Category Archives:People

Topics related to people management

Deja who?

Not long ago, my BDCo cohort Geni wrote a blog about scars or “tattoos” from our life stories. Recently I have had a couple of close encounters with my past that have caused me to, somewhat unwillingly, revisit parts of my own life story.

The chain of events was placed in motion in February when I was contacted by a former classmate with whom I had kept in touch regarding the upcoming reunion of my high school graduating class.  I was promptly added to the reunion group on a popular social media site and, being like the fish who sits at …

What’s Your Forecast?

Is it sunny, slightly overcast or down right nasty in “your world”?  Well that may depend on what I am referring to.  My blog always has a business spin but this time I am asking about you.  That’s right you, the dad, mom, daughter, son, aunt, uncle, sister, brother.  I know you must at least hold one of those titles.

Personally, I have moved from slightly overcast to bright and sunny.  How about you?

That’s right, I am done with doom and gloom that has surrounded so many people …

What is your story?

I have never met anyone who won every battle they fought or who got through every altercation unscathed. As mere mortals, we experience plenty of successes and failures. We regularly witness or experience both personal and business tragedies but in most cases we manage to persevere. The question is – how will we carry the scars of battle?

The key, in my opinion, is how we choose to view and tell our story. When a tragedy happens, do we take it as confirmation of our own failings, or do we look for lessons that we can learn from the episode? It’s never easy and I don’t want to trivialize the emotion of the moment or the …

Fire or Hot Air. Which Do You Have?

How will you do in 2012?  I think the key to your business’s success is pretty simple.  It all comes down to execution.

For many, this is easier said than done.  You’re either  going to dig deep inside and turn the switch from pilot light to ON or you will move through 2012 with a lot of talk about what you need to do.

Step 1:  Ignite the pilot light

Step 2:  Turn the switch to on

Step 3:  Prepare for lift off

Step 4:  Set your sights on immediate …

Walking in Another’s Shoes

The Napa Valley is a buzz with harvest in full swing.  I recently had the opportunity to join a grape harvest crew.  Let me clarify, my camera and I followed along to observe  the hospitality team  jumping in and helping the vineyard crew with grape picking.  It reminded me of the times when I was a kid and would get real excited about getting to do a “grown-up” task.  The anticipation was always more exciting than the actual work.  Sure, the first hour was fun but …

How Will Your Sun Set?

Retirement, future

Looking into the future, I wonder what retirement will look like.

What about you?  What do you want to do?  Will your time be filled with travel, helping in the community or just not having a schedule?  All of the above sounds like a start but what else?  Obviously, I am not ready to retire because I am still worried about having a list to check off.

Recently we had a family vacation in Maui.  My kids are young adults which made this vacation …

Sailing Away from the Storm

What direction are you sailing?  The wine industry is showing positive signs that the storm has passed and a bright future is just beyond the horizon.  However, I don’t think the industry can fall into a false sense of security that it is going to be the good old days again.  I have heard a lot of chatter that the customer has changed.  They are looking for a deal or not purchasing.  I think there is something else at play.

The day of order-taking is over!  The perception of value …

Losses and gains

On looking back and moving forward, by Terry Hollenstain.

Combating the three signs

As part of our assignment for attending the Mentor Plus® Consulting Accountants’ RoundTable (CART) meeting last month, Craig Underhill and I read Patrick Lencioni’s book The Three Signs of a Miserable Job. The book, like all Lencioni books, does a great job of using a business fable to make a point. According to Lencioni, the three signs are : “Anonymity: People need to be understood and appreciated by someone in a position of authority; Irrelevance: Everyone needs to know their job matters to someone; Immeasurement: Employees need to be able to gauge their progress and level of contribution …

The Ghost Network: Connecting across generations

My Danish ancestors are apparently restless once again. Recently, in another close encounter of the ghost kind, I received a message on Facebook from a “stranger”.  As I read the young woman’s note, I felt as though a spectral hand had just reached out and touched me on the shoulder.  Her question was simple — was I related to the Henry and Maria Hollenstein who had lived near Salinas, California in the early 1900’s? 

After noticing that the surname of the “stranger” was the same as that of Maria Bonde Hollenstein’s brother-in-law,  I responded that, yes, I was their great-great …