A few years ago, Lynnda and I were part of a trade mission to Japan. We were on our own until we connected with the rest of the group. On the train from Narita Airport to Tokyo Station all announcements were in Japanese only. I noticed, “All the signs are in Japanese!” Lynnda commented, ...

For the last 10 days Lynnda, Nathan, Shale Crescent USA (SCUSA) President, and I have been traveling through Europe as part of the U.S. Commercial Services Roadshow. The Shale Crescent USA Team got to tell the SCUSA Region story to over 250 companies in the Netherlands, Belgium and France. In ...

At a recent NSA Ohio (professional speakers chapter meeting) my friend Natalie said her Dad believed all work is hard and all bosses are jerks. She said those beliefs created stress and unhappiness in his life that could have been avoided. Natalie chose a career instead of a job eventually ...

Returning from three weeks in Florida, last Monday we were flying from Orlando to Akron-Canton airport. I had a business meeting at Marietta. It was sunny and clear. Flying over the Ohio River, snow covered Parkersburg, Marietta and Belpre were easy to spot. The Muskingum River looked frozen. ...

Pre-pandemic when I had a gym membership I hated January. The place was packed with strangers working on their New Year’s resolutions to lose weight, get fit, etc. causing me had to wait for the equipment I needed for my workout. Workouts took longer. The first time it happened a friend said, ...

Over Christmas I think we saw the classic movie A Christmas Story three times. It was playing in the background Christmas Day. I can relate to the entire movie. Except growing up we had a natural gas and not a coal furnace. Dad was a master at changing fuses in the basement after we overloaded ...

Last week at the Outer Banks our family discussed relationships. One of our friends has been married four times. A comment made was, “Of course, they married the same type of person all four times.” I remarked, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing…” Lynnda, my wife, ...

When playing in the State Soccer Tournament, we tell our players to focus on the game and what they need to do to help us succeed. We warn them to ignore trash talk (negative comments from our opponent or their fans). We explain, while they are thinking up a response or getting upset over the ...

Five years ago, I was on the field at Shawnee Park playing in the Kanawha Valley adult soccer league. Running to a moving ball, I planted my left foot, kicked the ball with my right and was down on my back. On the bench, I iced the knee I twisted. Standing up, it suddenly felt like a severe ...

It was 3 o’clock on a quiet Friday afternoon when the phone rang. It was a friend from India we are working with. He sounded desperate. (It was 12:30 AM in India) “Greg, I didn’t know who else to call. We have a client who has a contractor moving in next week to start construction. He ...