Ideas about leadership, alignment, trust, accountability, and helping people move in a shared direction.
Don’t think what is my next move , Think is the my third move Not one. Not fifty. Three. If you only think about your next move, you’re too close to the problem. Almost anything can disrupt it—a change in priorities, someone else’s decision, or an unexpected problem. But thinking fifty moves ahead creates the …
What is something you desperately wanted five years ago that barely excites you today? That’s the hedonic cycle. Want → Get → Enjoy → Adapt → Want The promotion feels great—until it becomes your job. The new car is exciting—until it’s just your car. The bigger house feels like an achievement—until it becomes normal. So …
On any subject, you can disagree, agree, or stay neutral. But what you can’t do is let it become a stalemate. Healthy organizations don’t require everyone to think the same. They require people to challenge ideas, understand different perspectives, make decisions, and then move forward. You don’t have to agree. You do have to play …
Read more “Disagree, Agree, or Stay Neutral — Just Don’t Stalemate”
In business, we often celebrate the person at the top. The person making the decisions. Setting the direction. Taking responsibility when things go wrong. Carrying the weight of the organization on their shoulders. That is the King. But there is another role that can be just as powerful: the King Maker. The King Maker isn’t …
There is a saying I have come to like: If they are playing checkers, play chess.If they are playing chess, play Go.If they are playing Go, play checkers. At first, it sounds like a lesson in always playing a more complicated game. I don’t think that’s the point. The point is not to let someone …
We’ve all heard it: “If you’re the smartest person in the room, find a new room.” There are two ways to respond. The Servant Learner Leave. Find a smarter room and keep learning. That’s valuable, but it’s largely a short-term strategy. You build relationships around what you can learn next, and your network can become …
Some people spend their lives keeping every bridge standing. They keep everyone happy, give everyone access, and make sure nobody is ever pushed away. Their island stays clean, but eventually there is nothing on it that is truly their own. Others burn every bridge. They push everyone away, trust no one, and end up standing …
We love to say, “Keep it simple.” But selective simplicity creates a problem. We allow the things we value most to become incredibly complex—because we believe they require expertise, nuance, and sophistication. Then we demand that everything around them be simple. That contradiction costs more than efficiency. It costs trust, integrity, and ultimately your brand. …
We celebrate too early. Hitting the goal feels like a win, but a result alone doesn’t prove that we actually learned anything. If the same mistakes show up the next time we try, then the first “win” was really just a temporary outcome. The real win comes when we achieve the next goal without repeating …
Imagine a Monthly Business Review of Pearl Harbor. The presenter walks into the room with a confident smile. “Overall, a pretty successful month. Our team showed great resilience.” Ten air-to-air wins. Ten ground-to-air wins. Thousands of servicemen healthy and ready for deployment. A new reef system seeded in the harbor. Green checkmarks everywhere. Sounds pretty …
Read more “When Your MBR Can Only Report Wins, Goodhart’s Law Goes on Steroids”