My wife had Christmas songs playing on the stereo. I'm sure Michael Bublé was somewhere on the playlist. Insert face palm here. How can I compete with that? Yes, I'm straying from my story. In any event, the Thanksgiving turkey was fresh from the oven and the house was full of robust smells. The table... Continue Reading →
What is a leader?
When I was younger, I had an image in my head of what it meant to be a great leader. I envisioned John Wayne in one of his classic western movies, boldly taking up center stage on my television screen. He was loud and determined, decisive in his decision-making, and had an all-business demeanor. If... Continue Reading →
What are you grateful for?
We celebrate Thanksgiving in a few days. It’s a time for families and friends to come together. Like any gathering, there will be some happiness and maybe even some stress and tension. Who's going to be late to the dinner table? Who let the refrigerator door open? Who brings up politics over the dinner table?... Continue Reading →
A misplaced note
If it was a lost set of keys, I would have asked the receptionist if anyone had dropped off a set. If it was a missing person, I would have filed a report with the police. This is different. I came across some interesting writing advice a month or two ago and wrote it down... Continue Reading →
My four-legged therapist
Every day, our family dog comes into my office. I call it my office, but it's an extra bedroom where we've set up a desk and my large-screen monitors and I'm able to work remotely in relative peace and quiet. I like to think that Nittany, our 13-year-old Lhasa Apso – Bichon Frise, comes in... Continue Reading →
Buckling up
A few weeks ago, I pulled the car over and turned off the engine. I had been making a couple of errands and was driving home when I rounded a corner and narrowly missed hitting a large deer that had darted across the road. I let out a sigh and tried to catch my breath.... Continue Reading →
Shutting out the world
The world can be a loud and crazy place. For every believer or supporter, we'll run into ten other doubters. Sometimes we need to tell others to be quiet, and to trust the artist inside of us. We need close the blinds to the outside world and trust ourselves! We need to trust our instinct.... Continue Reading →
My introverted self
I was in the doldrums. I wondered why I wasn’t having as much fun at work. I couldn’t pinpoint it. I sat down late in the evening with my wife, and it hit me. I’ve had a number of presentations and large team meetings over the past month and not much time for myself to... Continue Reading →
Some Mountain State love
We had barely pulled into Morgantown for a visit with our son, a freshman at West Virginia University, when he had asked us to make a Target run. When we got back to his dorm, he pulled the shopping bags out of our SUV like they were coming off an assembly line, handing them out... Continue Reading →

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