Having been engaged to deliver an after- dinner keynote, I share the evening meal with the coordinators of the staff retreat. The table is set: rolls, salads, water, china and cutlery – and at each place, resting right next to the dessert, a Blackberry (not the edible kind), placed with loving care by the occupant of the chair. The meal proceeds. Nibble on the salad, check the Blackberries. Sip the soup, check the Blackberries. And so it goes from course to course, bits and bytes between the bits and bites.

I’ve just delivered a morning presentation at another staff retreat and shared a delightful lunch with the organizers. As I return from the buffet table, dessert in hand, I seat myself and look up to find the tops of four heads pointed my way. My lunch companions simultaneously engage in the “Blackberry Prayer” – scrolling and typing under the table.

In a full-day seminar on leadership development, despite requests to unplug the technology, two of the participants persist in Blackberry distraction. When the conversation involves them directly, they raise their heads and make eye contact. As soon as the discussion moves elsewhere in the room, they check out and click in to the technology. At the first break, they announce they’re desperately needed elsewhere and that they’ll attempt to reschedule their professional development for another time.

Read the rest of this entry »

How do you keep it together to bring the best of yourself to your career and make money while you’re at it? It requires a certain amount of emotional maturity and resilience to not only survive but thrive during difficult times.

How are you feeling about your business?  Do you have a vision for yourself and your career along with the desire to continue on?  I believe you do, otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this! Swiss psychiatrist, influential thinker and the founder of analytical psychology Carl Jung said: “Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens.” You need to have a vision of the life you want and a belief that you can make it happen.

Read the rest of this entry »

6:00 a.m. Hit off button on state-of-the-art, a.m. clock radio with flipping numbers
6:05 a.m. Notice bed-head makes afro look like Chinese Wok
6:10 a.m. Pull on terry shorts, tube socks, waffle shoes and happy-face T-shirt
6:30 a.m. Finally conquer afro with Pepsi terry towel headband. Go for jog
7:30 a.m. Shower. Notice Irish Spring feels tingly on nether regions (ad slogan takes on whole new meaning)
8:00 a.m. Fill out Day Timer “to-do” list

I sure miss that happy-face T-shirt. I miss a lot of things, actually. Reviewing a fully checked “to-do” list is something I miss the most. Do you miss it, too? I’m referring to how little time there seems to be to enjoy all the significant things in life. Here’s the interesting part: we could regain time if we just figured out what’s gone wrong.
Read the rest of this entry »

What is it about a song that can transport you back in time to a special moment in your life, the instant you hear it? Maybe the day you got your first car, had your first date, went to your first dance or had your first kiss. Music can deliver a magical experience.

Music is virtually everywhere we turn in our day-to-day lives: driving in our car, shopping at the mall, attending a sporting event and certainly when we turn on the television. Even in these economically challenged times, music is everywhere…or is it?

Music is missing in the meetings industry. As a professional speaker, entertainer and producer, I find myself at more meetings every year where I consistently notice the lack of music. The meetings industry is one area that sorely needs a boost to energize and invigorate a sometimes-stagnant event.
Read the rest of this entry »