How to Develop a Compass-Driven Strategic Plan

Last week I gave a presentation on “goal-free” Strategic Planning to a group of professional speakers, all of whom are sole practitioners. Over the course of 90 minutes, I discussed many concepts, including the one I write about here: Compass-Driven Strategic Planning.

Lateral Brain Teasers

Creativity is often about solving problems with non-linear thinking. One of my favorite techniques for warming up the brain is the use of “lateral” brain teasers. These are questions that can not be solved via traditional logic. Rather they require you to surface and challenge assumptions. Here are ten classic lateral brain teasers to get […]

Tips from Tom Peters’ Brand Manager

I am the Vice President of Programming and the President Elect for the New England National Speakers Association. I held my first meeting in this role the other day, with Erik Hansen, Tom Peters’ Brand Manager, as our guest speaker for the day. Erik had lots of fantastic ideas that he shared with the group. […]

Making Decisions: The Rock, Paper, Scissors Way

Back in July I was a keynote speaker at the Creative Problem Solving Institute. While there, I met Russ Schoen, a fellow creative-type who shared with me a simple, yet powerful technique for making decisions. I am sure that most of you are familiar with the childhood game Rock, Paper, Scissors (RPS). Although I have […]

Quotes of the Day

I am currently vacationing on Cape Cod, Massachusetts with my family. While in Provincetown, we found a store that had some beautiful cards with some great quotes. Here are my favorites: “Ever notice that ‘what the hell?’ is always the right decision?” – Marilyn Monroe “Masquerading as a normal person day after day is exhausting.” […]

Save BIG With My Top Travel Tips

From time to time, I will post blog entries which are not directly related to the goal-free topic, but rather are related to the process I went through for pulling together the book. Topics may include getting published, blogging, or internet promotions. If there is a topic that is of particular interest to you, write […]

"Radio" Interview on thesop.org

Today I was interviewed on The Student Operated Press, an internet radio station. Click here to listen to this interview. Note that there is a lengthy introduction on the audio promoting their website, so be patient.

Where in the World is Innovation?

Today’s blog is related to my innovation and creativity work. I recently discovered a new Google offering, Google Trends. Type in a word or phrase, and it will show you a graph of how often that expression is searched (as a trend, not as actual volume). More interestingly, it will tell you where in the […]

Listening…Without Hearing

Last week I attended the National Speakers Association annual convention in Orlando, Florida along with 1,700 other professional speakers from around the world. When one is held captive with this many orators for an extended period of time, it becomes painfully apparent that speakers do indeed love to speak. A T-shirt for sale at the […]

Slow Motion to Fast Forward Ratio

I recently saw the movie “Click” with Adam Sandler. Although it wasn’t a great movie, it did get me to think more about what happens when you make your life about goals. Sandler’s character (Michael Newman) is given a remote control that allows him to control not his television, but his actual life. He can […]