March 2, 2023

When Life Knocks You Flat

Over the past several weeks I’ve heard from three people who each, after 20-30 years of loyal service to their company or hospital, received a layoff […]
February 23, 2023

Appreciation for DAISY Foundation

Mark and Bonnie Barnes, cofounders of the DAISY Foundation, have done so much to thank nurses. To date more than 2.5 million nurses around the world […]
February 20, 2023

The choice between 20 seconds of insane courage or a lifetime of regret

In the movie We Bought a Zoo, Benjamin Mee (played by Matt Damon) tells his two children Dylan and Rosie how he had to muster up […]
February 16, 2023

Hope is Relentless Optimism + Determination

Leadership Job #1 is to Spark and Fan Extravagant Hope This is my working definition of hope, from a slide I shared in my presentations at […]
February 6, 2023

6 Downsides to a Culture of Accountability

You don’t have to hold someone’s feet to the fire when they are willing to walk across hot coals on their own Twenty years ago the […]
January 30, 2023

Culture Can Change – Quickly and Profoundly

When in 1986 U.S. Surgeon General Dr. C. Everett Koop announced the goal of a smokefree society by the year 2000, many people wondered what he’d […]
January 17, 2023

Proceed Until Apprehended

The 2023 edition of The Florence Prescription is now available on Amazon. Among other updates, it includes a new chapter on why culture needs to complement […]
November 28, 2022

Building a Culture for Emotional Safety

In his new book Blind Spot: The global rise of unhappiness and how leaders missed it Gallup CEO Jon Clifton writes that workers who strongly believe […]
November 3, 2022

6 Rules for Being Lucky

“Luck is the most valuable force that society routinely undervalues.”        Ben Cohen: “Winners know how to harness luck”, Wall Street Journal, October 8-9, 2022 In 1995 […]
October 12, 2022

Creating a Culture of Emotional Safety

Emotional Safety and Everyday Courage Creating a Culture of Emotional Safety In our article Caring for Covid’s Emotional Long Haulers (Nursing Management, March 2022), my coauthors […]
October 3, 2022

Building a Support Group Culture

Over the years we’ve been home to dozens of rescue animals. I love the bumper sticker that asks “Who rescued who?” The love these animals have […]
September 5, 2022

Carving the Statue of You

A Labor Day Message I love the statue Self Made Man by Bobbie Carlyle. It’s a man with a hammer in one hand and a chisel […]
August 31, 2022

New Book: There’s a Snake on My Head!

Communicating when people are anxious My friend Mindy Spigel has just published her new book There’s a Snake on My Head! Strategies for Alleviating Fear and […]
August 15, 2022

Oh, the Places You’ll Go

Getting Yourself Out of a Slump Books that Inspire Me #37 This is the 37th in a series of posts in which I share thoughts on […]
August 8, 2022

Are you having fun yet?

Why “true fun” is so important for your organization – and for your life. True fun at the inaugural Culture of Ownership Leadership Academy (COLAcademy): teammates […]
March 16, 2016

Low Self Esteem and Personal Accountability

Low Self Esteem and Personal Accountability I will take complete responsibility for my health, my happiness, my success and my life, and will not blame others […]
March 24, 2016

Do you get to work or have to work?

Do you get to work or have to work? “Work is the very fire where we are baked to perfection, and like the master of the […]
March 31, 2016

It Takes Character Strength to Go Out of Character

It Takes Character Strength to Go Out of Character Last week I spoke at the Superheroes Leadership Conference at Carilion Healthcare in beautiful Roanoke, Virginia. The […]
April 1, 2016

Surprise Me

Surprise Me When I’m ordering coffee and am asked what kind I want, I’ll often just say “surprise me.” Almost without exception, what I’m surprised with […]
April 5, 2016

Learn from Those Gone Before

Learn from Those Gone Before “One of the most depressing facts about military history is how very little of the great warlords ever learn from the […]
April 7, 2016

Congress won’t, but you can adopt a Bill of Responsibilities

Congress won’t, but you can adopt a Bill of Responsibilities On Friday April 1, I published an article (reproduced below) stating that Congress had enacted and […]
April 8, 2016

The 3 Levels of Commitment

The 3 Levels of Commitment When I was in high school I was on the swimming team. At that time Doc Counsilman was world’s the preeminent […]
April 8, 2016

Fixing the Culture AND Fixing the Business

Fixing the Culture AND Fixing the Business The cover story of the current edition of Harvard Business Review by Jay Lorsch and Emily McTague is provocatively […]
April 14, 2016

Embrace the 4 Personal Freedoms

Embrace the 4 Personal Freedoms “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in […]
April 15, 2016

The Power of a PledgePartner

The Power of a PledgePartner One of the features of the PledgePower course on The Self Empowerment Pledge is that once you sign up, you can […]
April 15, 2016

The Scariest Thing on Earth…

The Scariest Thing on Earth… … a blank yellow pad. … the first day on a new job … the first day out of an old […]
April 18, 2016

Protect the Positive

Protect the Positive In his book Creativity, Inc. Pixar co-founder Ed Catmull says that his favorite line from any Pixar movie is this one spoken by […]
April 21, 2016

There is Always Something You Can Do

There is Always Something You Can Do “It is possible to be without resources.  It is inexcusable to be without resourcefulness.  That is about character, not […]
April 25, 2016

What’s Your Identity Metaphor?

In his book Creativity Inc., Pixar cofounder Ed Catmull describes some of the metaphors that creative directors use to define their roles. One, he says, uses […]
April 26, 2016

7 Steps to Building a Culture of Ownership

At Values Coach we help our clients foster a stronger culture of ownership. Over the years we have identified 7 essential steps (and 2 optional steps) […]