Freedom of acceleration, maximum control and maneuverability kept me at the wheel of my little sports car for 14 years. I felt resistance to the newer cars that seemed to want to take control away from me. But the time came and I succumbed to a newer model. Well, it...

I recently took another black belt test in Aikido.  With 28 years of practice under my belt I found this one to be quite fun!  This was also a time of reflection about what continues to motivate my practice.  I hope this reflection will be valuable to you. As our...

I expected a peaceful hike in the forest.  While that was mostly what I got - I also witnessed a pretty interesting conflict, which ended with a young school teacher in tears and a politician creating a defensive wall. I enjoy studying conflict as it is my field of...

“I have too many resources!” said no one, ever. In fact, my leadership survey revealed that resource strain is the #2 drag on forward momentum for most teams. Interestingly, the origin of the word resource holds the key to a solution. At its root, resource means “rise...

Those of you who have experienced Spiral Impact know I am a long time student of the martial art, aikido. Spiral Impact, a collaboration/conflict resolution method, is grounded in aikido principles. Fequentlly I am asked, “Have you ever had to use your martial skills...

I love the Olympics. What a great time to turn our attention to elite performance and the World coming together for good! Flawlessly adjusting to rapidly changing circumstances is the hallmark of champions. Athletic performance is an in-your-face visual representation...

“Anyone who is so certain has got to be wrong,” my daughter’s father said upon her birth. You see, I was certain she was going to be a boy. In my mind I had collected enough evidence that to me at the time made it certain. “Certainty” by definition means without...

Click the image below to listen [vimeo]https://vimeo.com/246271410[/vimeo] It can be tricky - innovation and leading edge performance require both conflict and alignment. In The Innovation Code, Jeff DeGraff states, “…it’s our impulse to resolve or eliminate conflict,...

Those of you who’ve read my writing over time know I am gardener.  This fall, as I was cleaning out my flowerbeds, I decided to harvest the seeds from my beautiful marigolds.  I did this as a kid.  I loved the cycle of flowers dying to produce seeds for the next year....