Tag Archives: justify

Stop Defending And Start Listening

In yesterday’s blog I shared points from a Forbes article I’d written years ago on the importance of giving people honest feedback. Today I thought it would be good to share points from a follow-on article I’d written for Forbes on the importance of receiving feedback (The article was titled, If You Want To Improve, […]

Making Our Life Into The Masterpiece It Is Meant To Be

As I shared in yesterday’s blog, my son Dalton’s Commencement of graduation ceremonies from Brigham Young University was today and tomorrow is his actual Graduation Ceremony where he will walk across the stage and receive his Bachelor’s degree. This is a huge milestone in the life of a child and the life of a parent […]

I swear childbirth was less painful than tax season is

Ah yes, the beloved tax season is upon us yet again…that season of excitement where you have the thrill of trying to pull together all of your receipts and all of your records for every transaction that took place during the prior year…that feeling of joy as you calculate just how much money is about […]

What one successful entrepreneur said was the most important advice he could give me as I began my entrepreneurial journey

Yesterday afternoon someone I love dearly passed away.  He was Marion D. Woods to others, but he was Uncle Buzz to me and Buzz Woods to his good friends. He had been fighting cancer but unfortunately his body wasn’t able to fight it any longer and he passed away surrounded by his wife and children. […]

What does it take to become a powerful person?

If you were to take a poll of what it takes to become a genuinely powerful person you would likely get answers such as: holding a high level position, or having a lot of money, or having a large social media following, etc. But all of those answers would be wrong… Sure, a person can […]

Choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong

Mistakes are going to happen in every organization because people aren’t perfect and making mistakes is often how people learn and grow. Some mistakes are small and insignificant, and others turn out to be far more serious, even bringing unpleasant consequences. What matters most when a mistake occurs is to own the fact that it […]

Integrity Isn’t Situational

I recently have been dealing with a situation where I became aware that someone has been doing things under false pretenses in an attempt to get personal gain. When I brought these activities to light to those in authority to rectify the situation the person in charge seemed resistant to confront it. He agreed that […]

There Is Only Black and White, Not Any Shades Of Grey

When I was young I used to get frustrated that my Father always saw everything as black and white – there was never any grey as far as he was concerned. As a little kid I would always try to explain to him why the grey sometimes existed and without fail I would end up […]

Justification is a slippery slope

Justification is a slippery slope that will drag you downhill fast if you allow yourself to engage in it. Just think about it, the entire purpose of justification is to try and make some that is just plain wrong appear to actually be right. It’s an attitude that the ends justifies the means – but […]

Trust What Someone Has Shown Themselves To Be, Not What We Wish That They Were

There have been a few times in my life where I really believed in someone and trusted them and then came to discover that they weren’t the person that I thought they were at all. It hurts a lot when you discover that someone you thought was a good person just isn’t. And then you […]

Do What Is Right, Not What Is Easy

‘When you do the right things in the right way,     you have nothing to lose because you have nothing to fear.” – Zig Ziglar Today I was reminded how important it is to stand up for what is right, even when it isn’t easy. I was also reminded that it can take a lot […]

Learn To Be Comfortable Saying ‘No’ Or You Won’t Be Available To Say ‘Yes’ When It Really Matters (Forbes Article)

“It’s only by saying “no” that you can concentrate on the things that are really important.” – Steve Jobs Saying “No” can be awkward, uncomfortable, and downright difficult. After all, it is human nature to want to be liked, and what better way to be liked then to make people happy by saying “Yes” when […]

Set Boundaries: You can’t respect yourself if you don’t know or stand for what is good for you

Setting boundaries is an important skill to learn in life. Boundaries are all about respect. The best way to think about boundaries is to use the example of having a fence that goes around your yard. There is a gate to the fence and you decide who gets to enter your gate to come into […]

A Bad Boss Can Make You Sick…Literally! (Forbes Article)

Life is short but apparently it can become a lot shorter if you spend your days dealing with a bad boss. In a recent study performed by Keas.com they found that 77% of employees experienced physical symptoms of stress from bad bosses and workers who had inconsiderate or uncommunicative managers were 60% more likely to suffer […]

Talk to each other instead of about each other

“A lot of problems in the world would disappear if we talk to each other instead of about each other.” Misunderstandings, hurt feelings, anger, frustration, sadness….so many of these negative emotions all stem from the fact that two people don’t talk to each other about things.  It happens in the workplace, it happens in friendships, […]

What We Reflect to Others

“We Judge Ourselves by our Intentions Others Judge us based on our Behavior.” How true is that?  I think many of us tend to justify our actions by what our intensions were.  Even if in our hearts we know that our behavior was wrong.  It is a trap that is easy to fall into. But […]

Do it Anyway

“People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway. If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do […]

Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence…

“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “press on” has solved and always […]

If You Want To Improve, Stop Defending And Start Listening (Forbes Article)

To grow and improve is a desire that most all of us share. Yet, in order to grow and improve we must first be willing to acknowledge our areas of weakness; we must accept who we are in order to become something better. So how can we best recognize our weaknesses? We can stop defending […]