We were worried entering this summer that we didn’t have enough activity scheduled for our kids. And yet, it turned out to be one of the best summers for our family…in large part because it was so unscheduled. We ended up filling the unscheduled time with great spontaneity and connection. In a similar way, I
There I was, kicking off the big meeting, standing anxiously in front of 50 people in a large corporate conference room. I really wanted to engage the group and inspire them to action, but I was worried that my slides had too much detail and that my topic was too complex. Adding to the pressure,
The following post was written by my good friend Isaac Vogel, who owns a successful painting company. I appreciate the simple, actionable, relevant guidance here for anyone in any role. I’ve spent most of my career in sales and I always bristle a bit when I tell people I’m in “sales” or when a customer
I almost didn’t write this article. The idea came to me while I was walking my dog, but I didn’t write it down. It could have been gone forever. Fortunately, though, I remembered it later when I was showering — and I made a point to write the idea down as soon as I got out.
According to research, one of the reasons for Forrest Gump’s emotional resilience was his metaphor for life: “My mama always said life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get!” This finding was reinforced by a fascinating experiment involving 50 participants who spent five minutes each day writing about their
Since writing the article below a year ago, virtual meetings have become exponentially more common – especially with global health concerns restricting travel and group gatherings. It’s more important than ever to ensure virtual meetings are productive, engaging, and relevant. Each person responds differently to a virtual environment: some struggle mightily to resist multi-tasking; others
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the number of opportunities to make an impact in the world, in your work, and in your community? It’s common to wish we could make a bigger difference, but it’s just as common to feel limited by our resources, lack of knowledge, and fears. Cue what I like to
This post was originally published on November 19, 2013. It was modified on July 8, 2019. At a panel discussion I attended a while back on the topic of the future of education in the US, someone in the audience asked, “Who should lead the innovation?” To which one of the panelists demanded, “Look around
What can babies teach us about being calm, inspired and creative? In a recent study exploring the origins of human learning, researchers recorded the brain activity of 45 11-month old babies when they were in a position to learn something new. The babies watched two people play with a rubber duck. One person pointed at
I was given the gift of space on my calendar this morning when a client asked to reschedule a meeting. And within that space, several serendipitous things happened. Initially, I sat in my chair listening to the chatter across the office. I reflected on our culture, on teammates and on the work we do. Moments
Matt Norman is president of Norman & Associates, which offers Dale Carnegie Training in the North Central US. Dale Carnegie Training is a global organization ...READ MORE