Some New Years Day thoughts about how music, and all art in general, meets three primary human longings.
First, we as humans long for community. We long to share our experiences Continue reading “3 Reasons We Create Art”
Chatterbox
I heard a statistic recently that 70% of high performers engage in some form of meditation or mindfulness practice. From business to athletics to performers to creatives, this is a real thing for high performance. Continue reading “Chatterbox”
A Star Is Born
In the recent box office hit A Star is Born, the main character, Jackson Maine – who is a national rock star – says, “Music is essentially twelve notes between any octave. Twelve notes and the octave repeats. It’s the same story told over and over, forever. All any artist can offer the world Continue reading “A Star Is Born”
Time Tracking
Employees resist tracking their time. What can be helpful in managing this is to understand your requirements for time tracking. Do you really need to know what each person was doing each hour of the day? In creative work like software development, product development, engineering, marketing, Continue reading “Time Tracking”
A Deeper Story
I was inspired recently watching the movie Tomorrowland and wanted to learn more about the Cherokee story about the Two Wolves. I love the story but learned that what appears in the movie is only piece of the actual story that was passed down by Native American Cherokee elders. In fact, the Continue reading “A Deeper Story”
Structure Frees Creativity
Set a child at her desk and ask her to “draw something”, and she may struggle to think of what. But ask her to draw a flower, and you may get much more than you bargained for when along with the flower comes trees, rainbows, animals, vases, cactus plants, dinosaurs, race cars, and any Continue reading “Structure Frees Creativity”
Light Up the Darkness
That scene in I Am Legend when Will Smith talks about Bob Marley.
“[Bob Marley] had this idea. Kind of a virologist idea. He believed that you Continue reading “Light Up the Darkness”
Courage vs. Comfort
These do not often coexist. Taking the road less traveled is usually uncomfortable and scary – it’s not so romantic when you’re actually out there on the limb or in the arena getting beat up. Continue reading “Courage vs. Comfort”
Gaining the Ridge
One of the best moments hiking toward a mountain summit is gaining the ridge. A mountain usually has 2 or more ridges descending from its summit, and sometimes (but not very often) there is a route that picks up the ridge much lower, down at the forest floor, and it’s possible to hike all the way to Continue reading “Gaining the Ridge”
Set New Hires Up For Success
Set new employees up for success. Take ten minutes to write down clear expectations and measureable goals. Ask yourself the question: if this new person completely knocks it out of the park in the next six months, what specific things will they have done in the first 30, 90 and 180 days? Write Continue reading “Set New Hires Up For Success”
Run/Walk Part 2
When I wrote about the positive impact run/walk has had on my life, I focused on the physical benefits. There is a psychological benefit, as well.
When I’m out running, either in an organized event like the Bolder Boulder Continue reading “Run/Walk Part 2”
Run/Walk Part 1
I ran the Chicago Marathon in 2002. Prior to that, I had trained multiple times for a marathon and after a few months of training had to stop running due to painful chronic injuries – usually my knees produced a bright white pain just beneath the kneecap, my hips felt a dull burning Continue reading “Run/Walk Part 1”
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