Trust and Betrayal

Trust and Betrayal

I don’t know if you ever forget the first time you got burned hard, by a colleague.  Memorial Day, 1998. I’d been managing Uncle Julios, the Tex-Mex restaurant we dubbed the million-dollar taco stand on the corner of North and Clybourn in Chicago. The management team...
Riding the Wave One Choice at a Time

Riding the Wave One Choice at a Time

Yesterday, I got out of bed and immediately opened my computer to send an email to cancel a call for later that day. I was not in the mood.  I immediately got an email back saying it was too late to cancel..she could make an exception, but I didn’t want to be that...
Blue Angels and the Board in Your Head

Blue Angels and the Board in Your Head

This week’s thoughts are brought to you by The Blue Angels.  As I write, I feel like Air Boss Johnson in Top Gun having said, “The pattern is full…” only to have Maverick buzz the tower. In this case, the tower is our house!  The Jax Beach Air Show is this weekend,...
The Good Far Outweighs the Bad

The Good Far Outweighs the Bad

Second semester sophomore year at JMU I pledged a business fraternity. I went ALL IN. Put it this way, when my parents got my grades for the semester, their comment was, “We know we dropped you off on campus…did you actually stay and attend any classes?”  I had! But...
Confidence vs Courage

Confidence vs Courage

The day I gave my first official Erin O’Malley keynote, my sister, brother, and SIL arranged a gift to be sent to my hotel. I opened the box to find a leather bracelet inscribed with, “She believed she could, so she did.” I was on the phone with a friend freaking out...