What We Think
You can’t pour from an empty cup. Fill up often.
– Julie Jakopic
What We Think
You can’t pour from an empty cup. Fill up often.
– Julie Jakopic
Lead Boldly Blog
LEAD BOLDLY: What Do You Do with a Dragon?
I had a conversation with a friend a few years back. He ended our call with “I’m off to go slay dragons.” My response? “Why would you do that, instead tame them and harness their power for greater good.” When I think of dragons, I think of the opposition to...
LEAD BOLDLY: Super Vision
Whether it’s getting a kid to do the dishes at home or a team to build a project at work, leaders are in the business of getting other people to do stuff. And part of that involves some level of oversight. Of supervision. Or as I’d like to think about it “super...
LEAD BOLDLY: Where’s my latte?
It’s a joke with my team. There used to be an ad for Starbucks where a guy walked into the shop and ordered five different complicated coffees. You know, things like a venti, half caff, with a shot of vanilla, and almond milk. As he finished the order, he asked,...
LEAD BOLDLY: The Cursed Hows
It doesn’t seem to matter how much I teach other people to focus on what they want, and not how they’re going to get there, I keep needing to re-learn it. Too often I am committed to how I’m trying to do something and get stuck on how I’m doing it instead of what I’m...
LEAD BOLDLY: C.E.L.E.B.R.A.T.E.
If you are like me, left to your own devices, you finish one big project and move on to the next. Continuously expecting excellence and measuring yourself against perfection. After all, you expected success. Getting it was normal, not special. And over time, all of...
LEAD BOLDLY: Asking for a friend
People used to say that I didn’t ask for much. They were right. And that was the problem. When you don’t ask You miss opportunities You spend your time on things others might be willing to do and do better, freeing you up to do what you are best at You end up feeling...
LEAD BOLDLY: No One
No one has it all together. No one does it alone. Not a single person does. Not you. Not me. It is about resilience and a team. Resilience to solve problems quickly and move on and people you can count on when it goes awry. Amongst the total mess of things that I’ve...
LEAD BOLDLY: It doesn’t have to be
I was at an event a few weeks ago. In my friend's kitchen there was a magnet on the refrigerator that said “it is what it is.” I’ve heard it a zillion times but on that day I heard it differently. I wondered well yes that’s how things are but do they need to stay that...
LEAD BOLDLY: Life, Death, Love, and Work
Heavy-ish I know but on my mind this week. Last week, an amazing teacher here in Alexandria, died at the high school where he taught. He had been teaching longer than I have been alive. So there has been lots of discussion of my friends who were or had children who...
Never enough
It’s always been true. There have always been 24 hours in a day. And for some reason, there’s never been enough time. We always wanted more. That’s why we drive cars instead of ride horses. That’s why we send email instead of snail mail. That’s why we have phones, and...
No resolutions yet please
Really. Before you put lose weight, save money, work less and read more books on your list for the umpteenth year, stop and answer a few questions. What am I proud of from this year? What did I learn about me and anything else this year? What do I want more of next...
There’s always more
I met my friend Kelly for happy hour a few weeks ago. We ordered some amazing jumbo shrimp as an appetizer with our cocktails. The order had 5 shrimp. I gave Kelly 2, took 2 and then started to struggle to unshell the third to cut it in half. She looked at me...