Dig Deeper.
Articles, book reviews and thoughts on executive coaching, communications and the world of business.
The Art of the Deal with the Devil
When stories first started coming out in 2014 about Uber executives threatening journalists who criticized the company, it seemed like a case of bad crisis management. A VP in the company said something stupid [...]
How To Be A Better Leader In A Shape-Shifting World
A speech to the CEO Communications Summit, Montreal, June 14, 2017 We’re here to talk about the communication of leadership, about the relationship between CEOs and their communicators and what that relationship means in the [...]
How to be Funny in French
(C’est incroyable, mais hier j’étais drôle en français.) I started studying French in 7th Grade, or maybe it was 6th. It’s hard to tell because it was the year my parents moved us to Australia [...]
You are what you read: The Spectacle of Let by Sam Zamarripa
It is not often that a new writer appears and causes the more established names on the bookshelf to shift to make room. In recent years, my own bookshelf has been transformed by the writing [...]
How to pitch your big, beautiful idea so everyone’s a winner.
You know you’re smart. You know your idea is brilliant. And you know you’re passionate about what you’re working on. So how come nobody else is buying what you’re selling? Maybe it’s not the ideas [...]
How to pitch like a screenwriter and win more business.
Whether you’re trying to pitch your start-up business to investors or your new creative campaign to the C-Suite, you’ll improve your chances of winning if you pitch like a screenwriter. Why? Because screenwriters don’t pitch [...]
Are You Writing for Your Better Angels or Your Victims?
For all the praise that Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address has received over the years, you might be surprised to learn that on the day it was delivered, it was little noted nor long remembered by [...]
Guess who won the Grand Award at the 2016 Cicero Awards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MW7Jglw7bU Wow! What an unexpected honor. My speech, The Downside of Up: The Outrageous Fortune of Being a Speechwriter, was just named the 2016 Grand Award winner. The Cicero Awards are an international recognition of [...]
Have Yourself A Merry Little Bookshelf
You are what you read because what you read changes your mind. Maybe not all at once and maybe not in ways you see clearly without the benefit of time. And then sometimes, yes, all [...]
Beditation: The New Way to Sleep Your Way to the Top
Everybody loves a good night’s sleep but, done right, the way you sleep can also give you a better day of getting things done. Dr. Amy Cuddy has extendED her research of power poses to [...]
How I survived SXSW and had fun doing it
I had a great few days at SXSW meeting some fellow authors, listening to a few speakers and wandering around the exhibits. A funny moment was in the green room when I getting ready to [...]
If you’re at SXSW, come hear me speak.
If not, get the SXSW special offer on the book. I'm on stage at 4:00 p.m. (Ballroom G) then signing books in the SXSW Bookstore at 4:30. But you don't have to be in Austin [...]
You Are What You Read #6: Under The Hood: Fire Up and Fine-Tune Your Employee Culture by Stan Slap
I had the pleasure of meeting Stan Slap last week and getting an advance copy of his new book, Under The Hood: Fire Up and Fine-Tune Your Employee Culture. Stan spoke at a meeting of [...]
Speaking at South by Southwest
The nice folks who put on the SXSW Conference in Austin have invited me to speak and do a reading from my new book, The Downside of Up. It's fun to be part of the [...]
Elegant Innovation Changes Derby’s Life
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRmoowIN8aY&feature=share I love stories like this: a dog born with two deformed front legs got around OK. But then this team of designers went to work and jacked him up seriously. (Grab a Kleenex!)