How To Not Crash The Airplane Under Pressure
Let me give you a hypothetical high-pressure situation. You’re the pilot of a small, single-engine airplane. You take off, alone, in this single-engine airplane, and head out over a large body of open...
View ArticleHow To Lead A More Effective Team By Disagreeing
It’s great when people agree with you, isn’t it? It’s a wonderful validation — of your thoughts, your ideas…of you. It makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Yes, it’s great when people agree with...
View ArticleHow Not To Make A Decision Under Pressure
Fight or flight? This way or that way? Yes or no? Each of these three questions describes a brain under pressure. Could be your brain, could be mine. When it comes to pressure situations, we all tend...
View ArticleThe Danger Of High-Pressure Focus
On December 29, 1972, Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 crashed into the Florida Everglades, killing more than 100 passengers and crew members. That, of course, would be tragic under any circumstances. What...
View ArticleWhat The Mission:Impossible Movies Can Teach You About Pressure
I just saw the new Mission: Impossible movie. I’m not going to give anything away here (because you may not have seen it yet, and besides, I’m not that kind of a jerk), but it is absolutely filled with...
View ArticleThe Best Way To Deal With A High-Pressure Situation
A friend of mine got a flat tire on the way to the airport last week. It was a crisis, and she missed her flight. I got a flat tire on the way to the airport several years ago. It was an inconvenience,...
View ArticleHow To Feel Great in A High-Pressure Situation
Imagine you’re in this situation. You’re a professional hockey player. You’re playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. It’s the deciding game; you’re in overtime. There are 10 seconds left, and suddenly,...
View ArticleHow Not To Kill The Astronauts On Your Team
Have you seen the movie Apollo 13? In case you’re unfamiliar with it, it is not the sequel to Apollos 1 through 12. It’s a nail-biter of a movie that tells the true story of the ill-fated—and almost...
View ArticleHow To Keep Your Team From Freezing Under Pressure
First question: Have you ever played poker? I mean real poker, with real money at stake. (“Real” money, of course, being a relative term—primarily relative to your current net worth.) Second question:...
View ArticleWhy Believing Your Own Hype Will Make You Choke Under Pressure
The stories are legendary. Abraham Lincoln loses his run for the Senate…twice. And goes on to become our greatest president. A young Robert De Niro gets passed over for the role of a lifetime as Sonny...
View ArticleAre Your Policies Killing Your Opportunities?
Back when I was in high school (or it might have been shortly after; I don’t really remember, and it doesn’t really matter), I got a part-time job at the Don Randall Music Store in Lancaster,...
View ArticleThe Winning Mindset For Creative Solutions Under Pressure
For fifteen years, part of my job was to come up with creative ideas—every week, under extreme time pressure, with roughly a million people watching. I was good at it. Really good. But I didn’t start...
View ArticleHow Socrates Can Make You A Better Leader
Remember Socrates? Greek fella, lived a long time ago, had a drinking problem (specifically with hemlock)? He also invented this thing called the Socratic Method. (Although, for the record, he didn’t...
View ArticleCan You Handle The Pressure Of The First Time?
Have you ever felt pressure to produce, even when you know you’ve got what it takes? I was just talking with a friend of mine—Bruce—who is also, like me, an amateur musician. Don’t get me wrong—we’ve...
View ArticleThis Simple Question Can Help You Conquer Your Pressure
Have you ever felt overwhelmed when you’re under pressure? I know—stupid question, right? Of course you’ve felt overwhelmed under pressure! The two kind of go hand in hand. That’s because when you’re...
View ArticleAre You Making This Hidden Leadership Mistake?
My piano is being tuned as I’m writing this. Don’t get me wrong…it didn’t sound out of tune. But it’s a valuable instrument, and I care about it. So I get it tuned twice a year, without fail. Now, I...
View ArticleWhy You Need To Stretch Yourself As A Leader
I’m currently learning a new piece on the piano (Bumble Boogie by Jack Fina). It’s a challenge for me because, 1) it requires a fair amount of technique, 2) it’s fast, and 3) I’m not very good at the...
View ArticleHow To Conquer The Vicious Cycle Of Impostor Syndrome
I’m going to let you in on a secret. But before I do, I need to give you some facts: Fact One: I’ve won 29 Emmy Awards for my work in television. Fact Two: I led my team to more than 100 Emmy Awards of...
View ArticleHow To Be A Leadership Development Rock Star
Spoiler Alert: We’re all going to die. Not today (hopefully). But sometime. And when that time comes, many of us—many leaders—will have retired from our work. Which begs the question: Where will the...
View ArticleWhy You Need To Be Encouraging Bad Ideas
According to the traditional rules, I could never run for public office. Not that I want to run for public office. I don’t! I’d be terrible at it. But my point is that, according to the traditional...
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