Monday Motivator: Lessons and Learnings
5 years ago, I wrote “The Last Monday Motivator“. Today, I’m back in the saddle again with some learnings and lessons.. In the interim a lot has changed. People are more addicted than ever to our devices, the Internet, to Netflix, to Facebook. The list of things competing for our time and attention is a long one. A year ago,…
It’s Never Too Late
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. We each have within us the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” ~Harriet Tubman I don’t know what it was that made me drive to the Haslett Village Barber Shop that afternoon in 2011. That memory has faded. What I do vividly remember is the…
Remembering Russ Gibb
To inspire the next generation to reach higher, think deeper thoughts and do greater things. This is the stuff of immortality. When Russ Gibb returned to his “spirit self as the purser on the Japanese steamer Mitza Maru sailing somewhere in the South China Sea,” many who didn’t now him only recalled how he amplified the “Paul Is Dead” story…
Life on the Scenic Route
We always knew we would love our granddaughter “No Matter What”. We never realized how powerful those words could truly be.
The Worst of Times / The Best of Times
“The people who have the best, most loving ideas tend to be executed or assassinated or discouraged.” ~Sarah Vowell One year ago today, Colleen and I experienced the worst 24 hours of our lives. It began in a visceral encounter with the fallout from the toxic culture at my workplace and culminated at 3:11am the next morning when I got…
One Radio Station’s Secret Sauce
What can a Top 40 radio station from the 60s teach us about audience engagement? In 2014, Steve Schram and I got the invitation of a lifetime. The 50th birthday party for our favorite radio station at the Red Eye Grille in Manhattan. We both grew up in the Detroit area during the time that WKNR was in its brief…
She’s Leaving Home
Church youth groups were a safe place for young people to hang out in the late 1960s. Or so the grown-ups thought. Joey Morrison and I regularly bolted from Methodist Youth Fellowship to visit Middle Earth, Ann Arbor’s premiere head shop. The black lights, incense and racy posters held our prurient interest more effectively then the biblical retreads that targeted…
When I’m 64
I remember when I first heard McCartney sing that song. I could never imagine crossing the threshold. Back then, I was told by my peers, “Never trust anyone over 30!” I thought people were immortal, invincible and fearless. Boy was I wrong. Looking back over six decades, I attribute whatever success I may have had, in great measure, to luck….
Resolutions I’ll try to keep
Sydney J. Harris wrote for the Chicago Daily News and, later, the Chicago Sun-Times. He also authored 11 books and a syndicated column, Strictly Personal, that was regular reading for me when I was growing up. In 1980, he penned a New Year’s message focusing on those resolutions we love to make and so easily break. My friend, Russ White,…
Doing things for the right reasons
By Scott Westerman “Always question your motivation. Why you decide to do something is much more important than what you ultimately do.” What are the factors that impact the decisions you make in life? Are you in pursuit of purpose or personal glory? This has been on my mind lately as I’ve witnessed several incidents where chasing status and ego…