A New Chapter

A New Chapter

I haven’t written a blog post for a while, so this will be a long one! So far, this year has been an incredible ending to what I can only describe as the first chapter of my true life. By ‘true life’, I mean my life now, standing up for what I believe in, after […]

And then what?

And then what?

Some people know why they do what they do, and others don’t know. There are very few who know what their plan in life is, for after they have done what they are doing. When you eventually retire, or the kids leave home, or you’ve got that promotion, or sold that business – ask yourself: […]

One Candle

One Candle

This week, I turned 39. I have always found birthdays pretty odd – arbitrarily celebrating days because of a particular orbit of a particular planet around a particular star. In relation to everything else that’s happening in the universe, it is a pretty odd phenomenon, to be honest. As someone who tries to have a […]

2 years

2 years

It is just under two years since I publicly declared in a blog post that I was going to change the world. It is just under two years since I took the leap, left my comfort zone and lived up to what I am truly capable of. I wrote that post after completely rewiring how […]

It’s Time To Blackmail Yourself

It’s Time To Blackmail Yourself

Over the last three years, I’ve worked tirelessly to improve my city (Fargo, North Dakota), to shift its global image and create something special for my community of friends. We’ve had a tremendous amount of success, with glowing local and national attention, plenty of nights with the fondest of memories to fill a scrapbook, and […]

What if it was easy?

What if it was easy?

Last night as I trekked through the Denver International Airport with a stroller, two kiddos, enormous suitcases, car seats and a heavy, HEAVY backpack, my never-ending inquiry, “what if it was easy?” mocked me from my head. I would have traveled light. I just would have done it. I would have assessed our time away, […]

The Original Assumption

The Original Assumption

Last week I was the most exhausted I have been for quite a time. I was so tired that I could not finish my blog post on The Kindness Virus. I have to confess that the second half (or better half) of the post was actually written by my wonderful wife, Valerie. This was the […]

Yes, You Have Time

Yes, You Have Time

“I wish I had the time!” or “I don’t have time!” Whenever people talk about making opportunities happen – for themselves or their community – those are often the responses I hear. If you want the real truth: there is always time. Several years ago, I conducted a survey amongst entrepreneurs, and asked them what […]

The 4th R

The 4th R

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”   – Viktor E. Frankl If ever there were a quote that highlighted one of the main opportunities for growth in every human being, it is this one. Because […]

The Power of Safe Spaces

The Power of Safe Spaces

One of the things I have come to recognise in recent times is the power of safe spaces. Without them, we cannot explore our full potential. To me, a safe space is somewhere you can explore whatever you want to explore, freely and without consequence. It can be a crash mat when you are learning […]