Nat King Cole will remind us this month to be joyful, though life can be busy and hard, and our news feed reminds us of all that’s wrong in the world. This is why I love re-watching It’s a Wonderful Life each year. I need yet another voice to break through the cynicism, hurry and
I wrote the following in January, 2016. Since then, I’ve exchanged diapers for youth sports. Pandemic restrictions have come and gone but full schedules and high demands remain the reality. Perhaps, like me, you need to re-establish your limits to enjoy greater clarity and connection with others. ***** When I started my day last Sunday,
Do you remember the scene in “Back to the Future” where George McFly musters the courage to punch Biff the bully? He’d just pulled Biff out of the car to stop him from assaulting Lorraine Baines. George and Lorraine’s future son, Marty, had inspired him to take that stand against Biff. Marty knew what was
Jordan Spieth performed very well as a professional golfer until 2018. Expectations placed on him were very high—so high that his performance waned…until last spring. After winning his first tournament in three years, he made a profound passing comment in a press interview: If I’m feeling free, I’ll love what I do. And if I
Are you experiencing any interpersonal tension with your new co-workers? Many of us are having to work with and around kids, partners, roommates, pets, and neighbors. Sometimes people can get really frustrating. For instance, a friend of mine said to me that she is super frustrated with her roommates who have disregarded social distancing. “They
One of the ironies of being human is that it can sometimes be hard just to be your authentic self. And no one knows that more than a middle schooler. I see my sons facing these pressures every day. Like when I recently drove one son to a tennis match with his doubles partner —
I got in the Lyft at 2:52 pm near Providence, Rhode Island. My immediate thought was Can I trust this guy? The driver, Joe, was a strong, heavy guy with sleeves rolled up exposing his fully tattooed arms. He wore a beanie style winter hat and was playing Motley Crue loud in his old, worn
This week, an email appeared in my inbox from one of my teammates at work. It was an unsolicited message sent to the entire company explaining the positive impact that another person on our team had on one of our clients. It was one of many emails I received that day. I read it quickly,
Jim leads an R&D team at a med tech firm. Medical products lay scattered across his desk. Like a child proudly showing his artwork, he provides a tour of each product in front of him. But this isn’t the tour he’s most excited about. “Can I give you a tour of our team?” We walk
I’ve been pretty sad lately. A smile feels forced, I’m tired, and my chest feels heavy and aches. I don’t want to look people in the eyes because I know they’ll see it. Some of my sadness can be explained by recent experiences with loss, disappointment and the passage of time. Most of it, I
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