When you are playing in a band, there's something called a train wreck. It's when everyone gets so off beat/tempo/key that you have to stop. The song is off the tracks and there's no way to recover it. You have to stop and start over. It's never fun. I still have a memory of a train wreck at the Beat Kitchen in Chicago, and that was almost 20 years ago. It's a very public screw-up. I mean, you're literally on a stage for everybody to see. It's not a private failure that we can beat ourselves up about and move on. It's a big deal. Or so we think. Olin Miller was a comedian who was quoted in 1937, “You probably wouldn’t worry … [Read more...]
Monday Morning Mash-Up – The Terror of the Blank Page
A new year is a fresh start. While it's easy to get caught up in the rah-rah excitement of a new beginning, it's also important to acknowledge the fear that comes with it. Writers talk about the trepidation that a blank page can create, because both the possibility of success and failure are present in the beginning. What if you can't think of anything to write? What if what you do write sucks? I released five books this past year and the start was always daunting. It doesn't matter how much I've written, a blank page (or computer screen) is always scary. I know that every time I dive into a writing project there will be ups and … [Read more...]
The 8 Things You Must Know or Your Life Will Totally Suck
If you don’t understand sarcasm, then please, for your own mental and emotional safety, don’t read any farther: Always remember: You are the victim. Everyone who tells you that their life is tough is full of crap because they don't understand how really tough your life is. They’ve obviously never been in your shoes for a day. If you feel that the universe is conspiring against you, it's because it is. You can’t go 20 minutes without someone deliberately making your life harder than it has to be. Throughout your life, you’ve always been the wrong height, weight, gender, ethnicity, and even when it seemed like you’ve had all of the … [Read more...]
How to Help Your People Fail
When I was a young sales manager, one of the most challenging parts of my job was having 1-on-1 meeting with my sales reps to assess their performance. It was easy to do when they were rockin'. I'd give them a few pointers and some words of motivation and send them back out. But when they weren't doing well it was another story. It can be really hard to fail. It can be even harder to watch someone fail. It's the worst when you have to watch people fail... and you're their boss and the one who is supposed to address that failure. Manage Through Failure I think this is why so many competent individuals are such struggle as managers and … [Read more...]