July 4, 2023

Wishing You these 4 Freedoms for Your Independence Day

In January 1941, as Europe and Asia were engulfed in war, a war that within the year would draw in the United States, President Franklin D. […]
July 3, 2023

Listen to Your Heart… Really!

Like many people in a world where we grew up with loud music and headphones, I have tinnitus – ringing in the ears. Unlike some people […]
July 1, 2023

If you’re not enjoying the journey…

About 20 years ago I organized a Never Fear Never Quit conference. Two of our speakers were Alan Hobson and Jamie Clark. They’d written an inspirational […]
June 21, 2023

Do you have a DAISY story?

Because the first edition of this book was so well-received at the 2023 conference of the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL) earlier this year, I’m […]
June 8, 2023

Do you need a sabbatical lite? How can you make it happen?

I appreciate the responses to my recent post on how a Near Drowning Experience cemented my decision to block of the next seven months to take […]
June 6, 2023

My NDE and Sabbatical Lite

Last week I had a Near Drowning Experience. On a family vacation we were on a boat in the gulf coast, anchored about 250 yards from […]
May 1, 2023

New Book: The DAISY Foundation and our Growth-Impact Strategy Model

Giving the first copy of the new book to DAISY Cofounders Mark and Bonnie Barnes at the AONL 2023 Conference This week we are at the […]
April 8, 2023

Treat Your Hours Like You Treat Your Dollars

Core Action Value 3 in my course on The Twelve Core Action Values is Awareness. When I’m teaching it, I’ll sometimes go around the room and […]
April 5, 2023

How DAISY has Influenced Global Healthcare Culture

The Values Coach Growth-Impact Model™ I’m leading a team of graduate students from University of Iowa College of Public Health on a study of the influence […]
March 16, 2023

Words Matter – Especially During a Crisis

Can you imagine Winston Churchill having said this to the British people during the German Blitz of WW2? “Bank runs are especially dangerous because they feed […]
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 […]
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) […]