Tag Archives: respectful

#BeNice

Tonight my kids showed me a social media post where someone shared their view on something and someone else disagreed with them by calling them a derogatory word, and sadly this exchange took place between two people who supposedly loved each other. I wrote a blog on this very subject five years ago because I […]

Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself: Avoiding Self-Sabotage At Work

I wrote an article on Forbes.com called “Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself“. It’s a message worth resharing: I was standing in the security line at an airport when a TSA worker came walking alongside the line yelling out in an animated way, “No liquids, no aerosols, no gels or creams on the airplane…You better […]

Speak The Truth

Years ago I wrote an article for Forbes called Speak The Truth Even If Your Voice Shakes which talked about the importance of giving people honest feedback in a respectful way, even at times it feels uncomfortable or  intimidating to do so.  In the article I shared seven lessons I’d learned about giving feedback and […]

“Does Anyone Here Have A Sister Named Bambi?”

Back in my twenties I was invited on a trip with a group of people that didn’t know each other.  When the group arrived, one of the young men in the group started sharing his thoughts on a controversial political subject, speaking in a manner that assumed everyone else in the group shared his same […]

A Disagreement Does Not Equal a Debate

(Dalton Anderson filling in for Amy Rees Anderson who is recovering from a cold because I am a good son:) :  I had a discussion with some friends the other day over an opinion on a movie. We were talking about how we would rate the movie out of 10. One individual thought it deserved […]

If We Could Read The Secret History Of Our Enemies

A business associate mentioned that they felt I had exercised great patience and restraint in a conversation they observed me having with someone else who’d been disrespectful. They went on to comment that they didn’t think they could have had that same level of restraint if they had been the one in my place having […]

Know Your Audience

Many years ago back when I was single I had gone on a trip with a group of people. Within this group there were many people who didn’t know each other prior to this trip. One of the young men in his mid-20’s began talking to another young man who he didn’t know yet and […]

Don’t ever let a person acting horribly get you down

There are a lot of really good people in this world, and there also some people who choose to be really horrible. To all you good people out there I want to say, “NEVER LET ANY PERSON WHO IS CHOOSING TO BE HORRIBLE GET YOU DOWN!” Sorry to yell with my all caps there, but […]

What To Do and What NOT To Do

Throughout my life I have been blessed with some incredible mentors and role models. They have taught me the “what to do” things in life, and the “how to be” qualities, that if we embrace will turn us into someone others will want hope to emulate someday as well. The more in life I would […]

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 […]

Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself. Avoiding Self-Sabotage At Work (Forbes Article)

I was standing in the security line at an airport when a TSA worker came walking alongside the line yelling out in an animated way, “No liquids, no aerosols, no gels or creams on the airplane…You better check yourself before you wreck yourself!” I couldn’t stop myself from laughing out loud. As the CEO of […]

If You Really Want Feedback Then Make It Comfortable For Others To Give It (Forbes Article)

The only way any of us can know all of the areas we can improve on is if we are open to feedback from others. As Bill Gates said, “We all need people who will give us feedback. That is how we improve.” But the only way we will get the valuable feedback available from […]

BALL is Life!

I am not even going to give much of an intro to this blog other than to say that I received this in a letter from my daughter Ashley today: This week I realized how playing sports has prepared me incredibly well for life!!! There are so many different analogies and tie-ins… But here are […]

Respecting the Thoughts and Views of Others

I get that when people are passionate about their beliefs they want to share them with others and I think that is an awesome thing if it’s done in a positive way! In all my years of being a leader in the business world I have never once seen anyone be influenced by angry words […]

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 […]

We are All Equal and We All Deserve Respect

As a young man, Dr. Seuss was bullied over race and religion.  As an adult Dr. Seuss wanted to write a book that would send a message to children (and anyone else who read it) that all of us are equal.  The book he wrote is called The Sneetches. The book Sneetches is about the […]

What Grade Would You Give Yourself?

School is back in session as is the focus in once again on trying to get good grades for this new semester.  As I thought about getting good grades it made me stop and think about the opportunity this could be for all of us adults, even if we aren’t in school any longer, to come up with […]

Speak The Truth, Even If Your Voice Shakes (Forbes Article)

When someone isn’t performing well at their job; or when they aren’t the right fit for a particular position; or when their personality isn’t a match for the company culture, one of the biggest disservices you can do to them is to not tell them the truth. As a CEO, I found that one of […]