People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.If you are honest and sincere, people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.What you spend…
I was meeting a colleague at a local bakery/café recently and arrived early. I typically arrive early and wait for the other party to arrive, but this time I was enthralled with the 50+ framed quotes that defined the walls of this quaint eatery. So, I wanted to share a few of them with you…
Most great stories of victory are, in actuality, great stories of overcoming adversity. Virtually every team and organization experiences adversity of some type: economic hardships, loss of a major customer, lack of funding, failed partnerships, natural disaster, the death of a team member, etc. To help move through adversity and onto victory, take stock of what…
Excellence is never an accident.It is the result of high intention, sincere effort, and intelligent execution. It represents the wisest option among many alternatives. Choice, not chance, determines your destiny, dreams, and values.– Aristotle
I am blessed to enjoy this view each day in my office. It is a reminder of generational gifts. My father and my son are both artistically gifted. They never met. Growing up, we used my father’s Dove of Peace painting as our family Christmas card for years. It simply read, “PEACE from the Colans.”…
Charles Plumb was a U.S. Naval Academy graduate, one of the original Top Gun pilots, and a pilot in Vietnam. On May 19, 1967, during his 75th combat mission (five days before the end of his tour), his plane was shot down. He ejected and parachuted into enemy hands, where he spent six years in…
Tom Fox is the former physician and current gifted photographer whose inspiring images grace the pages of The Nature of Excellence. This majestic image is one of Tom’s "flower-scapes" in the Wind River Range (near the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming). The amazing proliferation of alpine sunflowers leads the eye to the beautiful, secluded lake below—while…
I have a family tradition of writing and reading letters to each family member for holidays, birthdays, and special occasions. The letter might contain encouragement, advice, a blessing, a reflection, or a story. I hit a milestone birthday a couple of years ago... yep, I turned 40 :). So, I wrote this letter to my…
When was the last time that you did something for the first time? Last year, I mentioned to my husband that I wanted to learn stand-up comedy. It made me nauseous to think about it, but I knew I needed to lean into it so I could grow. So, a few months later, Lee bought…
After hijacked planes crashed into the Twin Towers in New York City, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and a field in Pennsylvania on Sept. 11, 2001, thousands of flights around the world were forced to land at airports that weren’t their intended destinations. A whopping thirty-eight of these rerouted planes touched down in the small…
