
Hard talks are an inevitable part of the human experience. All of us encounter difficult and awkward situations at work and in our personal lives, and at the heart of those situations are (you guessed it) difficult and awkward people that are usually the source of the problem. No one (except psycho- and socio- paths) […]

There is a saying in business, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know”. I don’t agree with this statement. It almost implies that connections are more important than the content of your character or your knowledge or expertise. However, while there may some truth in it, I would modify the statement to say […]
Treat others the way you want to be treated, and you’ll never go wrong.

In my post, Email Common Sense 101 I talk about what good email etiquette looks like. Since texting is the other major form of non-in-person communication, I would feel remiss if I didn’t provide some equivalent etiquette around texting. Texting has dominated text-based communication for many reasons: Mass Adoption! Mobile devices are everywhere (there are […]

It may seem like a no-brainer that we need to be kind to children, but it amazes me how even the most seemingly enlightened of parents unload hurt, annoyance, and negativity on their children, and when they are difficult, rebellious, critical, and hard to deal with, they are surprised and scarcely know what to do. […]

“What is your purpose?” “What is the meaning of your life?” Have you ever thought about these questions for yourself? The concept of purpose is broad, transcendent, and certainly not something you bring up in casual conversation, but knowing our purpose is critical to our success in life. It gives us focus, meaning, and a prism to view our life through to determine whether we are focused on the right things or not. If you look around, the people with the deepest sense of purpose seem to do the best.

Hello, my name is Mark, and I am married to Perfection. I’ve been married to Perfection for over 30 years, but I’ve come to realize that I have a problem. Perfection has not been the spouse that I thought she would be. High achievers have high standards and high expectations of themselves and others. Often […]

As a parent, one of the things I dread is seeing my children suffer in any way. Several years ago, I was out walking with my kids, my [then] 4-year-old daughter was running far ahead of us, and my [then] 2-year-old daughter lagged behind. The younger one was approaching a hole in the ground and […]

3 Ways to know if you are your own person Abraham Maslow the renowned 20th Century psychologist, proposed a theory of human behavior that is primarily driven by “needs” – The need for food, shelter, safety, security, love, acceptance, esteem, confidence, and respect. The needs actually fall in a hierarchy of needs. The bottom of […]

One of the most challenging things for those of us who are planners and future-oriented is the ability to be in the present moment on a consistent basis. Often we focus on the mistakes of the past or terrorize ourselves over every future scenario. We blow through our to-do list at the expense of the […]