Do you ever get a gift that’s almost what you want, but not quite? People who know me know I don’t like books, as I wrote about in “Less, please“. Sometimes someone gives me a book. I don’t want it. I can get it from the library across the street from me. Now I have to feel weird selling to a bookstore for $5 something you paid $25 for. What[…] Keep reading →
A reader and former NYU collaborator sent me this article from Fast Company under their “Leadership” heading: “27 Questions To Ask Instead Of “What Do You Do?” She knows my passion for effective and meaningful conversation, making people feel comfortable sharing their vulnerabilities, and supporting them on things they care about. Longtime readers will remember how I disparage “So what do you do?” as a leach that saps passion from[…] Keep reading →
Continuing my Saturday series on posting my answers to questions from Quora, here are my next questions answered: What makes a man feel loved? Which business thought leaders do you follow and why? It seems that guys nowadays are just interested in no-strings-attached-sex. How is it possible in this day and age to find a guy for a committed monogamous relationship (ages 25-35)? Where can I learn a whole package[…] Keep reading →
Michael Roderick is a superconnector—the type of person that gets written up and interviewed for his passion for connecting people and helping people make things happen. I owe several extremely productive relationships to him as well as close friendships. I’ve learned that when he suggests a connection, it’s worth making. If I share with him what I’m looking for in life, a few days later I get an email from[…] Keep reading →
I don’t like getting or giving surprises in relationships. The only exceptions are for birthday parties and the competition. Everyone else I try to prepare as early as I can. I do my best to foster relationships where people feel comfortable telling me things as early as they can, even if it would make me uncomfortable. I believe my courses teach these habits through teaching empathy, compassion, and self-awareness. I’ve[…] Keep reading →
Continuing my Saturday series on posting my answers to questions from Quora, here are my next questions answered: What are some historical examples of failures managed by great leaders? Especially by taking responsibility and not throwing anybody under the bus. How do I overcome feelings of anger and jealousy? How can people overcome insecurity and jealousy in their relationships? Is it possible to overcome jealousy? If so, how can jealousy[…] Keep reading →
For Vince Lombardi’s birthday, I wrote in Inc.com, “These two surprisingly touching Vince Lombardi quotes reveal the source of his winning leadership.” The piece begins These two surprisingly touching Vince Lombardi quotes reveal the source of his winning leadership For the great coach’s birthday, how to create winning traditions in your teams. I’m writing this article exhausted and sore because two days ago I started researching for this article. Having[…] Keep reading →
I got a few short clips from my presentation on entrepreneurship when I spoke at Princeton’s Elab recently. This clip shows a great nugget of how to turn cold connections into warm ones. It has more to it, but that’s the big one. I love putting it into practice.
We all have strong motivations—what I call passions. Some of us feel like we don’t, but we do. Motivations that drive us our whole lives, that we can always tap for energy to do things. Some we like, others we don’t. Some are solitary, others are social. One thing for everyone: our greatest passions are also our greatest vulnerabilities. Great passions enable others, if they know about them, to motivate[…] Keep reading →