A fellow consultant recently said she sat through a public meeting full of nonsense. She didn’t raise her hand and point out the misguided assumptions. She wanted to leave but stayed. As we spoke she pondered why she neither left nor spoke up. Without fuss, we agreed it would have… Continue reading »
A year ago, my family crawled into a hot air balloon gondola in the predawn darkness of Kenya’s Masai Mara. We slid into the gondola, which was resting sideways, strapped in, and waited for liftoff while lying on the ground. The whole start to the experience was rather clunky and nothing… Continue reading »
Recruiting: It’s the new marketing. French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr wrote, “plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” The more things change, the more things stay the same. That concept can be applied to business too. Since the dawn of time, business has been based on making money by… Continue reading »
As a Native American, I am proud to live and serve in a city that recognizes the second Monday in October as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Auburn is one of more than 130 cities and states across the United States to celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day. We are fortunate to share land… Continue reading »
Words are powerful things. When deployed clearly and effectively, they can propel new ideas forward and motivate social change. Unfortunately, they also can bring more confusion than clarity and lead reformers down the wrong paths. We run that risk with the use of the word “skills” in the current debate… Continue reading »
Prior to joining their faculty last year as an adjunct, I’d had only glancing contact with Berkshire Community College (south of Williamstown, in Pittsfield), and while each interaction had been positive, my overall attitude towards a community college education remained – I confess – mildly dismissive. My own experience of… Continue reading »
I have been speaking to students, parents, faculty, staff and administrators pretty much nonstop these days. Sometimes it is in Zoom webinars for teachers, teens or parents on how to stay grounded in all of the uncertainty, and sometimes it is in one-on-one coaching calls with educational leaders who are… Continue reading »
I find myself speaking and writing publicly about the role that forward-looking individuals and families play in the life and prosperity of cities across North America. Many of these individuals are remarkable in the modesty with which they live. They are influential and affluent far beyond their appearance and demeanor,… Continue reading »
The best leaders have an innate ability to deal with whatever’s thrown at them. Here’s how to tell who’s got it and who doesn’t. Effective leaders must meet challenges and resolve them productively, day after day, for… Continue reading »
On my last day of clinical practice, I hung my white coat, my name in red embroidery above the pocket, on the back of the office door. Then it dawned on me that I wouldn’t be returning. I carried the coat gingerly across the icy parking lot to my three-year-old… Continue reading »
“What is Big Data and how could it impact my career?” In my current work, I often get asked this question. Here’s a quick primer on Big Data, its present and potential benefits, and why some of its most groundbreaking future users will possess a liberal arts education. Big Data… Continue reading »
I guess you would call it a liberal arts approach to life: In the 35 years since I left the Purple Valley, I have worked on Wall Street, earned my MBA and owned eight businesses ranging from restaurants to real estate, from consulting to cold-pressed juices. These extensive corporate and… Continue reading »