The third kind of leader

In an age of disinformation, some leaders play on faith. Others assume everyone can be fooled. We rarely talk about the third kind: the one who treats us with the respect we deserve. Truth isn’t their strategy. It’s the floor....

When winning blinds us

Ten minutes to go. We’re ahead. We ease off. Sport calls this the fatal mistake: it’s never over until it’s over. Business keeps forgetting the lesson sport already learned. We build an advantage. Years of it. Somewhere in that success, we stop...

Flat-pack truth

The box promises a bookshelf for forty dollars. That’s the appeal. Cheap, flat, and yours to build. Then you open the bag of screws and unfold one sheet of diagrams. No words. Just arrows and stick figures assembling something that looks nothing like your...

The roster trap

We keep making the same mistake, season after season. We assume that if we collect enough talent, the wins will follow. We sign the best free agent, hire the sharpest résumé, recruit the highest scorer, and wait for the scoreboard to catch up with the roster. It...

For thee, not me

We ask for authenticity like it’s free. Show up as yourself, we say. Be real. Bring your whole self to the table. Then someone does it. They disagree in the meeting. They admit the plan is broken. They say the thing everyone was thinking. Suddenly authenticity...