break through innovation

Contagious

The sneeze of your seatmate on an airplane sends a bolt of disgust through your mind. “Now I’m going to ...

The Math of Worrying

Think about how much time you spend fretting about what might happen.  Those deer-in-the-headlights moments are not only agonizing but ...

7 Deadly Sins of Leadership

With mounting pressure and competitive tension, you may be seduced into sloppy leadership patterns that can ultimately hurt your business.  ...

The Past Is Dead

We all face incredible challenges in our lives. Difficult people. Ruthless competition. Time constraints. But so many of us succumb ...

Fire Department Urgency

A few hours after I posted this blog, 19 firefighters tragically lost their lives in Arizona, giving everything they had ...

Choose How You Respond

We all get provoked.  An angry associate; a cranky customer; a snarling spouse.  In these cases, the primitive part of ...

6 Lessons I Learned From My Father

Robert Linkner was one strange dude.  He forged his own path as he journeyed from hippie to psychologist to retailer ...

Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda

Last week I heard from three different people on three separate occasions about how they had a great idea but ...

Sherpa Leadership: 5 Powerful Lessons

If you set out to climb Mt. Everest, one of the first things you do is hire a Sherpa.  Originally ...

The Creative Twist

Too often, leaders accept defeat when challenges seem insurmountable.  They concede quickly, bowing to the pressures of the day.  If ...