Plans for the future

Plans for the future

At the risk of overuse, please allow me to echo the phrase, “these are unprecedented times.”  For those of you who have lost friends and loved ones due to the novel coronavirus, we mourn with you in your season of loss and grief.  For any of you who have been...
Wisdom, essential for every day

Wisdom, essential for every day

Wisdom is a Lodestar Guidance principle that is essential in times like these.  Each day, we are bombarded with news that stirs emotions and causes anxiety.  It’s hard to discern what is truth and what is not.  It’s also difficult to know how to...
A star that guides…

A star that guides…

The word “Lodestar” is defined as “a star that leads or guides” and “one who serves as an inspiration, model, or guide.”  Lodestar Guidance is a leadership development tool, based on forty-eight character principles that will help you inspire, lead, and guide...
Welcome to the new year!

Welcome to the new year!

The year 2020!  It has a nice ring to it, right?  Perfect vision is described as 20/20.  When one looks back to where he has been and gleans information to help him for the future, it’s called 20/20 hindsight.  Even the numbers themselves...
The dead weight of unforgiveness

The dead weight of unforgiveness

The Christmas season is upon us, and most of us have already spent a great deal of time thinking about the gifts we will be giving to our loved ones. Here is a novel idea for this Christmas: give the gift of forgiveness. It’s cost effective, lasts a...
Growth is rarely achieved on the mountaintops

Growth is rarely achieved on the mountaintops

The fall weather has been a nice relief after a very warm summer and sets the tone perfectly for the upcoming Thanksgiving festivities. Nearly four centuries ago, a bedraggled group of pilgrims were finally celebrating a bountiful harvest following 12 long months...
Honesty affects our lives in multiple ways

Honesty affects our lives in multiple ways

Folks, this is a biggie. If I would ask for a show of hands for everyone that proclaims to be honest, every hand would shoot up, right? I know I would say that I am very honest in all of my dealings. Now, if I ask for a show of hands of those that at times give false...
Integrity: Something that must be earned

Integrity: Something that must be earned

If I were to ask you what the one most important thing is that your parents gave to you, what would it be? I’m guessing that the answers would vary from money to education, or maybe your first car. It could even be your family’s business that your parents poured their...
Anything worth pursuing begins with a dream

Anything worth pursuing begins with a dream

A Challenge to Overcome  In 539 B.C., Cyrus of Persia defeated the Babylonian Empire. It was during the time of the Babylonians that the Hebrews were taken into exile far from their homes. Unlike the Babylonian kings before him, Cyrus allowed these captives to...
Accountability

Accountability

“I’m sorry, it was my fault.” When was the last time you heard this sentence uttered by someone in a leadership role or in our country‘s government? (Probably never, unless it was a sitcom or a cartoon.) How often have you heard that in your workplace? How about in...