“All I want to know is where I’m going to die, so I’ll never go there.” — Charlie Munger Last week, I talked about who I was on my best days and how different that person was from me on my worst days. I want to be that best-day-Brad more often! So I looked again at…
“…the strength of the pack is the Wolf and the strength of the Wolf is the pack.” ~ from Rudyard Kipling’s The Second Jungle Book Those who know me would tell you about my focus on improving daily. I strive to improve my craft, become a better listener, and grow in my ability to lead myself and influence…
Self-esteem is like a difficult-to-cultivate flower. It requires frequent nurturing that occurs when you keep your word and follow through on your promises. Derrick Bell This year, I’ve been on a journey to become more impeccable with my word. When I commit to being somewhere, doing something for someone, or following up, I’m more rigorous…
Watching the Olympics makes me cry. I don’t just occasionally cry during some events, nor do I save the tears for the medal presentations (though that’s usually when I cry the hardest). Watching humans who have devoted their lives to achieving the highest performance in their sport makes me so emotional. Seeing a swimmer touch the…
To have hope requires bravery and vulnerability. To hope is to risk disappointment. Giving up hope protects you from disappointment, from being let down, and from looking like a fool who believes in such poppycock. But when you are doing something new, something exciting and potentially spectacular, there will be plenty of voices telling you…
Casey and Caitlin from the magical BWB invited me to guest on their Questions to Hold podcast. We explored the relationship between leadership and business growth, from understanding ourselves to championing our true identities and finding the gift in our blind spots. If you want the details, listen to the whole episode. But the moment…
Last week, I asked the question, “How do you gather your strength when you’ve been knocked down? What tools or strategies do you use to continue to do hard things when you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel? “ Many of you responded (I’m so grateful!). Here are some excerpts from…
A few years ago, I read Being Mortal by Atul Gawande. It’s an excellent book about end-of-life issues and I highly recommend it, but the idea that most stuck with me is summarized in this quote: “We want autonomy for ourselves and safety for those we love. That remains the main problem and paradox for…
The university’s President took the podium at my college graduation and said one sentence that has stuck in my brain ever since. But first, let me give you some context. I had a great time at college. Sure, I worked hard, but I also had fun! I was involved with a fraternity, a campus christian…
My chosen form of regular exercise is swimming, and most weeks you’ll find me in the pool 2 – 3 mornings. This last week I was doing my regular swim when I noticed the water in the pool was very cloudy. How cloudy? The line on the bottom of the pool that tells me that…