The last few decades have been "years of plenty," a time of unprecedented abundance. Memories of scarcity are reserved only to the oldest generations now living and we, as a nation, have grown accustomed to what seems to be limitless abundance. If history teaches us anything, it is that complacency is quick to take root in times of abundance. Our …
Category: Ideas Worth Spreading
Decent Boldness: Overcoming Limitations
We need one another. This weekend I had the pleasure of attending a six year old's birthday party with my eldest son. It is so refreshing to watch children who don't know one another at play together. There is so little posturing, no need to size one another up, no hesitation or reservation and a …
9 (plus 3) Traits of a Great Small Business
Small businesses are the engine of the U.S. economy. The U.S. Small Business Administration recently estimated that 99.9 percent of all businesses in the US have less than 500 employees and as such are considered small businesses. The U.S. Census Bureau data corroborates these numbers, revealing that 98.2% of total businesses have less than 100 employees and 89.3% have fewer than 20 …
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Civic Virtue and the Rise and Fall of Empires
Every great civilization of which we have record in history that came and went, failed from within. Edward Gibbon, in his seminal work The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, outlines this process in great detail: internal weakness precipitates external vulnerability and collapse inevitably follows.
George Washington, Humility and Strength by Gregg Hake
There is no harm in always leaving room for the possibility that your perspective may be limited, even if you have done your very best. Humility averts the pitfalls of hubris, prejudice and fanaticism. Humility is the harbinger of nobility and dignity. In true humility lies a fountain of inexhaustible strength and determination.
Keep it Simple
You've all no doubt heard the acronym K.I.S.S., which stands for "keep it simple stupid." It is a concept often touted but seldom heeded in marketing, in public speaking, in systems development, in boardrooms, in classrooms, in the world of medicine and health care and just about every other department of human life. Alan Siegel, a …
Imagination, Knowledge and You
Last evening I played a great game of checkers in the sky. The jet contrails in the brilliant blue air above North Georgia provided an immense board upon which the men in my mind could make their way strategically toward the kings row and then onwards toward victory. While nature did its best to distract me from my enterprise as it …
Lines Written in Early Spring by William Wordsworth
Lines Written in Early Spring I heard a thousand blended notes, While in a grove I sate reclined, In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts Bring sad thoughts to the mind. To her fair works did Nature link The human soul that through me ran; And much it grieved my heart to think What man has …
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Henry Ford: Vision and the American Way
Having spent my high school and university years in Michigan, I grew up surrounded by the automotive industry and its lore, its history and those who made it possible. One particular founding father of the automobile industry stood out to me for his ingenuity, his determination and his way with words: Henry Ford. Henry Ford founded …
The Fear of Change: Lessons from FDR and Benji
The key to change is to let go of fear. Far too often people will recognize the need for change and then sooner or later, fail to take the steps necessary to let the change manifest in its fulness. Some scupper change right at the "get-go," either out of a fear of failure or even of success, preferring instead the …
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Gregory Hake 