personal development

How to remain relevant like Madonna

February 6, 2012

Why are folks so impressed that Madonna at “her age” has remained relevant for the better part of 30 years? Sure, audiences in the entertainment industry can be fickle, but don’t we all face the challenge of remaining relevant in our chosen careers? Last night, I watched her performance during the Super Bowl and then [...]

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The 2012 Plan

January 2, 2012
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Planning works. A year ago, I shared The 2011 Plan and last week I shared the success story of that plan when I wrote “How to make what you write come true.” Finding a planning method that works for you is, unfortunately, not so easy. I’ve settled on a method that combines Chris Brogan’s three [...]

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Deciding who to help

December 30, 2011
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When you own a business, have a successful blog and 4000+ followers on Twitter, folks ask you for help with their causes. The “asks” for help come in many forms but most often as direct messages or @ messages on Twitter asking to contribute and spread the word. While none of the requests are ignored, [...]

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Reverse Your Thinking

December 13, 2011
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The last 5 percent of the research and development project can make you or break you. You’ll get to that point where the technology is almost working. You could just about commercialize it; but not quite. This is the point when you need to change your thinking. Incremental and linear progress is great and has [...]

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Urgency

December 9, 2011

As another year comes to a close… Stop to ponder where you are compared to where you wanted to be. You’ve accomplished a great deal, right? Yet, it doesn’t feel like enough. You had bigger plans for this year. Now what? It’s simple really. The year is not over … not yet. Face what’s left [...]

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Be like the Badgers – stick to your game plan and play in the Rose Bowl

December 5, 2011
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This past Saturday night, the Wisconsin Badgers defeated the Michigan State Spartans in the first ever Big 10 championship game and secured a coveted spot to play in the Rose Bowl. If you’re not a college football fan, just trust me that this is a big deal for the team. This was not an easy [...]

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Think outside your comfort zone

December 2, 2011
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Over the Thanksgiving holiday, my daughter Allison Raffel was home from college and asked me to read some of her writing. Of the half-dozen pieces I read, this one spoke to me more than the others. Upon asking myself why, I realized it’s because it forced me to think outside my comfort zone. Thinking is [...]

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Use your experience

November 25, 2011
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The other day I was watching our cat, Patches, as I started to grind some coffee. She froze and looked around. It was a far cry from the reaction she had a dozen years ago as a kitten in this house. Back then, she would have taken off running. It would have likely ended with [...]

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Launch vs. Ramp-Up

November 22, 2011
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For the last two years, I’ve found myself in almost constant launch mode. There have been lots of finish lines to cross. As I look back on it, that’s the easy part and it’s done with sheer determination and motivation. Then the hard part comes: Ramping up the launch into a money-making venture. That part [...]

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End the year strong

November 4, 2011
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It’s not time to slow down for the holidays; not quite yet. It’s time to tie up loose ends and start planning for 2012. It can be a tricky balancing act here in the U.S. as Thanksgiving approaches and then the inevitable onslaught of holiday parties to attend in December starts up. Take a different [...]

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