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Blog Archive 📝

2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 • 2016 • 2015 • 2014 • 2013 • 2012 • 2011 • 2010 • 2009 • 2008 • 2007 • 2006 • 2005

2024 (19)

2023 (3)

2022 (1)

2021 (1)

2020 (9)

2019 (18)

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…
  • 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…

2017 (6)

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.…
  • 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…

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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!”…
  • 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…
  • 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…

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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)…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.…
  • 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…
  • 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:…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…
  • 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...
    What Is The Truth?
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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:…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…
  • 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…
  • 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,”…
  • 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…
  • 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…

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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,…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…

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,…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.…

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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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.)…
  • 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,…
  • 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)…
  • 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…
  • 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…
  • 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…

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