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Thinking of Steve (Jobs) — Five Years On
Many people in my world are aware that in addition to my years as an Apple employee (music & entertainment), I was also very fortunate to have been able to call Steve Jobs a personal mentor. The things we discussed and the insights he shared with me over time are an indelible part of my DNA.
Steve often crosses my mind, but even more so last week as we hit the 5 year anniversary mark of his passing. I can hardly believe it’s been that long! So I thought it would be fitting to share a few of the lessons and insights I cherish the most: …
Coping with Demands When on the Road
These days many of us spend a good portion of our time on the road — whether for business travel or personal time away. It can be a real challenge to deal with demands from others when you’re away from the office. But it’s important to manage your time and priorities as much as possible — and to set healthy boundaries.
For myself, when I’m at a multi-day training or just taking a couple of days of business meetings in another city, for example, I do my best to ensure my clients know that I’ll be away and slower to respond during that time period. …
How to Prioritize What is Important…And Get it Done!
We are all juggling so much, and we each have the same 24 hours each day. One of the ways we suffer is that we have so much on our plates that we can easily get overwhelmed, and we forget that we have control over how to structure our days around the most important things that we need/want to make happen in our lives. It comes down to prioritizing our day ahead of time (ideally the day or night before) — so that we make progress on just the three or four things that are most important to us. When we accomplish those tasks we feel great.
Then there are the things that we need to make happen but that we don’t want to do or that don’t light us up. Those are tasks we tend to procrastinate around and push off for another day/week/month/year.
I recommend the following approach… …
How to Prioritize What is Important…And Get it Done!Read More »
The Serenity of Surrender
As I write this, today marks the 15th anniversary of 9-11; a day that is especially important to me, not only in terms of honoring those who were lost — but also in gratitude for avoiding being one of the victims myself. A near-miss because I was booked as a passenger on United flight 93 that morning headed to SF from Newark; one of the planes that was directly impacted among the flights that were taken over by terrorists on that awful day. Trusting my intuition and surrendering to that little voice in my head saved my life. …
4 Ways to Align Yourself With What Really Matters
Are you focusing on what really matters in your life? Or are you just going through the motions jumping from one distraction to the next and being tossed around like a row boat in rough seas? If you want to experience a life well-lived, then it’s probably a good idea to pause and reflect on how aligned you are with the things that carry the most meaning for you on a regular basis — ideally once a week, minimum.
Here are a few suggestions you may want to try on for size: …
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Re-ignite Your Passion!
A topic has been brewing in my mind over the past couple of weeks that I wanted to touch on today; and that is the power of enthusiasm, energy and vitality. I think what sparked it was going to a couple of concerts during the past couple of weeks — Rick Springfield and Earth, Wind & Fire — both of whom have been performing for over 45 years each (and the lead members all in their mid-to-late sixties). Same thing when I saw Herb Alpert and Lani Hall play a show last Fall (he was 80 at the time).
None of these guys has to work or tour any more. But all of them exuded passion, vibrancy, energy and vitality. They love what they’re doing, they get high on the interaction with their audiences, and clearly they’re still having a great time performing and entertaining. It’s inspiring and infectious to watch…
But you don’t have to be an artist to experience the same level of energy and enthusiasm; you can cultivate it for yourself. And when you do, it creates an upward spiral that fuels you, makes you feel alive and is contagious; others want to be around you and engage/collaborate with you in whatever ways make sense. It comes down to your attitude about yourself and about your life. If you want to feel this energy boost (and experience all of these benefits), here are some things you can do to encourage it: …
Taylor Swift and Other Top Artists Stand United Against DMCA & YouTube
In the past couple of months things have been getting more heated as a coalition of over 180 top musicians have aligned to complain about the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). The 1998 law governs the way big internet companies can use material uploaded by their users. As technology has progressed over the past two decades, the artists’ stance is that their royalties have been diminishing relative to the many new devices and services that have sprung up in that timeframe. And in tandem as they’re making their voices heard about concerns suggesting that the DMCA is broken in today’s terms, they’re taking aim squarely at YouTube as a primary example of how this structure no longer works for artists (if it ever did). …
Taylor Swift and Other Top Artists Stand United Against DMCA & YouTubeRead More »
Life Gets Easier When You Operate in the Zone
Many of us run our lives off “To Do” lists — and have issues managing time, priorities, and eliminating distractions. We’re all over the place and our attention and mood is scattered, stressed and we’re inefficient. It doesn’t have to be that way! We can increase our productivity and save our sanity when we operate ‘in the zone’ more of the time. When you are in the zone, you are focused, firing on all cylinders, getting things done, accomplishing your goals, meeting expectations of yourself and others, all while staying in a calm, neutral place emotionally. You feel good because you’re taking care of what you need to and are honoring your commitments to yourself and others; you’re doing what you said you were going to do. There’s no greater sense of satisfaction than that! I know that’s been my experience.
Here are a few tips for getting in the zone: …
Becoming the Person You Want to Be is Simple but It’s Not Easy
I had the rare privilege of spending time with Marshall Goldsmith a couple of months ago courtesy of my mentor Alan Weiss at an event that Alan hosts annually called the Million Dollar Consulting Convention. Marshall was the Keynote speaker at Alan’s event this year, and is in high demand as one of the most successful executive coaches on the planet. He’s the author of many terrific and insightful books like “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There”, and he was delightful and very generous in his time with us. Marshall was kind enough to provide us all with copies of his latest book “Triggers: Creating Behavior that Lasts & Becoming the Person You Want to Be”.
I read a lot of books on self-improvement and personal growth, and Triggers offers fresh insights that I haven’t come across elsewhere to this point. …
Becoming the Person You Want to Be is Simple but It’s Not EasyRead More »
The Importance of Taking Regular Breaks
You work hard; we all do. But at the same time, I’ll bet you don’t play hard; most of us don’t. We live and work in a culture that would happily take all we choose to give and more — and often does. AND we have a life beyond our work – really and truly! …
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