Resilient Wednesday Weekly Memo

It happened in Rome this past weekend, where the stage was set for a classic showdown, a battle not of gladiators but of teamwork versus individual effort. The forty-third Ryder Cup, golf’s ultimate team competition, unfolded as the USA’s finest golfers faced off against their European counterparts. This event spanned three days, with the initial […]

I’ve never believed people who tell me they work 80-100 hours/week. That would mean they worked 12 hours or more every single day of the week. Highly improbable This past weekend, however, I came across another model for how someone could work that many hours. Working while sleeping My wife, Sheila Collins, is working on

Our dog, Cody, may be small in size, but he carries the demeanor of a big dog. He’s amiable, but he doesn’t tolerate rough handling. Last summer, Cody had a heated encounter with our neighbor’s dog, Chino. I’m unsure whether Cody or Chino started it, but they’ve been sworn enemies ever since. As a result,

I’ve been conducting several Strength Workshops recently. It seems to have many leaders and organizations are coming to see the value of focusing on their team member’s gifts. My journey into the world of strengths began with a fortuitous encounter at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While pursuing my doctorate, I crossed paths with Don Clifton,

As a graduate student at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, I was the evaluator for a federal grant, working with educators implementing the newly passed Title IX legislation. We met for two summers over two weeks. When we began our sessions, the administrators sat in the front, the counselors sat in the middle, and

We found it hidden in my mother’s closet when we cleaned her apartment after she died. The summary of legal findings from the State of New York Supreme Court determining the resolution of my grandmother’s estate. The document was filled with the painful memories my parents harbored as they watched their family business and relations

I am inspired this week by a beautiful essay by Esau McCaulley in the New York Times on how “poverty is the great thief of time.” He shares how his mother worked the overnight shift at Chrysler, meaning that friends and family cared for him and his siblings. Her dedicated hard work brought success for

The first time I remember someone telling me to “RELAX!” was when I was 16. I broke my wrist playing quarterback in a sandlot football game. I completed the pass for the touchdown, but when I got up from being tackled, I noticed my wrist was unusually bent. We met the orthopedic surgeon at his

We took a trip to Fallingwater this past weekend with our grandson, who was visiting. Fallingwater is one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s most iconic pieces of architecture. Built in 1935 for and with the Edgar Kaufman family of Pittsburgh, it is constructed over a waterfall with the sounds and visuals of Bear Run right below