The standards you walk past

Steve Jobs once sent back a shipment of screws because they weren’t beautiful enough. Not functional enough. Beautiful. Most people thought he was nuts. What they missed was the standard you walk past becomes the standard you accept. Think about the last time...

Accountability changes behavior

Ever wondered where your kids’ good behaviors come from? What about the bad ones? Look no further than the mirror. Children absorb what they see. They model what they experience. They normalize what we tolerate. Why is this any different in organizations? It si...

Get a dog

We say we want advice. What we really want is someone to nod along. To affirm the path we’ve already chosen. To tell us we’re brilliant for thinking exactly what we’re already thinking. That’s not advice. That’s a mirror with a voice....

The tone you set

Two days of snow. A rare gift of stillness. Time to watch football and witness something profound about leadership. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. A day to reflect on how we choose to create change. Through conversation or command. Through influence or intimidation. And...

I’m perfect, imperfect

I’m perfect. Yet imperfect. So true. We deliver imperfect work. Every product ships with known flaws. Every service has gaps we’ve spotted. Every internal process has that one step that makes us wince. And we ship anyway. The founder who waits for...