Mostly on CREATIVITY & strategic thinking.

"I feel like I could talk to you all night." The woman I'd been enjoying the evening with leaned in and said with a devilish smile. That's when I knew that I was onto something big. The next day thoughts danced inside my head like ancestral cavemen who had just discovered fire. Over the next month, the same scenario played out again and again and again. It seemed like I'd slipped into a modern version of Groundhog Day. Would you believe I hadn't really said anything? In fact, I had barely told this person anything about myself. And it wasn't because I was trying to be evasive. I was simply practicing a newfound skill that made talking about myself almost irrelevant.

If I could do it all over again, I would have practiced my negotiation training and calmly replied in my best FM DJ voice, “You’re from Chicago?” I hate getting sidetracked. Whenever I learn something new, I try to practice that new skill. But someone or something always seems to appear out of thin air to distract me like a jelly donut brigade parachuting into a fat camp. Then, I spend days or even weeks ruminating before unlocking the hidden lesson.

Where are you going? Why are you so dressed up? Are you meeting someone important? These questions often come up when I meet new people. I sometimes smile and give the devilish reply, “Yes, I’m meeting you. Aren’t you important?” I view clothing as a communication tool that allows us to express the identity we want to be associated with. The process of getting dressed puts me in a good mood and reminds me to be more present. This gives me confidence and helps me connect with others. But things weren’t always that way.

The creative flâneur is someone who wanders with the deliberate purpose of detracting their mind to generate unexpected insights from their surroundings. You can adopt this mindset whenever you need creative inspiration to get unstuck. But be careful, because this can turn into procrastination if you wander too long.

The age of AI has already begun, and we are at the very beginning of what is possible. As AI becomes more ubiquitous, many experts believe the technology will create disruptions in nearly every sector. And with such advancements, there are growing concerns over how this technology will impact society, national security, and the threat of existential risks.

Have you ever wanted to completely reinvent your life? In 2016 I found myself stressed to the max, overweight, and in need of a drastic change. I was working a job that I was no longer suited for and began searching for answers. This is the story of how I used design thinking, and completely change my lifestyle.

Many leaders mistake vision, mission, values, and tactics for strategy. Each serves a necessary function of the strategic planning process. However, these components alone do not form a strategy. 

Lateral thinking deals with different perceptions, concepts, and points of entry. Rather than seeking to understand what is true, lateral thinking explores “possibilities” or “what might be.” The use of logic to create new ideas or solve challenging problems often leads to a prolonged lack of insights. Lateral thinking, however, emphasizes the use of different perceptions, approaches, and ways of looking at things.

Have you ever worked on a project where you thought everyone was on the same page only to discover the opposite? Depending on how far along you were into implementation, you likely wasted a lot of time and money. And when everyone finally realized they were going down the wrong path, frustration probably impacted morale. Perception gaps can create unnecessary confusion which leads to less than desired outcomes.

Critical thinking is the cornerstone of any good decision-making process. One of the most potent weapons in the critical thinker’s arsenal is the Socratic questioning method. It involves a dialogue between two or more people to break down deeply held beliefs into individual elements.