Warren Buffett wrote these high impact words.  “It has been an article of faith for me that I should always try to hang out with people who are better than I… There is no question that by doing so you move yourself up.” If that strong article of faith is important to and critical for

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“You were right… I was wrong.”  “You are right… I am wrong.”  “You had it right… I had it wrong.”  “I should not have said what I said… particularly in the way I said it.”  “I acted without accurate, adequate information.  I responded too quickly.”  “In hindsight, I acted selfishly… foolishly… prematurely… without accurate, adequate

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Want to distinguish yourself from 98% of the “competition?”  Want to distinguish yourself from 90 to 95% of all people and all organizations across the entire world?  Want to live a life filled with joy, fulfillment, happiness, love, virtually unlimited opportunities, wonderful colleagues, as well as supportive friends, friends and more friends? Every day, every

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Traditionally, an eager young (or younger) person, with sincere aspirations to learn, grow and succeed is matched with, or approaches an “older, more experienced, supposedly wiser person” in order to establish a successful mentor/mentee relationship. In almost all cases, it is assumed that virtually all of the value of a mentor/mentee relationship, commonly known as

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You may read or hear results, from time to time, regarding national surveys designed to identify “The Happiest People in America.”  Numerous credible publishers, as well as regional and national media organizations annually conduct such surveys using a variety of tools, methods and resources. Surprising to many people, the results of these surveys more often than

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The most successful people… the most successful organizations… on every continent and in every country throughout the world… are intentionally and intensely focused on “the personal, professional and organizational experiences” of the people and organizations they serve! Every successful organization carefully monitors satisfaction and “the customer experience.”  You will find a direct and high correlation between the

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Stephen M. R. Covey, the highly successful son of Dr. Stephen R. Covey (The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People) writes and speaks on the critical importance of trust.  A Harvard MBA, Stephen wrote the book entitled The Speed of Trust.  Stephen speaks and consults around the world regarding the critical importance and the many benefits

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First, let’s acknowledge that Elvis Presley had plenty of weaknesses and failures… just like you and me.  Throughout his entire personal and professional life, Elvis struggled with many issues and temptations… just like you and me.  Elvis was far from perfect… just like you and me. So why have over one billion Elvis Presley records

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Lisa Disbrow, a young successful entrepreneur and mother of two from North Carolina was featured in a recent issue of Inc. Magazine.  The article provides detail regarding Lisa’s struggle to balance her personal and professional life, including time and focus on her successful clothing boutiques, given her unfortunate diagnosis, treatment and the increasingly devastating impact

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Sometimes you get lucky… very lucky.  Luck, of course, almost always occurs when preparation meets opportunity. Earlier this week, I had the great honor and privilege of presenting and leading a discussion for 200 leaders of Affinity Health System, a highly successful integrated health system located in Northeastern Wisconsin.  The presentation/discussion was titled,Leadership Excellence: The

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How does Starbucks take an ordinary… some would argue a mundane product… and transform it into an extraordinary business success?  Starting with a single store in Seattle, the Starbucks’ name is now virtually interchangeable with the word coffee. Even with some recent setbacks and bumps in the road, Starbucks continues to grow and innovate while

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Some of the most beautiful and precious gifts in life are wonderful friends and colleagues who provide great personal and professional value by providing highly relevant “tips” from time to time.  A perfect example is my long-time friend and colleague, Calvin Colbert.  Calvin is a Vice President with Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the well-known and

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Want more security, money, power, clout?  Every well-read and well-connected leader has read or heard the advice… become irreplaceable!  Bad advice… for a million reasons… very bad advice! For the most part, our planet has done quite well for billions of years before you and I arrived.  The people who inhabited our planet for thousands of

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Fifty-three years old… and he just completed his MBA from Emory University in Atlanta.  One might conclude… “Slow Learner.” That conclusion would be wrong.  Dead wrong! Jim Wetrich, President, U.S. Wound Care Division and General Manager of Molnlycke Health Care, United States & Latin America, did in fact just recently earn an MBA from Emory

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A recent issue of Fortune Magazine included an interview with Bill Gates.  The interviewer, Andy Serwer, questioned Gates regarding some of the best advice and critical lessons learned in his personal life and as Co-founder and CEO of Microsoft and Co-founder and Co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.  You can read the entire

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The Secret Weapon to a Sharper Mind and Better Business… How Exercise Changed My Life.  That is the title of an article Mel Robbins wrote for Success Magazine after interviewing Dr. John Ratey.  Dr. Ratey is the author of the book, Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain. The interview with Dr. Ratey

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Warren Buffett wrote the forword of a book I am currently studying.  Notice I said studying rather than just reading.  This excellent book is entitled The Ten Commandments for Business Failure.  The book was written by Donald R. Keough, the former president of The Coca-Cola Company. In the forword, Warren Buffet describes his highly successful life-long

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Articles, books, speeches, training and more training, conferences, seminars, blogs, tweets, and probably billions of spoken words… all about the ramifications and “how to’s” of integrity.  There has probably never been a time when integrity was more discussed yet more bent, broken, abused and ignored. A recent Harvard Business Review article, entitled The Practice of Performance

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“Reset priorities to face the new reality.” “Keep investing in the core.”  The most successful leaders and companies never stop funding their most critical competencies. “Communicate like crazy, balancing realism and optimism.” “Your customers face new problems, so give them new solutions.” “Reevaluate people – and attract other good ones.” “Reexamine compensation – what is

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This time of year, we hear and see much about giving.  Television and radio broadcasts feature individuals and organizations that are giving to help the less fortunate.  The Internet is full of emails, podcasts, tweets, and hundreds of thousands of written, audio and/or video stories featuring individuals and organizations that are giving in order to

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