A great conversation is like a favorite song – it flows, it’s memorable and it leaves you feeling warm inside. A person’s voice is the music, the words they use – the melody. Certain songs stay with us, even when we don’t want them to. I was humming “It’s a Small World After All” days […]
It was the end of a long day of training for a large group of healthcare executives from all over the country. We had fun that afternoon, getting to know what makes people tick and how to get their teams to work more effectively together. I had put them through all kinds of exercises in […]
Differences – when we think back to that grade school playground, we can all remember the pain of being different. Whether you didn’t have the latest”cool” outfit, or you were too fat, too skinny, wore braces or glasses – there was always some “name” thrust upon you…and it was never flattering. We grow up with the […]
In one of the cell phone commercials, a man is sitting with a bunch of kids asking if faster is better. One of the most annoying little girls rambles on about “we just want more, we just want more…” Sad that “more” has become the standard. Sometimes we’re so busy being where we “think” we […]
When is the last time you took the chance to say hello or strike up a conversation with someone you didn’t know – someone in line at the grocery store, a server at a new restaurant, another patient in the doctor’s waiting room? Have you ever looked at someone very different from you, and instead […]
With the tragic bombing at the Boston Marathon, once again, we have the opportunity to see Americans come together to come back strongly after adversity. In public speaking, we talk about how self-deprecating humor draws an audience in and enables you to connect with people at a heart level. We talk about overcoming adversity and […]
I love finding business owners that truly “get” customer service. They know what it takes to create customer loyalty. They know that price is rarely why people continue to return to their businesses. They understand that focusing on the relationship and value you bring supersedes overpricing to make a profit. They know that if you […]
The Punxsutawney rodent promised that spring would be arriving within six weeks of February 2 this year. He lied. Here in the plains states, we experienced summer-like days in the 70’s last week. This week our neighbors to the west and north are digging out of a foot or more of the white stuff. We complain of […]
Today would have been my Mother’s 97th birthday. I was lucky to be her daughter, even though growing up I didn’t like to be told that I was just like her. When I was 10, she told me that other children were the blessed “luck of the draw” for their parents, but that she was […]