"The future ain't what it used to be." Yogi Berra

"There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things." Niccolo Machiavelli

"That which the fool does in the end the wise man does in the beginning." Richard Trench

Today's image: 0092 by emiliebjork. Great shooting. Thank you for sharing.

"How much potential out there
is being ignored?

How much raw talent remains uncultivated
and ultimately lost because we cling
to outmoded ideas of what success looks like
and what is required to achieve it?"

The words are those of Dr. David A. Shaywitz taken from his review of Outliers, the new Malcolm Gladwell book. Read the good doctor's review, The Elements of Success, here via WSJ. [Amazon info] Highly recommended.

How much potential inside your organization is being ignored?

My sense is 2009 should be the year that you and your team commit, entrust, confide in a game-changing mission - one that is laser focused on bringing out the best in others.

Mission not initiative, since the latter is much too small a word to embrace this opportunity.

A mission to help, assist, encourage, abet, incite, spark and otherwise do everything within your power to enable people to make real, measurable progress in reaching their potential.

The secret to growing your business in 2009 is being obsessed now, daily going forward, with growing your people.