Disney World—the happiest (and most exhausting) place to spend the day

And during the holidays? Not the best time to go. Don’t get me wrong; I am a Disney fan, and I was with my wife and 6-year-old grandson. But since it was the end of the holiday season, the park was slammed. It was a human car wash where you agitate your way through the crowd. There […]

Be a Grounded Millennial

I think a lot about millennials. As a consultant in the field of financial services technology, I foresee a significant change that will occur in the next eight to twelve years as millennials replace baby boomers as primary customers. Its not just happening in banking; it’s happening in every sector of our economy. Here’s a fact […]

The worth of accumulating experience

On December 21st, I was in Ft. Pierce, Florida, and I drove past Indian River State College. I have fond memories of this campus. When I was just fourteen years old, back when the school was Indian River Community College, my Dad was a professor there. He taught classes in the summer, and I got to […]

Have perseverance in everything you do

My wife bought a new toy for our six-year-old grandson, Liam, during a shopping trip today. This evening, as soon as I walked through the door, Liam wanted me to work on this project with him. It was a small dinosaur skeleton, separated into pieces and encased in an egg-shaped, hard plaster shell. The package […]

Think before you speak

I have previously blogged about my exchange with Ronald, a very professional and engaging entrepreneur with whom I spoke at the PaymentsFirst conference in Birmingham. He told me a story that I have to relay here. Ronald was going through the drive-through at a local fast-food restaurant. When he pulled up to the window, a […]

Don’t leave decisions up to Chance

Browsing through an open market in Charleston, South Carolina, today, I came across this item for sale:       It is called a “Decision-Maker.” There is a pendulum under the influence of a magnet that swings across a series of words: “Never,” “Always,” “Yes,” “No,” and “Maybe.” It is a novelty item, a gimmick obviously […]

A Chat with Ronald

On December 11th, I had a Grounded keynote address in Birmingham for PaymentsFirst, a non-profit payments association. My talk was not until 1:15, so I was chillin’ in the vendor area and I noticed a shoeshine station. It turns out PaymentsFirst had sponsored free shoe shines. I decided I would love a shoe shine and walked […]