At a Touchdown Club meeting many years ago, Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant told the following story: I had just been named the new head coach at Alabama and was off in my old car down in South Alabama recruiting a prospect who was supposed to have been a pretty good player, and I was having trouble finding the place. Getting hungry, I spied an old cinderblock building with a small sign out front... Continue reading

“You either get it or you don’t” used to be the #1 rule of, well, anything. Now, I think, it has been replaced with “Do you want to get it?” There is a story about the hockey coach who once asked a talented player, “Son, I can’t figure out whether you’re stupid or apathetic.” To which the player replied, “I don’t know and I don’t... Continue reading

My daughter has been teaching 5th grade math and science for the past five years. Each year she has invited me to visit her class on Veteran’s Day to speak to her students. I spent four years in the Air Force Intelligence Service and they seem to enjoy hearing stories about search and rescue and big jets and stuff. They also like asking me questions about Andrea when she was in the 5th grade. Personally,... Continue reading

One of my dad’s favorite sayings was: “Never high five under a low ceiling fan; never ask a barber if he thinks you need a haircut and never take more than you give.” How many stories have you heard that begin with “I know this guy….”? Well, here is mine. I know this guy who is a successful business guy, but it wasn’t always that way. (I can’t tell you his name….it’s David.) Like... Continue reading

More often than not our value is determined by the information we gather, not dispense. Here are a boatload of business thinking questions that, along with your research, could set you apart from your competition. I recommend (if you see these as a benefit) that you copy these onto a Word document for easy access. Remember to practice saying this out loud to get use to the “how” otherwise... Continue reading

Although we are slow to admit it, job search is a sales job. It is about selling your value in the market. In the long run, there are only two sustainable positions–you sell less for less or you sell more for more. It’s tempting to think that you can deliver more for less, but that’s far more rare than it appears. And the market is smart (and getting smarter) so delivering less for... Continue reading

A Veteran, whether active duty, discharged, reserve or gone, is someone who, at point in his or her life, wrote a blank check made payable to The United States of America for an amount of ‘up to and including their life’. That is honor. For those who are serving; for those who have served and for those who have fallen – Thank You and Godspeed. Continue reading

There are two rules and only two, the general and the particular. The first is that everyone can, in the end, get what they want if they only try. This is the general rule. The particular rule is that every individual is more or less an exception to the general rule. Continue reading

Formidable leaders find the tough questions, and then, instead of being afraid to ask them, eagerly decide to seek out the answers. They dig in deep to the details that matter and ignore the ones that merely distract. They bite off more than others can chew but consistently avoid biting off more than they can. Continue reading

Before you design a list of questions for your prospective customers, here are a few you might want to ask your self. I’m just sayin’. 1.How are you planning to establish your standard for truth?. 2.What’s your content to noise ratio? 3.How will you honor and protect those who give you money? 4.How will you simplify your message? 5.Will you become an expert in anything just to get... Continue reading