understand how the business marketplace has changed. Of course, many people are talking about how the world is evolving. But […]
• October 22 | Featured On Switch & Shift

  A new friend of mine (and now a Strengthscope Accredited Partner of ours, as well), Shawn Murphy,  has a terrific website called Shift & Switch where he and his co-authors are constantly showcasing and exploring better ways to do business. Over the next few weeks, they’ve gathered what they call their “League of Extraordinary Thinkers” to contribute posts […]
• October 15 | Lessons From SANG

  Last week I had the pleasure to attend a conference called SANG (Speakers & Authors Networking Group). In today’s post I thought I’d do something a little different and share a few of the most important/memorable things I came away with: GREAT THOUGHTS ON SPEAKING “It’s not about what I know, it’s about what they […]
• October 8 | The World Is Missing Your Voice

  As a highly strategic person, my tendency in group settings is to stay quiet and listen. I sit back, take it in, hearing all the options and opinions. I process the pathways each potential decision would lead us down, and determine the best option. All of this happens in my mind, and my particular set […]
• October 1 | Getting To The Fun

  I have a confession to make: I love So You Think You Can Dance. I find the show magnetically compelling and the talent breathtaking. I’m continually amazed by how completely effortless the dancers make these incredibly complicated moves look. They are clearly having an enormous amount of fun, and it makes people like me wish […]
• September 23 | A Response To “Generation Flux” (from Fast Company)

  Today’s post will require a tiny bit of pre-work. Earlier this year, Fast Company published a fascinating article called This Is Generation Flux: Meet The Pioneers Of The New (And Chaotic) Frontier Of Business. Overall, it’s a fantastic piece and I’d highly recommend reading it. The other reason I want you to read it, however, […]
• September 17 | Thinking About What’s Next

  When I think about what’s next for me and the consulting practice, I am pondering a couple of things — and neither is going to sound very sexy. To figure out where we should be going, I take a look at what humans and organizations need to move the world forward in a positive way. […]
• September 9 | Things I Know About Writing A Book, Part 3

  I’ve been creating things my entire life. From music to websites to (now) books, I’ve found that the creative process is usually remarkably similar. We artistic types have a vision in our head of what we believe our art will become when it is brought into the real world, and because of this we are […]
• September 2 | The Death Of Competitive Advantage

  It's time for "competitive advantage" to die. I mean, it's had a good run. But it's time for something better...
  
• August 27 | Things I Know About Writing A Book, Part 2

  By the time my new book, Igniting the Invisible Tribe, officially releases in a few short weeks, I will have been working on it for three and a half years. I’m aware that’s not an entirely unusual timeframe in “book-writing time,” but here in “regular-people time” it feels like f-o-r-e-v-e-r. And it has been quite an […]
• August 20 | Dismissing Generation Y

  This weekend I had the pleasure of bringing the keynote message to a student leadership retreat for a group at a private university in Denver, Colorado. This was particularly exciting for me because exactly ten years ago, I was them — I was a student leader watching from the crowd. I have to confess; I […]
• August 13 | Things I Know About Writing A Book, Part 1

  With my book releasing (very) soon, I thought I’d share with you some thoughts and reflections about the book writing and releasing process. My  new book, Igniting the Invisible Tribe: Designing An Organization That Doesn’t Suck, (go here to sign up for a release notification) initially grew out of a project I did for grad school […]
• August 6 | The 3 Rules Of The New Economy

  There are a few principles that companies will have to thoroughly integrate into the way they work if they wish to succeed in the new economy. I’ll be talking a lot more about this in my new book (available now!) and in upcoming speaking engagements (join me in Anaheim!), but I wanted to give you […]
• July 29 | Simplicity, Part 4

  If you can’t explain something simply, you probably don’t understand it well enough. // P.S. Want more simplicity? Here’s Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. //
• July 23 | The Myth Of ‘Slow Change’

  It takes a long time to build anything worthwhile. Building a house = slow. Building a relationship = slow. Building trust = slow. Building a great company = slow. Growing a tree = slow. Writing a book = slow. Recording an album = slow. Painting a painting = slow. This isn’t really all that surprising. […]
• July 15 | Thoughts On Millennials, Ownership, & Fast Company

  Last week, an article of mine was published in Fast Company online, which was a huge thrill. I’m a print subscriber myself, and greatly enjoy reading their magazine. Many people were very kind to share and retweet the article, but it also seems that it was surprisingly polarizing (as you’ll see if you scan through […]
• July 9 | What Makes Apple Work

  What is it that makes Apple so successful? It isn't a focus on flashy new features, market share, or profit...
  
• July 2 | More Art Than Science

  Awhile back, I attended an event called Mindshare in Los Angeles. That evening, one of the guest speakers was Garrett Lisi, a theoretical physicist who did a 20 minute session on the geometry of particle physics. Essentially, his entire presentation was built to show us pictures of the fascinating geometric patterns particles make at the […]
• June 25 | The Virtue Of Simplicity

  Simplicity is a core value of mine. I’ve written before about the difference between easy and simple, as well as the idea of a “good simple,” which exists on the “other side” of complexity. But for me, simplicity is quickly becoming more than an interesting notion to think about. Small spoiler alert: “Simplicity” is one of […]
• June 17 | Fish Are Not Aware Of Water

  There’s an interesting quote “floating” out there that goes like this: “Fish are not aware of water.” This describes our current situation pretty well. As you know, I’m quite convinced that humanity is experiencing a tremendous shift in the way we understand and process the world around us. In this example we are the fish. We’ve been […]
• June 11 | What If You Don’t Want To Start A Business?

  I love entrepreneurs. I am an entrepreneur myself, and I find working with other entrepreneurs very enjoyable because their energy is so compelling. Also, if you haven’t heard, this particular moment in history is a great time to be an entrepreneur — many authors and futurists are lauding entrepreneurialism as the “savior of business.” But I am troubled […]
• June 4 | Self-ish Leadership In Overdrive

  There’s a danger lurking in much of our work around leadership… It’s all about me. It’s about my development, my progress, my growth. In our rhetoric, we proclaim that we know leadership really isn’t about us — we “can’t be leaders without followers” and all that — but a quick search around “leadership” shows that […]
• May 28 | The Curious Case Of Tools v. Behaviors

  Tools can be great. But if we want them to actually make our lives better, our tools must always be balanced with the behaviors required to use them. Let me explain. Give me a bunch of great construction-worthy tools — hammers, nails, drills, tablesaws, etc. — and I won’t be able to do much other […]
• May 21 | The Downside Of Diversity

  We might talk about why diversity is great, but that doesn't mean we're actually DOING anything with it...
  
• May 14 | The Peak vs. The Path

  In our companies we push for “peak performance.” This makes perfect sense, because want and need individuals to perform their best at work, whatever that may look like in their particular role. But oftentimes, we get so obsessed with the “peak” that we forget about the “path.” We focus so much attention on the climbingthat we […]
• May 7 | 7 Shifts That Are Changing The World

  It’s safe to say the world of work is constantly evolving, and has been throughout history. But as you know if you’re a regular reader, I seem to think there’s something different about what’s happening at this particular moment in history. So what’s so different about now? There are seven things that make what’s happening […]
• April 30 | The Ultimate Scarcity

  If we buy the fact that everyone is indispensable, it means we have access to the ultimate scarcity: You. If there’s no one else like you, if you’re one of a kind, if there’s nobody else on the planet who can do what you can exactly the way you can do it — and if […]
• April 23 | When Tech Is No Longer Tech

  Over the last couple weeks, one of the other Strengthscope™ partners, Mike Miller, and I worked together on a large workshop. Originally, the session was pitched as a number of smaller breakouts, but was changed to take advantage of the whole team (100+ people) being together — which, of course, meant we had to modify […]
• April 16 | The Power Of Invisible Business

  It’s easy to overlook invisible things. After all, by definition we can’t see them. But there are plenty of invisible things which cause real, tangible effects. Wind. Rules. Emotions. Biases. What we often forget is that the majority of business is invisible, too. Much of our work happens behind the scenes, out of sight. This “invisible” […]
• April 9 | Lunar Landings & Disagreeing With Seth Godin

  I had to write something about this, because it’s just so damn rare. The other day I disagreed with my invisible mentor, Seth Godin. In one of his posts, he said: Tom Robbins, ranting in the Times, conflates the difficulty of making a living with the challenge of doing the writing: “What’s next…kiddie architects, juvenile […]
  
• April 2 | Everyone Is Indispensable

  Is your business still operating under the "No one is indispensable" myth? It's time for something new.
  
• March 26 | A Different Kind Of Normal

  I recently returned from my second visit to China. It was a wonderful trip, from San Francisco to Beijing to Nanjing to Shanghai to Los Angeles in about 10 days. Travel always makes me ponder existential things, and this time was no different. Here’s what I came back with: If we let it, travel can be a […]
• March 19 | It’s Time For A Work Revolution

  Since you’ve stumbled onto this blog, chances are good you’re already convinced that something about business needs to change. You might think that something about the way we’ve been working just isn’t working anymore. Well, I have a larger question. What if it’s not just something about work that needs to change? What if it’s […]
• March 14 | Interview with Y Gen Out Loud
• March 12 | Sir Ken Robinson On Thinking Differently

  And now, a word from Sir Ken Robinson: There was a report published in the fall by IBM called Capitalizing on Complexity. [Download it here.] It was based on a survey of 3,000 CEOs of for-profit companies, non-profits, social entrepreneurship and public sectors from around the world asking what’s on their minds. What was interesting […]
• March 5 | The Fourth Turning — Read This Book!

  If you're into things like predicting the future, this is a must-read book!
• February 27 | For Those Who Hate Networking

  Here's how to network if you hate "networking" as much as I do.
• February 21 | New Blog Design 2012

  If you’re reading this on my website, it’s no surprise — there’s a brand new blog design around these parts! (Of course, if you’re not reading this on my website, please stop by https://joshallan.com to check out the fresh digs.) Most everything should be fairly self explanatory. The biggest changes are the rich and inviting […]
• February 13 | The Artificial Scarcity Of Promotion

  Right now we've got one path up the corporate ladder, which creates an enormous amount of scarcity. Does it have to be this way?
  
• February 6 | The Unraveling of the Institution

  The next decade will bring a tremendous unraveling of our instituions. Here's why.
• January 30 | The Truths Of The World Lie In Paradox

  F. Scott Fitzgerald once said, "The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function." He didn't go far enough...
  
• January 23 | The Future Of Coaching

  Where is the field of coaching headed? Inside, that's where!
  
• January 15 | Artistry & The Power Of Choice

  Something we can all learn from artists.
  
• January 9 | Experiments In Telling The Future

  When we stop and think about it, we see that the world is changing in some fundamental ways. This can be scary. Here is an insight about dualities which helps us see with more clarity what's actually happening (and how we can best respond).
  
• January 4 | 2011: Year In Review

  In today's post, I list a few accomplishments I'm proud of from 2011. I also look forward and set some goals for 2012!
  

2011 (50)

• December 26 | And To All A Good Night

  A few thoughts on the darkest night of the year, endings, and the holiday season.
  
• December 19 | Bureaucracy: The Shell As Hard As Steel (& What Comes Next)

  We are drowning in a world overwhelmed with bureaucracy. How did we get here... and more importantly, what's NEXT?
  
• December 11 | Your Great Idea Doesn’t Matter

  What happens to "great ideas" in a world that's completely saturated with them?
  
• December 5 | Experience vs. Innovation

  There is a natural tension between the proponents of “experience” and those who tout “innovation.” Which direction should we go...!?
  
• November 27 | How To Build A Personal Leadership Brand

  We hear a lot these days about the importance of building a personal brand. But before we can jump into the promotional part, we need to first figure out what our own brand is all about... and that isn't easy. Here are the 3 steps to get you started.
  
• November 21 | How To Create A Passionate Organization

  Right now, we have a tremendous gap in our organizations: they don't allow our people to work on things they truly care about. (In fact, many of our org structures actively work against this.) Are you ready for something new? Here's what to do instead.
• November 14 | You Are Destined To Color Inside The Lines (So Draw Better Lines)

  The things we measure at work are ALL that matters. Here's why.
  
• November 7 | Everything Costs Something

  "Everything costs something." It's a simple truth—but like the best simple truths, that doesn't mean it's easy...
  
• October 30 | There Are Two Sides To Work: “Me” & “We”

  Learning how to create organizations that don't suck starts with understanding that there are two parts to an organization -- and right now, we all but ignore one of them.
  
• October 24 | How To Change The World

  After speaking to some groups of great students last week, I realized something about how to change the world...
  
• October 17 | A Tale Of Three Bricklayers

  You may have heard the story of the three bricklayers before. But you may have never thought about it quite like this...
  
• October 10 | What Is ‘Occupy Wall Street’ Really About?

  Wondering what the "Occupy Wall Street" movement is really about? You've come to the right place!
  
• October 3 | Branding In The 21st Century

  We used to be able to "fake" a brand -- not anymore. In the new economy, this is what branding is all about...
  
• September 26 | The New Hires Of Pixar

  If we want an amazing company culture, we have to work for it—it doesn't stay alive by accident. Here are a couple things the "crazy" folks at Pixar do.
  
• September 19 | How Superman Makes An Omelet

  There is something important we can learn about our own strengths from fictional friends like Superman and Spider-man, but it's a rarely-talked about notion within strengths theory: What if our greatest strengths are also our greatest weaknesses?
• September 12 | Ten Years Ago Yesterday

  Ten years ago yesterday we watched, aghast, as unthinkable acts of hatred altered the American landscape. And we were changed... for awhile...
  
• September 5 | A Performance Review-Shaped Hole

  The "performance review" needs to die, but it shouldn't be replaced with empty space. Here's what to do instead.
  
• August 29 | Build More Ladders

  I have a problem with the phrase "climbing the corporate ladder." What my problem is, though, may surprise you. It isn't with the "climbing" or even the "corporate," but with the singularity of the ladder...
  
• August 22 | Leadership Is Not For You (Revisited)

  Without followers we are not leaders; we are just lonely explorers. Today we discuss what it means to be a leader in the new economy...
  
• August 15 | Ridiculous Work Habits: “Experience”

  In this potential new series (i.e. I'm hoping to post more "ridiculous work habits" in the future), we're exploring one of the many absurd things we often do at work. Today's topic is how we think about "experience" on the job.
  
• August 1 | Thoughts On Prejudice & Individuality

  A few thoughts on a better way to view things like prejudice and individuality.
  
• July 25 | Recapturing The Hires

  In our companies, we continue to act as though people are interchangeable -- like we can give a set of identical tasks two two different people and they will do them in the same manner. This is incredibly destructive, and here's why...
  
• July 17 | A Talent Imbalance

  The industrial way of building an organization carries some hidden baggage with it, and we won't really be able to function as cooperatively or creatively as we should in the new economy until we discard the old structure. This is how we got here... and how we start getting out.
  
• July 11 | Button Pushers & Broken Education

  Most of us don't do "assembly line" type work anymore, but our organizations are still built for it. Today we explore how we got to this point... and it has everything to do with education.
  
• July 1 | The Work Revolution

  Just beyond our sight, bubbling beneath the waves and simmering behind the scenes, there is a silent revolution happening. This is not a movement of guns and knives, but of goodness and creativity. It is a complete "turn around" (i.e. "revolution") in mindset -- a new way to think about how work intersects with our lives.
  
• June 27 | How To Build A Strengths-Based Culture

  At the core of a healthy organization is the idea that people are respected and valued for their different gifts/strengths/talents. This is where true diversity is found, as well, as it is these innate abilities which create our worldview and varied perspectives. If you've ever wondered how to build a strengths-based culture in your organization and unlock all the benefits of a world-class environment, here's your guide!
  
• June 20 | The Sexy Organization

  Part of what's holding us back from creating better workplaces is that "structures" and "systems" just aren't very much fun to talk about. We should be glad, then, that organizations are about to get a lot sexier...
  
• June 13 | Tiger Woods Trains 6 Minutes A Day? (A Nod to Tom Peters)

  Today I'm featuring a small chapter called, "Train! Train! Train!" from a fabulous little book by Tom Peters called Essentials: Leadership. Do you have any idea how much time American workers spend "learning" on the job? It's shocking (and pathetic)...
  
• June 6 | Reinventing “Recruiting” – Experience Is Never Enough

  How can science know so much about human behavior and business ignore so much of it? The answer is simple, but not easy...
  
• May 30 | How To Kill A Passionate Startup

  A short, tragic story about how passionate tribes get killed in the new economy.
  
• May 23 | Gen Y Isn’t The Problem You Think It Is

  When the world changes, everyone looks for something/someone to take the blame for what's happening. In business, there is big blame falling on Gen Y -- but this is the wrong place to look for explanations...
  
• May 16 | It’s Time For HR To Die

  I have a feeling that HR is dying... and frankly, I'm quite excited about it. Here's why.
  
• May 9 | How To Build Credibility, Part Two

  Last week we discussed the first six items that help build credibility. Here are numbers seven through twelve!
  
• May 2 | How To Build Credibility, Part One

  In a recent post, Bob Lefsetz defined 12 things that a musician needs to do to build credibility and have a career. I think the list is absolutely terrific, but to make it more meaningful for us “over here,” I’m going to translate this list into the business world. Here are the first six!
  
• April 25 | Recognizing A Revolution

  Is the world of work really experiencing a revolution? Here's the best quick summary I've seen for how to recognize what's changing!
  
• April 18 | When Ideas Have Sex (& Other Fascinations)

  Today I wanted to share with you a few ideas that I've found interesting and valuable. They should also help explain why I think the way I do about the world...
  
• April 11 | Death To Performance Reviews

  As a manager or leader of other people, what's the first thing you should do to encourage more productivity and build a healthier workplace? Why, kill your performance reviews, of course! (Click through for the reason why.)
  
• April 4 | What Makes America Great

  America isn't a great country because of our preoccupation with liberty, our military, or our diversity. Like most things, America is great because of WHY she exists in the first place. And this fact has never been more important...
  
• March 28 | How To Navigate Life After College

  My friend Jenny Blake just accomplished a lifelong dream of hers and published her first book: Life After College: The Complete Guide To Getting What You Want. Click through for my thoughts and a link to get your copy!
  
• March 22 | A Bit Of Inspiration

  "Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do." (Click through for video.)
  
• March 14 | A (More) Dangerous Nepotism

  Nepotism has been around forever, but it's about to get a whole lot more dangerous in the new economy. This is why...
  
• March 7 | Why “Tribe” Is The New “Job Security”

  For all of the accelerated evolution that's currently happening in the world, there are a few things about human beings that seem to always stay the same. Today, my friend Jamie graciously allowed me a guest post on her fabulous blog. Check out my thoughts on Why "Tribe" Is The New "Job Security" here.
  
• February 28 | Why Value Is King & ‘Departments’ Should Die

  We've been taught that the purpose of work is to strive for money but this confuses the whole idea of value. This problem spills into the way we build companies, too -- here are some ideas for how to build a thriving New Economy Organization.
  
• February 17 | Notes From ICF Conversation

  I had the pleasure of speaking with the Los Angeles chapter of the International Coach Federation last night. We had an amazing group of minds gathered, and here are a few of the notes from our World Cafe discussion.
  
• February 14 | Going To The GRAMMYs & The Disappearing Mainstream

  I got to go to the Grammy Awards yesterday, and I must say I had a blast! But the ceremony also made me think about a few things, including the assumptions NARAS is making about society and how the entire idea of a "mainstream" is disappearing before our eyes...
  
• February 7 | The Easiest Way To Get $#it Done

  I've discovered a great trick to help me get more done during the day. It's very, very simple... but I had to kick a tiny *dinging* addiction to the curb first.
  
• February 1 | Re-imagining Work for The New Decade

  In case you missed it, last week I posted a brand new article on how we can begin re-imagining work on one of my favorite blogs: Rypple. Click through for the link!
  
• January 28 | Peter Block On Corrupt Compensation

  This is a short post by Peter Block, who happens to be one of my favorite thinkers on how to create more meaningful work. It starts focused on HR, but quickly blossoms into a vision for reinventing the whole corporate structure for the good of... well, everyone. Enjoy!
  
• January 24 | Do You Work Smarter Or Harder?

  This is a question that gets asked a lot in business, but most times it is crafted to inflict blame or find fault. I think there's a much more helpful way to approach it...
  
• January 3 | 2010: Year In Review

  Click through for a list of things I achieved and accomplishments I am proud of from 2010. Also, I look forward and set some goals for 2011!
  

2010 (32)

• November 30 | The Age Of Invisible Mentors

  It used to be that if we wanted to be mentored by someone we had to know them personally, and well enough to ask this relatively personal favor. That, or hope they were a published author. Not anymore.
  
• November 10 | How Good Things Get Made

  How does good stuff get created? Where do great ideas come from? I used to think it was all about the "brilliant individual." I don't think that anymore.
  
• November 9 | Network Roulette @ Brazen Careerist

  A shameless plug for one of my favorite networking websites and their new product/service called Network Roulette. This just may change the way we connect with new people online.
  
• October 25 | The Inhumanity Of Hunting

  It's no real secret that "job hunting" is an inhumane, almost toxic, sport. But what do we do about it? I have a few thoughts, and would love to hear yours!
  
• October 18 | Why Leisure Is Good For Business

  If we wish to help reinvent the workplace, we must first change the way we think about how our jobs actually create value. What if leisure and labor are two sides of the same coin?
  
• October 11 | 7 Things I’ve Learned In California

  I think I've learned more than seven things during my time in California, but there have been a couple big realizations that I thought were worthy of sharing.
  
• October 5 | The Reinvention Of Work (Our Mission)

  Humanity has spent too much time stuck in a Dilbert cartoon. We deserve better than to waste our lives doing work that doesn't make us, or the world, any better. Are you a revolutionary who wants to help create the new world of work? Read on...
  
• September 25 | Good Leaders Don’t Do Everything

  I see a lot of chatter around this general idea: "Leaders don't command what they are unwilling to do themselves." This mentality does more harm than good.
  
• August 30 | The Selfishness Of Helping ‘The World’

  We have this idea that to put too much attention on what drives and motivates us is somehow selfish. This is a lie. What the world really needs is exactly one thing: more you.
• August 23 | Glimpses Of Brilliance: IKEA

  What does a company need to do to survive in the emerging, volatile marketplace of tomorrow? Today we get some glimpses of brilliance and insight from one of my favorite stores -- a place that also happens to serve some of my favorite meatballs: IKEA.
  
• August 17 | How To Discover Your Strengths

  "Live a strong life." That sounds great, and we all want to do it, but... how? Discovering your strengths and rocking your career can be boiled down to a focus on three things: 1) Talent, 2) Life Experience, and 3) Passion. This is how to find your area of strength...
  
• August 12 | The Magic Of Organizational Change

  Bringing real, sustainable change to an organization can often seem impossible. But recognizing two simple things -- and reaching for the third option beyond either/or -- can help us dramatically.
  
• August 9 | Google Being Evil & Why Net Neutrality Matters

  We've been hearing a lot about Google "going evil" over the last week or so. This is why net neutrality matters to me, in just a few words.
• July 28 | ‘Team Players’ Are Killing Your Company

  In the modern corporation, creativity has been sacrificed in favor of forwarding the interests of the “Team Player." This is a great strategy -- if we want our companies to die within the next five 5 years...
• June 28 | Being Right Or Being Open

  There's nothing wrong with being right. Making "correct" decisions can help people, help organizations, and help the world. But at the end of the day, doesn't an obsessive need to be right all the time come in direct conflict with being open to new things?
• June 24 | Death by Info v. Death by Ignorance (& Gummi Bears)

  In the longstanding tradition of dividing the world into two types of people, I present to you two ways of thinking — both equally deadly, but for different reasons. Also, today our camps will be played by gelatinous colored mammals.
• June 20 | We Are What We Choose (2010 Princeton Baccalaureate Remarks by Jeff Bezos)

  Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, encourages the Princeton Class of 2010 to remember the difference between cleverness and kindness -- and that we become the choices we make.
• May 20 | The Future Of Publishing

  ˙ǝɹnʇnɟ ǝɥʇ ʇnoqɐ ʞuıɥʇ ǝʍ ʎɐʍ ǝɥʇ punoɹɐ uɹnʇ oʇ sn ɹoɟ ǝɯıʇ Check out this brilliant video on the future of publishing and how we see emerging leaders.
• May 17 | 7 Dirty Little Secrets of Job Hunting (How to Find a Job, Change Careers, etc.)

  Trying to make any kind of career shift can be incredibly frustrating, and I've found there are some dirty little secrets most people just don't talk about when it comes to job hunting. Here are 7 unconventional, and helpful, things I've learned.
• May 14 | Org Fit Has Nothing To Do With Your Org

  We don't "fit" an organization because of the organization. We fit because of the manager we work for and the team we work with. As a leader, are you spending enough time with those managers? Everything hangs in the balance of how we answer that question, and this is why...
• May 10 | Saving The World, One Household Product At A Time

  Is it possible to help save the world by buying "greener" products? I think so, and here's why...
• May 5 | Age Has Nothing To Do With How Old You Are

  If age isn't really about age, what is it about? (And why should we care...!?)
• April 27 | Leadership Is Not For You

  Is a leader's success always determined by what's BEHIND them?
• April 25 | From The Perspective Of A Volcano

  Last week I saw the latest footage of the havoc volcanic residue is having on European travel, showing travelers stranded everywhere and fed by the caption: "Making the best of a bad situation." But it's all about perspective, isn't it?
• March 29 | Kill The Jargon

  Jargon is everywhere. Just like countries, every industry has its own language with terminology, slang, and catch phrases. Some of this is fine, maybe even good — but there's something important here we can learn from Apple about making our communication more simple.
• February 26 | Questions Are The New Answers

  Everyone loves answers. But in the new "age of Google," it is the QUESTIONS we should be paying attention to.
• February 16 | Do One Thing Every Day That Scares You

  When Eleanor Roosevelt made this now-famous quote, I don't think she was talking about a fear of spiders or snakes. What if it's more about stepping outside of our comfort zone? (I get some help from Jim Carrey on this one.)
• February 8 | The Good Simple

  We need communicators who can make the simple things complex and people who can make those complex things simple again. This means both scientists to explain the mechanics of the mysterious glowing gaseous entities we call stars and poets to remind us of the profound childlike magic of tracing constellations with our fingertips. Finding our way through complexity is the only way to reach "the good simple."
• January 29 | End Of An Era

  Everyone wants to know what is going on with business. Rules that have worked for decades no longer seem to apply. What if we, as leaders, are missing something HUGE? Something that will change everything?
• January 26 | Choices Will Terminate You

  An interesting lesson in customer interactions, learned from a Terminator.
• January 19 | My Books

  As the word "author" is in my website title, I thought it fitting to actually create a page about my books. Click through for more info, including the synopsis for my brand new book coming later this year, The Silent Revolution.
• January 14 | Broke*: A Film About Music

  For more than a year, two of my best friends, Will Gray and Jon Kofahl, have been hard at work on a documentary about the state of the music industry and the uncertain future of independent musicians. The film is gorgeous and the story is compelling. Please support these guys, and support this conversation! Click through to watch the trailer and read more about the film.

2009 (40)

• December 28 | What Matters Now – Free eBook

  Just a couple weeks ago -- on December 14, 2009, to be exact -- one of my favorite thinkers and bloggers, Seth Godin, released a new FREE eBook called What Matters Now. It's a PDF collection of short, topical blurbs from some of the best writers and idea people around.
• December 11 | 12+1 Songs You Need On Your iPod (Holiday Edition)

  Even though it never snows where I live, I grew up in a place where the cold of winter seeps into your bones and December really does hold the darkest night of the year. Sparkling lights, hot cocoa, and melancholy music all seem to make more sense in that atmosphere, but the nostalgia still feels real and I'm grateful for that. Here's a list of some of my favorite holiday songs this season. I tried to make sure they were either slightly left-of-center (maybe even off your radar) or so extraordinarily beautiful that you simply must have them. Happy holidays, my friends.
• December 8 | Pay What You Want For My Last Album

  One of my favorite things to do is to create music. In fact, before I started working with leaders and writing books, I was playing shows with talented folks like The Fray / Sister Hazel / Mat Kearney and writing songs. Now I produce and write music in my spare time, and I'm always keeping an eye on new music business models. I've just teamed up with NoiseTrade (Fair Trade Music) to offer my last album, The Let Go, for whatever price you like. Seriously! You can even get it for free...
• December 7 | American Idol & My Nonexistent NBA Career

  I'm sure our collective parents all collectively meant well when they collectively told us that we could "be anything we wanted to be" when we grew up. Unfortunately, this is a lie.
• December 3 | Time To Buy Some Mazda Stock

  I was invited by Mazda to attend the Los Angeles Auto Show at the LA Convention Center on December 2, 2009. Mazda really surprised me, in a good way -- but it wasn't really because of their new car, the Mazda2 (although that was nice too)...
• November 12 | 12 Songs You Need On Your iPod, Part III (Goosebumps Edition)

  Welcome to Part III of 12 Songs You Need On Your iPod. This list is something I’m calling the Goosebumps Edition. I don’t mean this in a scary, book/tv series from the nineties kind of way, but more so in a “these songs tell such heart wrenchingly beautiful stories they give me goosebumps even after […]
• November 9 | 10,000 Hours Is Missing The Point

  Reprinted from Mike Morrison's fantastic email newsletter (November 4, 2009). The path toward mastery is not only critical to achieving a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment in our lives -- it is essential to creating meaningful change as a leader. We tend to think of the process of achieving mastery in terms of a "huge" time commitment -- 10,000 hours predicts one expert. It may be true -- but it is the wrong focus...
• November 5 | People: Your LEAST Important Asset

  Once upon a time, in the thick of the American industrial revolution, a highly respected and influential leader is said to have exclaimed: Why is it that I always get the whole person when what I really want is a pair of hands? That leader was Henry Ford...
• October 14 | Capitalism: A Love Story?

  Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story is one of the most important films of the year (seriously). If only he knew the definition of "capitalism"...
• October 13 | Where The Hell Is Matt?

  Travel is wondrous. Dancing is a blast. Combining them? Genius.
• October 12 | Culture Eats Strategy For Breakfast

  “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” I’ve experienced this firsthand, as likely have you. How many times have we seen a “great idea” for our organization get buried… somehow, mysteriously, and at the end reflect back on the process only to realize we have no idea how exactly it died? Short answer: the culture killed it.
• October 9 | How To Stop Sucking

  It seems like the right thing is to focus more time on making our weaknesses better. After all, this is what we are taught our whole lives in school--if I suck at math, I spend the most time working on that subject. But we are wrong. Focusing on our weaknesses is usually completely futile. Let's accept it: we all suck at something. And even more, what we suck at sucks the life out of us. So why do we keep doing these things!? How can we stop sucking?
• October 8 | New Blog Design

  Welcome to the new blog design! The WordPress theme is called Press and was designed by the great folks at Obox. I still have a few bugs to work out, but I'm hoping this makes the site a bit more aesthetically pleasing and my oft-long posts a bit easier for you to read...
• October 4 | The Epic Fail of California (and Why It Matters)

  Last night the headline of The Huffington Post, in characteristic bold red letters, said: CALIFORNIA: America's first failed state? California has the eighth largest economy in the entire world. So what could have gone so catastrophically wrong?
• September 30 | New Social Media Facts!

  Here's a brand new social media facts video from the kind folks at XPLANE and The Economist.
• September 24 | Invisible Speakers from Emo Labs

  This isn't a technology blog by any means, but these invisible speakers have the potential to be fairly game-changing for TVs, computers, and game systems. Have your mind blown right around the 2 minute mark.
• September 21 | You Cannot Legislate The Poor Into Freedom

  You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the industrious out of it. You don't multiply wealth by dividing it. Government cannot give anything to anybody that it doesn't first take from somebody else.
• September 18 | Looking At The Wrong Side Of An Airplane

  The title and opening sentence for this MSN article says: In the Air, Wi-Fi Gets a Ho-Hum Reception -- The good: Air travelers love Wi-Fi. The bad: They don't like having to pay for it. I would like to lend my professional opinion to this topic: DUH. To understand what's happening here, I think we have to look at this from a different point of view...
• September 16 | Making Sense Of Health Care

  I've been trying to make sense of the health care debate for some time now. Turns out, nobody seems to have a bloody clue what's going on. Until now. To date, this is literally the only thing that has made any sense to me, and I wanted to do my small part to spread the word.
• August 21 | The Death Of Books?

  The Social Media Revolution video I posted yesterday got some good dialogue going on my Facebook page, so I thought I'd bring it on over here. A couple of my friends brought out some pretty interesting issues; the discussion went like this...
• August 20 | Is Social Media A Fad?

  There's so much great stuff in this video that I couldn't not post it. My question is what's causing that shift in the first place? It's partially technology, but as Clay Shirky says: "A revolution doesn’t happen when society adopts new tools; it happens when society adopts new behaviors.”
• August 19 | Umair Haque On Constructive Capitalism

  Umair Haque is the Director of the Havas Media Lab, a new kind of strategic advisor that helps investors, entrepreneurs, and firms experiment with, craft, and drive radical management, business model, and strategic innovation. He is also a business blogger at the Harvard Business Review (which is, incidentally, where this bio came from: http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/haque/). At […]
• August 7 | 12 Songs You Need On Your iPod, Part II

  My first post of “12 Songs You Need On Your iPod” was surprisingly popular, so I thought I’d do it again. Maybe this should be a regular thing…? I do love promoting good music. This is a “relatively unknown but should be huge” list. If you don’t know these artists, I hope you’ll get to; […]
• July 29 | Why Excellence Is Not The Opposite Of Failure

  Excerpted from the phenomenal First, Break All The Rules, written by Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman, 1999 Conventional wisdom asserts that good is the opposite of bad, that if you want to understand excellence, you should investigate failure and then invert it. In society at large, we define good health as the absence of disease. […]
• May 31 | Genius & The Weight Of Creativity

  I just watched an incredible and insightful video on the oft-impossible weight of creativity from Elizabeth Gilbert (author of Eat, Pray, Love) at TED this year. If you consider yourself to be a creative person, or know someone who does, please take 20 minutes to watch this video. //
• May 27 | 3 Great Insights For Managing Gen Y

  I came across this interview today, and thought it had some really great things to say (don’t worry, it’s short!). MANAGING MILLENNIALS: OPENNESS, BALANCE, SPEED Get with it, baby boomers: A new generation craves information, speedy decisions and yes, an element of play at work, says CEO Brian Fetherstonhaugh Karl Moore: This is Karl Moore […]
• May 23 | 12 Songs You Need On Your iPod

  One of my obsessions is new music. It’s like a drug… and thankfully much cheaper. ;-) And even if you’re not as flashy as Elton, in my humble opinion at least, here are 12 songs that will make your iPod categorically better. It’s a proven fact, actually.* MUSIC STARTS HERE — links go straight to […]
• May 22 | The Grass Ain’t Greener

  In 2004, I worked as a night time producer and deejay at Mix 100.3 FM in Denver. My shift was 7pm-midnight. Every evening I greeted my newlywed wife at the door from her day of work, had a quick dinner, and began my 45-minute commute downtown. I would race up Kipling Parkway to Highway 6. […]
• May 19 | Don Tapscott Wants You To Hire Me

  OK, well, maybe not ME, exactly, but definitely US Gen Y’ers! For my new book, I’ve been doing a ridiculous amount of research about generational studies, social media, new technologies, culture shifts, etc. It’s an fascinating field, mostly because it’s in the beginning of its adoption phases. Given, phenomena do seem to “tip” at a […]
• May 15 | OK, Let’s Talk: An Open Response From Gen Y

  A TIME TO TALK: AN OPEN LETTER TO GEN Y Brian O’Neill (Guest Columnist, The Peninsula Gateway) Published: 01:02PM May 13th, 2009 As the spokesperson for Generation X, I would like to formally, if a tad belatedly, welcome Generation Y to the table. Those of you born between 1980 and 1995 already have lived through […]
• May 13 | Must-See: The Story Of Stuff

  I’ll keep this brief, as I’d love for you to consider taking the next 21 minutes to actually watch this video. In The Story Of Stuff, Annie Leonard does a completely masterful job of illustrating how we get all our “stuff,” where it comes from and where it goes. To be frank, this might be […]
• May 6 | Incorporate Yourself

  I’m working on writing another book. It started as an idea for a project I had to create for my MBA program and has morphed into a giant opus that is consuming my life. OK, that last part isn’t really true, but it does feel like a pretty daunting task sometimes. This morning I decided […]
• May 5 | God Is Not Gonna Paint Your Van

  Driving home from the office today I got stuck behind one of those huge old Dodge Ram vans — you know the kind where you can fit an entire living room set in the back. Most of it was beige-ish, although the cream-colored paint was fraying from the edges around the doors and windows like […]
• April 2 | Hulu, Napster, And The Sheriff Of Nottingham

  UPDATE 2/5/10 Apparently, the U.S. Congress has the same question I do: Why Did Hulu Block Boxee? Despite the strangeness of having something in common with Congress, I am still intrigued by the discussion around this issue; in many ways it represents a larger precedent for what could happen as the lines between television and […]
• March 9 | Unemployment, Greed, & Hope

  (I wrote this on January 9, 2009. Figured it was time to post it.) On msnbc.com there’s an interactive map of the US, showing the unemployment rates for each state. I helped my mouse travel around the country, saddened when I noticed my wife’s parents’ home state of Michigan at 7.3%. Everybody knows that Detroit’s […]
• March 6 | Outliers

  I finished reading Malcom Gladwell’s latest book, Outliers, a few nights ago. I know what I have to say about this book is going to be completely esoteric, in the sense that you will likely have to read it before fully participating. Not that you’re not brilliant people; I’m sure you can easily make sense […]
• March 5 | Productivity Stats

  I came across an fascinating list of stats provided by Dr. Donald E. Wetmore, the President of the Productivity Institute in Connecticut. Some pretty interesting stuff in here! There will be 2 million marriages in this country this year and 1 million divorces. 95% of divorces are caused by a “lack of communication” The average […]
• January 27 | What The Heck Is RSS!?

  Perhaps you are on the cutting edge of technological innovation, are already harnessing the awesome syndicating power of RSS, and recognize it for what it is: a snapshot of what the web will become in the next few years. But if you’re confused about what the heck RSS even IS (much less pondering its future […]
• January 25 | The Courage Of Detroit

  On Friday my lovely Mitten-native wife brought home a black and white copy of an article out of a recent issue of Sports Illustrated. It’s worth noting that we are probably one of the least sporty-inclined couples you will ever meet, so this is no small feat. In the frosty winter of 2001 I made […]
• January 17 | Must-See: Slumdog Millionaire

  Went to see Slumdog Millionaire in Burbank last night. You know, “buzz” is a funny thing. It’s almost like I’ve been “feeling” the buzz surrounding this film for a few weeks. If I tried to pinpoint exactly where it’s coming from, I’d have a really hard time… it’s mostly a comment here, a passing conversation, […]

2008 (25)

• December 27 | Lovin's For Fools

  I knew I had to post this when I saw that only 3,241 people had seen this video. I figure we can add singles — if not TENS — of people to that number. ;-) Absolutely lovely. //
• December 24 | Playing For Change: Peace Through Music

  I don’t suppose there are too many things better to post on Christmas Eve than something about peace. My friend Greg recently turned me on to this documentary, made by Mark Johnson, called “Playing For Change: Peace Through Music.” I don’t want to ruin all the fun by telling you the story here; take 18 […]
• November 10 | The Tytler Cycle

  I was meaning to write a profound and incendiary blog post today about something I recently learned of called The Tytler Cycle, but in my research, I came across an article written by John Eberhard and posted on CommonSenseGovernment.com. I don’t know anything about the author or the website it came from, but this essay […]
• November 4 | Paradoxical Art

  It seems to me that artists exist in some kind of existential purgatory. Anyone who considers themselves any kind of artist is constantly using art to make sense of the past and the present. To explain and elucidate, to bring some sense of order the universe — to make stars into constellations. At the same […]
• September 19 | Thoughts On Oil Addiction

  Now that gas prices are “coming down” (yes, we feel just GREAT about $3.75/gallon… what!?) I don’t sense the same urgency in the American populace to fix this problem that existed when it was $5. Of course, this placation was expected by most and predicted by many, but that doesn’t change the fact that there […]
• September 12 | Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog

  This is bloody genius. Enjoy!! //
• July 21 | Ben Stein On The Military

  While I Swim at Home, Our Combatants Fight On by Ben Stein (from NewsMax Magazine June 2008, Pg. 34) THERE IS A MAGNIFICENT SCENE IN BLADE RUNNER, MY FAVORITE postwar movie, in which Rutger Hauer, who plays a replicant, a human-looking robot, prepares to die. He tells his possibly human pursuer, Harrison Ford, that he […]
• July 2 | Lite-Brites, Sisyphus, & Expecting The Best

  When in a position of leadership, how much does a leader’s lack of faith in a subordinate actually create their downfall? Is there some kind of derivative of a self-fulfilling prophecy that happens here? To put it another way, will I, as a leader, only ever get as much as I expect out of the […]
• June 27 | Why 'Unrealistic' Goals Are Easier To Achieve

  By Tim Ferriss (excerpt from The 4-Hour Work Week) I had to bribe them. What other choice did I have? My lecture at Princeton had just ended with smiles and enthusiastic questions. At the same time, I knew that most students would go out and promptly do the opposite of what I preached. Most of […]
• June 3 | Tipping Behind The Scenes

  It’s easy to discount all the things that are happening behind the scenes. In our entertainment-based culture, we tend to only respect the final, glowing, sparkling, gleaming product, free from all blemishes and glitches. We airbrush our photos, we put 7 second time-delays on our “live” radio and television feeds, and we have dress rehearsals […]
• May 13 | The Millennial Melee

  An increasing topic of interest to me (and, apparently, the rest of the world) is the melee that seems to surround Generation Y. I’m sure you know many of these folks, as they are born between 1980-2000; they go by a number of names, including Generation Y, Echo Boom, the Net Generation, Generation Me, Sunshine […]
• May 11 | Triage Or Die

  I’ve been thinking about the concept of “triage” a lot lately. I understand that being a borderline hypochondriac doesn’t exactly qualify me to talk about triage as a medical concept, but I think as a more general idea, the concept of triage has a lot to offer. Allow me to explain… Wikipedia, the most reliable […]
• May 1 | A New Way To Get Music?

  The article I’m going to talk about is over a month old, but I just read it for the first time the other day, so ’round these parts (read: my blog) we get to treat it like news. ;-) Now, there are a lot of ways to get music. Some folks buy it from iTunes […]
• March 24 | LOST: Mystery Solved?

  My good friend Blanchard posted a link to an absolutely fascinating website on his blog the other day. Now, if you are a Lostie like me, you will probably have mixed feelings about this page. On one hand, we faithful LOST viewers have witnessed a lot of weirdness in the past 3.5 seasons and I […]
• March 20 | John Mayer Has A TV Show

  I suppose it would actually be more correct to say that John Mayer HAD a TV show, since this was done quite awhile ago. But some things are just timeless, you know? I’m pretty sure this goes in that category. Enjoy! John Mayer Has A TV Show (VH1) //
• February 25 | Coolness

  //
• February 5 | Jim Wallis: American Gangster

  I had the pleasure of seeing Mr. Jim Wallis speak at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena last night. He just released a new book called “The Great Awakening,” and has just started a book tour to promote it. (I haven’t read it yet, but I will soon!) I’m a regular reader of Jim’s work, and almost […]
• February 4 | What’s 3 Trillion?

  Written out, a trillion is a one followed by 12 zeros, or 1,000,000,000,000. That’s a million times one million, or a thousand times one billion. Multiply that times three and you have 3 trillion. Counting to 3 trillion at a rate of one number a second would take almost 95,000 years. One would have to […]
• January 29 | The Rich Young Me

  I had coffee last week with my friend Greg, and, as always, we had some great conversations about church, life, and the meaning of basically everything. In the Christian Bible, there’s a story about a rich young man who, one day, approached Jesus, wanting the inside track to the Kingdom. Jesus responds by reciting a […]
• January 28 | How To Get Your Customers Talking

  http://producten.hema.nl/ https://indiapharm.org/cenforce/
• January 26 | Just Can’t Wait To Be Cool

  Tonight Allison, I, and Housemate Kris watched a brilliant movie from the good ‘ol days (read: 1998) that you may have heard of entitled Can’t Hardly Wait. In case you live under a rock or were born after 1990, this was one of many late-nineties movies where the nerdy, yet heartfelt, love-struck white dude gets […]
• January 18 | Leadership In 60 Seconds

  Came across this over on www.thepracticeofleadership.net today. There are some really great thoughts in here. | View | Upload your own //
• January 9 | Did God Create Evil?

  The university professor challenged his students with this question: “Did God create everything that exists?” A student bravely replied “Yes, he did!” “God created everything?” the professor asked. “Yes sir,” the student replied. The professor answered, “If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works […]
• January 5 | A Grateful Stumble

  Today in the midst of my endless Google searching (thank you Input), I stumbled across this site, and this picture specifically: It occurred to me how grateful I am that there are people in the world who create stunning, beautiful art and post it online for everyone to enjoy. You don’t know me, but thanks […]
• January 2 | A Dramatic Chipmunk To Start 2008

  Despite the fact that this was hugely popular in 2007 (I have no idea why I never heard of it) and, also, the fact that I’m pretty sure it’s actually some kind of prairie dog and not a chipmunk, I still think it’s a perfect way to start 2008! Happy Dramatic New Year! //

2007 (26)

• December 16 | Free Download Of “Mary,” My Christmas Song

  UPDATE NOVEMBER 2014 — BRAND NEW VERSION! Available on Spotify HERE, iTunes HERE // In the spirt of Christmahanakwanzakuh (but mostly Christmas), I’ve just completed a brand new remix of my song “Mary.” If you aren’t familiar with this song, it’s a story I wrote for Dom & Jane’s Warm and Fuzzy Christmas Show for Mix […]
• December 13 | The Shopocalypse Is Upon Us!

  Morgan Spurlock, who is quickly becoming one of my favorite people, recently released a new film called “What Would Jesus Buy?“ From the movie’s website: “What Would Jesus Buy? follows Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping Gospel Choir as they go on a cross-country mission to save Christmas from the Shopocalypse: the end […]
• December 7 | Strategist, Catalyst, Philosopher

  (DISCLAIMER: There’s a whole lot of StrengthsFinder lingo in this post; if you’re finding yourself a bit confused, you probably should go check it out!) J. R. R. Tolkien once remarked, “Not all who wander are lost.” I imagine many of us are wandering, searching, looking for something. And if you are anything like me, […]
• November 7 | Ron Paul @ Google

  Listening to Ron Paul is kind of like reading a history textbook, which I realize could make him sound boring or antiquated, but, believe me, this one’s not. It’s refreshing, like hearing history re-told for our current context. When I hear Dr. Paul speak, suddenly the ideas our American forefathers believed in seem to make […]
• October 30 | Free Rice, Better Thyself

  Now, you may not be as big of a dork as I am, or subscribe to Dictionary.com’s Word of the Day (yeah, so!?), but you too can improve your vocabulary — and help the world at the same time! Enjoy! //
• October 2 | Strengths Insight: Communication

  I realized this morning on my short drive to the office that communication is actually a big part of how I feel alive. Back in the day, even at the height of my singer/songwriter music performer career, I would have never called myself a prolific songwriter. And now, I write a LOT, and do a […]
• October 1 | Change Lives Or Lives That Change?

  Today my friend and coworker Kevin said that he knows that we (the “staff” of Journey, where I work) all want to help “change lives.” But I’m not sure I do. For me, to “change lives” means to develop, to bring about incremental growth, to help someone off drugs, or to stop drinking, or to […]
  
• September 11 | Never Forget (9/11/07)

  May we never forget that violence always kills — not only the person who is murdered, but also the killer. Violence is always anti-Human. And let us never lose the hope — or the desire to create — better futures.   I always believed in futures I hope for better in November I try the […]
• August 20 | The Educated & Scholarly

  A few more words of wisdom from our friend, the “other” J.D.: “Many, many men have been just as troubled morally and spiritually as you are right now. Happily, some of them kept records of their troubles. You’ll learn from them — if you want to. Just as someday, if you have something to offer, […]
• August 17 | Education: Time For Something New

  On my vacation, my beautiful family-in-law and I visited the Mackinac Island area of Michigan (which I highly recommend if you haven’t been). While traipsing around the commercial tourist trap that is Main Street Mackinaw City, we found a small ice cream shop, and, as it was vacation forgoodnesssake, we knew it was time to […]
• August 15 | Holden Caulfield On Jesus, Etc.

  Thus spake Holden Caulfield: “I felt like praying or something, when I was in bed, but I couldn’t do it. I can’t always pray when I feel like it. In the first place, I’m sort of an atheist. I like Jesus and all, but I don’t care too much for most of the other stuff […]
• July 31 | Full Of Myself

  Over the past six weeks, I have being doing the Body For Life program, in a highly overdue project to regain my physical fitness. I was hungrily looking forward to gaining something that resembles pectoral muscles, and maybe develop “abs,” instead of my former, singular “ab.” But, man, this process takes way longer than I […]
• July 23 | Jesus Drives An LAX Airport Shuttle

  I guess you could say that I’ve been practicing “The Secret” for the last couple months. Kind of. I’d been meaning to watch/read/experience the “magic” for probably almost a year now, and also been putting it off, putting it off, blah blah. But when I flew back to Colorado for Gabe’s wedding in April, in […]
• July 20 | Music You Need On Your iPod

  A Fine Frenzy, “Ashes and Wine” Jeremy Lister, “Ready To Fall” Iron & Wine, “Boy With A Coin” Hem, “Half Acre” Griffin House, “The Guy That Says Goodbye To You Is Out Of His Mind” Michael Buble, “Everything” The Weepies, “Gotta Have You” Marty Sampson, “Landslide” Robert Randolph & The Family Band, “Ain’t Nothing Wrong […]
• July 18 | Easy vs. Simple

  Have you ever noticed that people do stupid things? Of course you have; we’ve all seen it… and been active participants ourselves, from time to time. How do we sort through the chaos of life to find good decisions? How do we get through the mess of constant OPINION that is trying to influence us in very […]
• July 10 | Spider-man 3 Part 2

  So, if you are a regular reader, you probably already know that I write freelance articles and movie reviews for RelevantMagazine.com. It’s been a lot of fun for me; I’ve really grown to appreciate the brilliance of the medium of film for communicating ideas of all kinds. About two months ago, I reviewed Spider-Man 3. […]
• June 12 | Gen Y (Y Not?)

  It seems as though many folks are having a hard time putting all the pieces together for how to relate to Gen Y. There is an incredible amount of work being done on this topic right now, but I thought this article from Fortune Magazine actually had some pretty good insight. It’s a bit long […]
• June 4 | War, PTS, & Responsibility

  A couple nights ago, some of my good friends and coworkers attended a post traumatic stress (PTS) informational workshop/presentation for families of war veterans. They went to support the efforts of an amazing man in our community that works to help said vets. Result: they went in jaded, and came out different. Nutshell of what […]
• April 19 | All This Gravity

  When you live in the desert, you try to get out whenever you can. “Yesterday Morning” by Matt Wertz As per our usual weekly arrangement, I accompanied my lovely wife on her ride down to acting class on Tuesday night. (And by “accompanied,” of course I mean drove the hour-plus ride and she took a […]
• March 14 | How To Create The Future

  Lately I’ve been abnormally preoccupied with the future. There are obviously endless ways to dichotomize humanity, but today I find myself wondering if we could split people into these two groups: People who stand by and let life happen to them, and People that make things happen: people who create the future. I was watching […]
• February 26 | Luminaries & Black Holes

  The most brilliant minds on the planet will tell you that the universe is expanding. We invent telescopes and we create science fiction to “boldly go where no one has gone before,” but we never really reach the edges or the explanations. Erwin McManus suggests that the space inside each person is even more vast […]
• February 9 | “What Would Jesus Do?” From GQ

  A couple years back, a guy named Walter Kirn, the literary editor for GQ Magazine at the time, actually took a week of his life and immersed himself completely in the christian subculture: all christian music, christian books, christian websites, christian food, christian everything. The resulting article is intense and fascinating; it’s quite long, but […]
• February 1 | California: The Edge Of Nothing (Except Maybe Sanity)

  I won’t lie: part of me moved to Los Angeles because I have an illness: it’s called “I-need-to-be-on-the-edge-ness-ingytis.” Apparently, there are innovators, early adapters, early majority, late majority, and boring/lazy people — I mean “laggards” — out there. Well, I try to hit that spot right between innovator and early adapter, and tell myself that […]
• January 20 | A Future Not Our Own

  It helps, now and then, to step back and take the long view. The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts, it is beyond our vision. We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work. Nothing we do is complete, which is another way of saying that […]
• January 17 | Los Angeles, City Of Broken Angels

  There are many things I love about LA. But some days, I fear for us. Some days, it seems like we are simply a haven for broken angels, where: …love of art, fame, and money have become the same thing. I almost wonder if I can even separate them anymore. …love of self has become […]
• January 9 | This Is How It Works

  “This is how it works You’re young until you’re not You love until you don’t You try until you can’t You laugh until you cry You cry until you laugh And everyone must breathe Until their dying breath No, this is how it works You peer inside yourself You take the things you like And […]

2006 (5)

• December 26 | Why God Is A Quarter Note (Or Eighth Note If You Prefer)

  I think, perhaps, that Life is what happens when we, physical, human representations come into contact with the spiritual, the super-natural, the divine. Like, if we are the trumpets, violins, and cellos and the Divine is the notion, the creativity, the spirit that put the notes in their rightful spots. When these forces meet, something […]
• November 30 | “Celebrate, Remember A Year In The Life Of Friends”

  *ESPECIALLY FOR MUSICAL THEATER / POP CULTURE JUNKIES* I just watched “Rent” the other night on DVD. I very much enjoyed the film, but something about the opening scene and thematic elements seemed eerily familiar to me… And then it hit me. It’s “Friends.” Seriously, think about it — you’ve got a number of friends […]
• July 3 | All God Needs Is Gravity To Hold Me Down

  Why does travel sound so good? Behold Alison Krauss & Union Station, in “Gravity“: And the people who love me still ask me When are you coming back to town And I answer quite frankly When they stop building roads And all God needs is gravity to hold me down Ahh, that sounds pretty nice… […]
• February 14 | the last day of school

  Maybe it was because it feels like spring (about 60 degrees and sunny here in Colorado) or maybe it was because I just got my last shift covered at the Buck, but for whatever reason, today felt like the last day of school. Remember that feeling? The rumbling anticipation, the giddy happiness, the tart spring […]
• January 19 | Don’t Forget Your Green Apron

  Every once in a great while I have these random moments of clarity; like suddenly everything makes sense and I have this peaceful, beautiful perspective of all that’s in existence. They’re always brief — like a flash of lightening that burns a shadow on my mind’s retina, leaving an imprint, a sense, much more lingering […]

2005 (13)

• December 13 | The Lovely Bones

  I wrote this on December 10th, 2005, at 3:33pm in Vail, Colorado, right after finishing a book by Alice Sebold called “The Lovely Bones;” its aftershocks are potent, and it is a book I highly recommend. ———— It shakes me heavily how someone can compose something so poignantly beautiful out of a story so horrifically […]
• December 4 | To Believe In God

  “To believe in God is to believe in the salvation of the world.” “The paradox of our time is that those who believe in God do not believe in the salvation of the world, and those who believe in the future of the world do not believe in God.” “Christians believe in ‘the end of […]
• July 20 | Hope

  It amazes me that someone can run a thread of purpose through our miniscule, pain-filled lives, but I do believe it. If I didn’t believe there was something out there I don’t understand that is able to do this utterly impossible something — namely: create purpose out of the constant mess of life — well, […]
• July 14 | Reality & TV

  Sometimes I hear people criticize a movie or a TV show for not being realistic. But the truth is, we don’t really want realistic, do we? I mean, if we really wanted REAL real life, we’d set our lawn chairs outside the neighbors’ house and watch them every night. Hm. No, I think want we […]
• July 1 | My Friend, Thomas Edison

  Perhaps the most evil thing about humanity isn’t our propensity for malevolence but our ability to get distracted. The other day I toured Henry Ford’s replica of Edison’s laboratory inside Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan. I was mentally transported to Menlo Park, New Jersey, where Thomas Edison and his team created history in the form […]
• June 30 | Storms

  Today in Michigan it rained; The sky turned a blue the shade Of a deep, angry ocean And the atmosphere cracked Like someone quite large was Ripping the sky in half. It Was Beautiful. //
• April 1 | still fighting it

  I just watched the video for Ben Folds’ song Still Fighting It — probably my favorite off his “Rockin’ The Suburbs” record. You, too, can be ripped from your present earthly state and thrust into a world of nostalgia and emotion by simply pressing PLAY above. I’m not sure why I feel the need to […]
• March 16 | My Life, A Movie

  (This post was mostly taken from a rare journal entry of mine back in August 26, 2003. It was just returned to my thoughts by this interview with Eugene Peterson.) It seems to me that the masses of the American public, myself included, desire to live their lives in the magical moments of a movie […]
• January 26 | Adventures In The Car Pool Lane

  Ah, the car pool. Now, I understand that “pool” has different meanings, but for me it just brings to mind an image of the old community swimming pool back home, lined with fading chipped baby-blue paint and car grills and headlights bobbing up through the water. The scaredy-cars are cowering near the edges, and a […]
• January 25 | College Students

  I almost hit a college student with my car today. I didn’t, though, so don’t worry (I knew you were worried). Apparently, trying to get directions out of the (very) tiny screen of a Palm Pilot and driving are two things that the male brain should not attempt to do concurrently. So, I’m in Boulder, […]
• January 14 | Just A Bit Of Silliness, Really

  I’m not sure what happened to me. You should know, before I begin, that I’m one of those people that saves every email they’ve ever written or received. So, as you can well imagine, approximately half of my 40GB hard drive is taken up with email (just kidding, but it’s really no laughing matter how […]
• January 13 | Soul

  So, I just finished writing (literally, just now) a new song called Soul, and, oh, am I all about moody songs right now. You know the kind: the beautiful and terrible poems set to music that elicit visions of nostalgia and fear, of joy and hatred. (If you need artists, reference Damien Rice, Patty Griffin, […]
• January 12 | The Beginning

  Welcome to my first attempt at “the blog!” For the longest time I had no idea what “blog” even meant; I thought it sounded like some kind of jello mold gone awry or an obscure Star Wars character, but no, in fact, it’s THIS. So here we are and away we go… By way of […]