To Nutkick or Not To Nutkick? That is the Question.

I have always believed in being 100% transparent with everyone around me, and to deal with the consequence of that transparency. I once heard a saying "the problem with people who say what they mean is they think everyone else does too." There is a lot of truth in that statement. I know from experience. But in the spirit of staying true to my core belief of speak your mind, I wanted to reach out to you and get help with a dilemma that has just presented itself.

The Golf Shot Heard Round the Academic World: Guest Post

When my little cousin called me up some years back to tell me how much he hated his Ivy League College professors and their biased political views that corrupt young minds, I thought no big deal. This is what your College professors do. Mine thought they were really special. I know differently now.

Why Bloomberg Is Wrong About Soda

No doubt you have read about Mayor Bloomberg trying to regulate the size of soda in New York City. As emotional as this subject is, I wanted to share some thoughts. This will be short (and sweet for all you soda lovers). Well, maybe.

Reflections on a Tuesday

Albert Camus once said that our lives are the lump sum of all our choices. Of course sometimes we have no control over the circumstances we find ourselves in, but we always get to choose how we respond. Other times we have complete control over our circumstances. Whether we continue to put up with situations (and relationships) that leave us drained and longing for more. Whether we continue to play safe in our careers because we are afraid we don’t have what it takes to succeed doing what we truly want. Whether we resist change, and stick with a status quo that while it may not be miserable, is a far cry from what we really want.

Playing B-Ball with Obama: 6 Steps to Crossing Anything Off Your Bucket List: Guest Post

This is one of the most inspiring posts I have read in a long time via Tim Ferris' blog. In 2009 a junior at Cornell contacted me to ask about his idea for a non-profit, based on helping people achieve their dreams. Fast forward to today, Everest is no longer a non-profit pipe dream, but a Silicon Valley start-up with a lot of determined people pushing to create a way to help people live their dreams. Check them out and follow them on Facebook or Twitter.

Ideas aren't Cheap, They're Free: Guest Post

Twice in my education I had the exam question "Why?" The first was my senior year of high school for Philosophy, the second was for my "Contemporary Philosophy" course my sophomore year of college. Both times I responded with a word or two - the first time "Why Not?" and the second time "Because". Both times I received an A on the essay question. When my fellow students heard about this, they challenged my college Professor and he gave a great response: "Anyone who writes that answer on a final exam is creative, courageous and demonstrated the ability to express themselves in a way few people can."

BS Thyself Not

I had a boss early in my career who was one of those philosophical types, always dropping sayings or quotes to make his point. He thought he was quite smart and cool, very pleased with himself when he could drop a Churchill or Emerson quote, two of his favorites. We all thought he was a bore at the time.

The Need For Quantifiable Objectives

2012 is meant to be the year America makes its economic comeback. Since the economy tanked in 2007-8, we have been conditioned to believe that economic power and superiority has passed to China and our era was over. The US has too much debt, not enough prospect for growth, and we have outsourced our way to becoming an irrelevant economy.

Do The Right Thing

I was traveling through Nicaragua last month for a week and was blown away by everything that country has to offer. The city of Granada is the oldest town in all of Central and South America. Beautiful colonial architecture, very safe and bustling with tourist friendly activity. The Mombacho volcano shadows the town that sits on Lake Nicaragua, one of the largest fresh water lakes in the world. Great food and friendly people, lots of nice hotels and restaurants make for a great long weekend getaway (4-5 day stay is perfect).

Where Is The Courage?

The lack of courage in corporate America is frightening. From CEOs and Board Directors to Senior leaders and middle management, the lack of courage to do the right thing and make the hard decisions is a sign that we, as a society, are firmly in decline. Yet I personally see this as an opportunistic environment to step up and take action, speak up and be heard, and, most importantly, to stand tall and lead when so many others fail to do so.