Dr. Carol Dweck is an expert on growth and fixed mindsets. In her book Growth Mindset, she shares a story from her daughter’s preschool days. She was elbow deep in glue during craft time when her teacher commented jovially upon seeing the chaos, “You’re a mess.” To which her daughter replied, “I’m not a mess….

When an opportunity to negotiate presents itself, I take it. Violent winds shook the canopy of tree branches decorating a mammoth tree in my backyard. Unfortunately, soon after, a sharp crack was heard. A 180+ lb branch had fallen. It was time to trim the tree. I called a company to come out and provided…

Ambient noise, underlying sentiment, all things that are easy to deprioritize. But roots grow quickly and soon a comment that went unaddressed, a thought that went unvocalized has embedded itself in a foundation of doubt. Watch, listen, and seek out the background events worth addressing.

Overestimating clarity, when you’re delivering the message, is easy. Repeating yourself, spelling out what you mean, re-enforcing clarity, and over communicating are all habits built by world class leaders. And typically, you’ll know you’ve done it right when people start giving feedback that you’re too repetitive.

Sometimes the best things for us are things we’d never ask for. Hardships that blow away the chaff. Unrest that causes us to dig deeper. Pain that makes us reach out.