Through a Community Leader’s Lens
What a thrill to learn about my hometown through the experiences and perspectives of four iconic community leaders. My words are mostly their words because their words were exquisite . . . honest, heart-felt, sometimes poignant . . . always just-right. They spoke with the grace and down-home modesty of their city — despite their […]
Making is a privilege
It was a privilege for me to speak with Steelcase vice president of global operations and condense his philosophy and approach to quality into this short piece. A more in-depth piece will appear in a future issue of Steelcase’s 360 Magazine. Bob Krestakos: “Making is a privilege . . . Today, it’s about much more […]
Too much technology can be hazardous to the soul
Today’s default to social media and digital communication is lame. Why? Because I’m lonely now. And I hope not to be three days from now. I texted a few friends this morning. I also forwarded a New York Times piece to my book club and emailed my nephew with a dinner invitation. Then I got […]
I Fear Marketers’ Self-Love Is Getting in the Way of Serving Consumers
Marketers talk a lot about listening to the consumer and providing the custom-content consumers crave, precisely when they want it. We cleverly insert key words, tested visuals, emotional stories, buttons and links…. And then we sit back, gleefully counting clicks. I have a problem with this. It really hit me at the Heath Summit of […]
To Read or Not to Read…. What Would You Do?
Book clubs are slippery slopes. They start off in one direction and then slowly evolve into something else. And pretty soon, you find yourself reading books you have absolutely zero interest in. And the stack of books you do want to read just keeps getting higher and wider. I’ve taken a few approaches to this […]
Kids’ Writing Camp…Anyone?
Loved this piece in the Trib yesterday. It’s calling me to start a children’s story telling camp or writing workshop of some type. But would anyone choose writing over fishing or baseball or soccer? I could incorporate art, photography, hikes, and so much more. Parents, please provide some insight. What age would be best? How […]
Sad Truth About Popular Quotations
John Carroll University students’ faces looked pained when I told them to take all the quotations off their resumes and out of their portfolios. “OK, one,” I conceded. “But make sure it represents you well and that it’s real.” Yes, real. Because often they aren’t, or at least are not accurately attributed. And then this […]
Looking for Women 95 Years or Older
I’m interested in developing a collection of short stories that profile “everyday” centenarian women—from their own point of view. The working title: What 100 Years’ Experience Teaches A Woman. I envision each very candid story capturing the individual personality of each woman interviewee and some aspect of her life experience. Potentially, I will add contextual […]
Trust Your Gut? Not so Fast….
Hands down one of the best books I’ve ever read, Undoing is about the lifework of two brilliant but quirky Nobel Prize-winning Jewish psychologists (Ivan Tversky and DannyKahneman). It’s also a book about their evolving, endearing friendship. Tversky and Kahneman’s research focuses on critical judgement and decision making in uncertain environments—professional athlete recruitment, the stock […]
Religion and Politics? I’m so in!
Fascinating read. Ken Woodward hails from Rocky River, a stone’s throw from me, on Cleveland’s westside. He writes from decades of personal experiences as religion editor for Newsweek. He’s talked up close and personal to the papacy, prophets, preachers, politicians and people passing themselves off as God. He covers the “majors” naturally (perhaps skimping a bit on Judaism while lingering […]
