This article is brought to you by my left hand (I’m right-handed) – courtesy of a torn rotator cuff and surgery a few weeks ago.  I am a firm believer that almost any hardship, unfamiliar situation or adventure offers lessons for life and leadership, and a few weeks with my righ

It is sadly ironic that Penn State University and its leaders, concerned as they were about legacy, will perhaps best be known for their failures.  Over fifteen years, at least eight young boys were molested, some at Penn State’s athletic facilities, by the defensive coach of its reve

“What’s the difference between a line and a rope?”  That is one of my favorite questions to ask new LOON crew members.  The answer is that a rope just sits there, with no purpose or use yet, like a pile of rope on the dock or extra rope in your locker.  A line is rope with a purpose t

I just returned from ten days sailing Lake Superior.  After crossing from Bayfield to Grand Marais, our plan was to take three or four days circumnavigating Isle Royale, one of my favorite destinations.  Five miles outside of Grand Marais’ harbor LOON’s water pump broke, and with abso

My wife and I recently had the pleasure of visiting our daughter Alison in China, where she has been living and working for eight months.  There is enough about that adventure to fill a few volumes – most of it very positive.  One interesting experience involved our visit to an “authe

Do you remember being warned as a kid about “hanging out with the wrong crowd,” and that if you did you were likely to get into trouble?  That was pretty good advice, and it still holds true.  These days I think of that when “bad things happen to good companies” mainly because of the