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How to be Humble

Early in his life, Benjamin Franklin fell into conversation with a friend of his. As Franklin retells the story in his autobiography, “a Quaker Friend…kindly inform’d me that I was generally thought proud.” The Friend went on to describe Franklin’s behavior

Book Notes - Quiet - The Power of Introvers in a World That Can't Stop Talking

You are a member of a small group of survivors that has just crash-landed a float plane in remote sub-arctic Canada. You have been able to salvage 15 items from the plane, but you can’t take all of them with

Do the Hustle

Dance class is over, and looking back I realize that our instructor did not do as advertised. When we signed up and paid our fee, it was to learn the basics of the Swing, Cha-cha, Tango, and Foxtrot. These he

Backwards Planning

The first time I heard the term “backwards planning” I thought it was a mistake.  The last thing I wanted was to be backwards about my planning.  But that’s not what they meant at all.  Today we’ll talk about what

Feel Sorry on your Own Time

The football arcs high above the field seemingly in slow motion, reaching its zenith, then nosing over and beginning its plummet to the field below. On the 15 yard line the rookie receiver waits. No fair catch – he’s got

Pre-Execution Checklist

Have you ever been getting ready to do something important, then forgot to take care of one critical thing?  That almost happened to me a couple weeks ago.  Fortunately, there was a technique we used that saved us some embarrassment

Constructive Feedback

Having lived in 19 places in my life (so far), I’ve been in my share of churches, but the one we go to now has always struck me as being a little more organized and better run than most.  Recently

Leader Perspective

You know, I was hiking this beautiful fall day, and it got me thinking.  The trails here in Pennsylvania are rocky, you really have to watch where you put your feet or you could twist an ankle.  The problem is

Boost Your Confidence

The air is screaming by outside at 120 miles an hour, the ground is receding in the distance, and the weight of your parachute and equipment seems to be pulling you down.   Your heart rate is up, there’s a little

Start With Why - Simon Sinek

How is it that that Toyota and Honda were able to expand into the luxury car market successfully, but Volkswagen was not?  Why is Apple able to remain so innovative in so many different areas of the market for so

Leadership is challenging enough when you know what you are doing.  But when your teammates happen to have more knowledge or experience than you do, it can get a little tricky, especially in the early days. It’s OK, though –

Focus the Team

Two big keys to success in leading a team are to make sure everyone is on the same wavelength, and be in a position to control the action.  In this two minute tip I’m going to show you a team

They say knowledge is power. But if that’s true, how can you be in charge when you don’t know as much as the others on your team? Lots of times you might find yourself put in charge of something you

One of the things I like to do is get my day started on a positive note with a quick win first thing in the morning.  You can pick any activity you like, so long as it is something you

9 Leadership Lessons I learned from my Dance Instructor

I guess you can learn about leadership just about anywhere if you happen to be looking for it.  Last Thursday evening, I wasn’t even looking and it hit me square in the face. My wife and I had signed up

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Ken Downer - Founder of RapidStart Leadership
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