Achieving Business Excellence

There is a lot of fear and uncertainty in the world right now. Turn on the TV, listen to the radio, look at the news on the Internet – it can be overwhelming, scary, and downright frightening. As a result, it seems to me that an awful lot of people today are living with a high level of stress and anxiety because they are truly uncertain about how their future might unfold. So in this blog I’d like to give you some advice for how to handle the current situation in a bit more proactive and focused manner. Continue reading “How to Turn Stress… Into Success!” »

“You become what you focus on… and similar to the people you surround yourself with.” This is the single most important lesson I’ve learned in my life so far. How did I learn it? By understanding the power of: Mastermind Groups.

Nearly 28 years ago – I failed out of college. After my first year at the University of Miami, in Miami Florida, I had a stellar 1.6 GPA!! Unfortunately, all of the people I was hanging out with had lower GPA’s, so it did not seem like that big of a deal… until I was expelled. I then moved to Gainesville Florida to restart my college career and met an incredibly wise professor (Roger Strickland) who strongly recommended that I start a “study group” – a.k.a. — a mastermind group. So I stood up at the front of the class and invited anyone that wanted to join me in creating a study group – but the catch was that you had to have a 3.6 GPA or higher to be in the group! Forming that study group changed EVERYTHING. My college career completely turned around because now I was surrounded by bright, sharp, talented students who were focused on getting good grades, staying healthy, having fun and preparing themselves for their dream lives and dream careers. How well did it work? I graduated in the top three students in the United States in my major from the University of Florida (Go Gators!). Continue reading “One Of The “Master Keys” To Success” »

My dear friend, Linda Coles, an absolutely superb speaker, author and social media expert from New Zealand, sent me a note the other day asking if I had read any really good books on how to be an expert at facilitation of meetings. I thought it was a great question, and one that I’ve gotten several times in the past, so I decided I would post my response to her – in hopes that it might be helpful to you. Here is exactly what I wrote to Linda:  Continue reading “How To Be An Expert Facilitator” »

If you have a moment, I’d like to share a story with you.

I graduated from one of the top prep schools in America in 1982 and decided I would stay near home and attend the University of Miami (in Miami Florida), mostly because I had a small fishing skiff and a girlfriend and didn’t want to leave either of them. Let’s just say I did not take college too seriously and soon found myself with a 1.6 GPA and a nice note from the people at the University of Miami indicating that I had been… expelled. As if that weren’t bad enough, my father was one of the top alumni ever to graduate from University of Miami, was on the Board of Directors of their law school and was one of the most well-known and respected people on campus… Ouch. Continue reading “Strategies for Life Success” »

Recently I had the pleasure of teaching a High-Performance Team (HPT) class for one of my favorite clients. When I deliver this workshop I use an HPT competency model that I developed after more than a dozen years of teaching teamwork to companies all over the world. Here it is: Continue reading “How to Build a High Performance Team (HPT)” »

I hope you found this video helpful and will send a link to everyone you know that you feel might benefit from the information I presented.

Thank you so very much for your continued help and support in letting people know about my blog. Take good care — John

Beyond the Reef: Business Lessons from a Life at Sea – a guest post by Jacob Mojiwat

The business world is tough and demanding. It can be unyielding in its intensity. Like many of us, I needed a weekend diversion that would help me take my mind off my weekday stress. But unlike many who opt for a relaxing diversion like golf, reading, or bird watching, I decided to try something more challenging. I took up surfing.

A lot of people wonder how I am able to escape from intense challenging weekdays by filling my life with weekends that are even more intense and more challenging. After all, the ocean can often be even more ferocious than the business world. Well, despite its physical toll, surfing is actually one of the most relaxing things a person can do! Think about it.  One of the basic rules for surviving in the ocean is to relax. A surfer can’t afford to be thinking about work or about anything other than being in the moment. Unlike some pursuits that would seem more relaxing, surfing doesn’t merely allow me to take my mind off work…..it forces me to! Continue reading “How Business is Like Surfing” »

I sure hope you found value in this video blog. PLEASE pass this link along to anyone you feel might find value in the information I share.  Also, I welcome your feedback and suggestions for future video blogs. Yes, that’s right – I take requests!

Have a super day — I look forward to talking to you again soon – John