We need to find the courage to say no to the things and people that are not serving us if we want to rediscover ourselves and live our lives with authenticity.

When I left Europe in 1987 I did so with the thought that my relevance as a composition teacher would benefit from a certain cool distance to certain tendencies I had been observing for several years with increasing disquiet.

It's about communication. It's about honesty. It's about treating people in the organization as deserving to know the facts. You don't try to give them half the story. You don't try to hide the story. You treat them as - as true equals and you communicate and you communicate and communicate.

The signs of outstanding leadership appear primarily among the followers. Are the followers reaching their potential? Are they learning? Serving? Do they achieve the required results? Do they change with grace? Manage conflict?

The future is not Big Government. Self-serving politicians. Powerful bureaucrats. This has been tried tested throughout history. The result has always been disaster. President Obama your agenda is not new. It's not change and it's not hope.

Politics are about preserving relationships at the end of the day and it has nothing to do with the greater good for humanity. It's just all about business.

A merchant who approaches business with the idea of serving the public well has nothing to fear from the competition.

A person who is too nice an observer of the business of the crowd like one who is too curious in observing the labor of bees will often be stung for his curiosity.

A multitude of bees can tell the time of day calculate the geometry of the sun's position argue about the best location for the next swarm. Bees do a lot of close observing of other bees maybe they know what follows stinging and do it anyway.

It has always been my belief that a man should do his best regardless of how much he receives for his services or the number of people he may be serving or the class of people served.