We use the words Journey and Adventure quite often when we talk about life. Some people use them as synonyms but they aren’t. A Journey is an act of traveling from one place to another. An Adventure is an unusual and exciting experience or activity. Last week, one of my proteges reached […]
Category: Inspiration
Premortems, Hindsight & Regret
When it comes to making important decisions, I have grown to see great value in writing a premortem. The below excerpt describing a premortem comes courtesy of the Harvard Business Review: “A premortem is the hypothetical opposite of a postmortem. A postmortem in a medical setting allows health professionals and the […]
I Wanna Rock!
I recently stumbled across the music video for Twisted Sister’s song, “I Wanna Rock”. It had been quite some time since I had seen it and watching the preamble to the song where the teacher asks one of the students, “What do you wanna do with your life?” took me […]
Choices and Decisions
I enjoy eating at In-N-Out Burger. The service is efficient, the food is high quality, and the menu is simple. When I eat there, it’s not difficult for me to choose what I want to eat – it’s usually a “double-double, animal style.” I also enjoy eating at The Cheesecake […]
Intent to Scratch
I remember the first time my son participated in a swim meet that had preliminaries and finals. It was his first year swimming and the meet was held at the US Naval Academy. During preliminaries he tied for second alternate in the 50 free. That meant that if he won […]
Self-Approval
As life goes on, I find that I continue to place an increased emphasis on self-satisfaction than I do on earning the approval of others. I started life completely on the other end of the spectrum and as I spend more time with teenagers I am reminded that the same […]
Psychic Income
I continue to live in a world where monetary income is predicated by a combination of one’s rank and longevity. Some might say that contributions, expertise, and commitment to the team inform one’s rank and length of service over time and I don’t disagree, but that is a conversation for another […]
Hard Right Rudder
I sincerely appreciate mentors who have and continue to invest in me. Even more than that, I appreciate the opportunity to invest in protégés. As I continue to provide counsel to others, I have ceased being surprised when a protégé tells me that the advice I give them is very […]
A Gallon of Play
Three days ago, I entered the 27th year of this amazing Navy journey (31st if we were to consider my time at the US Naval Academy). That milestone, coupled with the fact that I am seeing my Shipmates retire at an increased rate, certainly has grabbed my attention. Not sure […]
Company We Keep
It is said that we are the company we keep. Recent events have given me the opportunity to truly evaluate who that makes me. My parents made the company my brother and I would keep a priority of theirs from the very beginning. Early in our childhood, they decided to […]
Defining Ourselves
Last month, I shared a post about an experiment that I had undertaken to crowdsource the development of the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental Strategic Guidance. I was pleased, though not surprised by the final product. What did surprise me, however, was the uncovering of what I believe to be the […]
Bread Sunday
Our military housing community enjoys a tradition that is called Bread Sunday. Each week the same gracious volunteer gets up early Sunday morning and makes her way to a local supermarket chain where she picks up baked goods donated for the benefit of neighborhood military members. Sometimes it is heavy […]
(It’s The) Work That Matters
I’ve had many jobs over the course of my career. I may not have enjoyed them all, but I am glad to have had the opportunity to execute the responsibilities associated with each. Each and every job made me feel as though I was doing work that mattered. In nearly […]
Thanks for the Lessons…
I am far from fanatical about Christmas and I have never been overly excited about ringing in the New Year at the strike of midnight. But, I do thoroughly enjoy the tradition of winding down and reconnecting with family and friends that accompanies year end traditions. This year has been […]
(Un)Comfortably Falling Short
It was about this time (beginning of 4th month on the team) in my last tour when I had a couple of teammates make it a point to tell me that they were definitely being stretched in their jobs. As the Commanding Officer, I had been asking some of them […]
Drawing Inspiration
Today is the 30th of the month and as part of my commitment to myself, it marks one of the three days each month I publish a blogpost. I have so many things that I want to write about, but find myself totally uninspired. My wife picked up on it […]
What Jar Are You In?
We often assess others by the answers they provide. Those who have the right answers must be the most knowledgeable. We often assess companies based on the mission that drives them and their ability to deliver on it. Those who deliver the most value today are most likely to get […]
The Quest to be Good
It was a drive like so many others: My son and I driving through the heart of Silicon Valley to his swim practice. My wife or I make that trip six days a week and sometimes twice a day. No doubt a huge commitment for all of us. This particular […]
Enjoyment Enablers
Enjoyment is the state of process of taking pleasure in something. It is also defined as the action of possessing and benefitting from something. Of late, I am increasingly reminded that some people in this world are very focused on and take great pride in providing enjoyment to others – they […]
The Fray
The fray is where the real work takes place. The fray is where action happens. The fray is the part of the organization that the Doers call home. Early in my career I operated in the fray and enjoyed it immensely. At times I thrived in it and at times […]