Does it surprise you that only 400 cokes were sold the first year; Albert Einstein's Ph.D. dissertation was rejected; Henry Ford had two bankruptcies before his famous success; or Ulysses S. Grant was working as a handyman, written off as a failure, eight years before becoming President of the United States? Rodin couldn't get into art school on three occasions yet became a great sculptor; Abraham Lincoln lost seven electio...

During the Beijing Olympics, beach volleyball players Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh were undefeated in their second gold medal Olympics, with an amazing record of 108 consecutive wins. Watching the advancing duo during the Olympic coverage, I heard commentators mention that when either woman was asked during interviews which one of them was better, they responded, "We're better together." That contrasts sharply with end...

"Treat everybody else as if they were you." These words gave me pause. I wonder what it would be like if we each did what this "unknown author" is advocating? Would she still have abandoned her station at the airport fast food restaurant to get a fork and share a pastry with her friend while her customers waited if she followed this adage? Would he still have sat by the window of the plane with his feet on the seat and knee...

There's a line in the movie Gracie that I love. Gracie is a teenager in the 70s who is competing for a spot on the boy's high school varsity soccer team. In one scene, dejected and on the verge of giving up, her mother, played by Elizabeth Shue, tells her, "If you want to limit yourself, that's fine. But don't let other people do it for you." Most of us do an impressive job of impeding our own paths with our detrimental sel...

Once there was a young woman who didn't like her job. Everyday when she came home from work, she told her husband how terrible her day had been, how tiring the work and how unreasonable her boss. "Leave that job," her husband told her. "Oh I will" she said. "But not yet. I have too many friends there for me to leave just yet." And so she complained until the days became years and her family grew to five. "Leave that job," h...

"I don't know," the Gen-Y acquaintance mused. "I'm thinking about grad school, but it's more work than I thought to prepare for the GREs. Then if I do all that and don't get into the program I want, it's a waste of time. Plus, did you know it could cost more than $40,000 to get a masters degree? I don't want that kind of debt, especially since I'll never make it up in a starting salary." By the end of answering my question...

Booths featuring products and services related to employee engagement, web-based delivery, global performance, and talent management were overflowing with conference attendees as I walked the trade show at a national conference where I was speaking. Just a few years ago the magnets were initiatives like total quality management, six sigma, diversity, work-life-balance, and customer driven. Every few years there are band wag...

It was his perception that caused the outburst. "Why aren't there any managers at these sessions? Why aren't they required to attend, too?" he challenged. Hired to provide workshops on building trust in a workplace lacking it, I answered his question to the extent I could during that first session, "It's my understanding that everyone is attending," I offered. "But let me find out for sure and get back to you." Confirming a...

"I don't like to be kept waiting," he responded when asked by the travel-study professor why he delayed the entire group for a third straight day. "Next time," the professor warned, "we won't hold the bus." The following day the bus left as scheduled, returning to the hotel late into the evening from a full day of learning and exploring. It also returned to an outraged man who was left behind when, once again, he was late f...

Most people are looking for the secret to success; the secret to being a millionaire; the secret to winning at working. To help them find it, Amazon inventories 1,797 books promising success secrets, everything from "Mustang Sallies: Success Secrets of Women Who Refuse to Run With the Herd" to "The 21 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires." So, if you're one of those looking, I'll save you some time. The bottom line is this - t...