“I might learn something.” Robert H. Schaffer, pictured upper right, turned 100 this week. That is freaking amazing! Happy Birthday, Bob! I came to know Bob Schaffer, first from his book Breakthrough Strategy, which I read when I became an independent consultant for the first time. The second time I ventured out on my own, […]

“You are a conceptual reductionist.” The speaker was Dr. Richard Taylor and we were training continuous improvement (CI) coaches together in Hong Kong. It was at the end of a long week and we were packing up. “What?” I tilt-head-sneered. I really was not in the mood for snarky banter from Ric. Kelly, a mutual […]

I recently attended a writer’s conference in Florida. Florida in February sounded like a really great idea. It was 35° Fahrenheit. The conference was great; the people were great. We hugged a lot. Two days after I got home, I came down with a cold. “Oh,” said my friend,  “You probably didn’t dress for that […]

Some of my readers may know I am a very late adopter of technology. I listen to music on Spotify now, but I still have a turntable and listen to vinyl albums occasionally. Some of you may also know that I am extremely resistant to letting AI write anything for me. “I like writing and […]

“You have power over your mind — not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” – Marcus Aurelius, Meditations “Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” – Viktor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning […]

“Grampa, did you have to cut out these pictures for Presidents Day?” I guess that’s a thing now in some pre-K and kindergarten classes. It trains fine motor skills while celebrating the holiday. “I didn’t do that. There was no Presidents Day then.” “You were born before Presidents Day? You are really old.” My grandchildren […]

Yesterday, I read how the global financial system has turned into a casino grift for the wealthy, companies rebuying their stock, hedge-fund super-trading in nanoseconds, private equity overborrowing and bankrupting industries, the cryptocurrency mirage, banks hyper-selling the same dubious instruments that led to financial meltdown in 2008. I also read how some techie thought it […]

“Sharpen the saw? You mean the Covey thing?” “I guess. It’s not like he was specific. He just told me I was likely to be “on the beach” in the short term and there were likely to be “concerns” in next month’s “discussions.” Jasper and Jeanne were in the same new hire consulting cohort at […]

My father had a “teach Alan to work” project. I loved to play, and ignored my chores. At ten I endured humiliating failure at the morning paper delivery job he found me, and at eleven I broke the family lawn mower mowing neighbors lawns. Both my parents worked and believed leaving me to play with […]

What is Wisdom? I. I started Wisdom from Unusual Places in February 2023 to pass on some knowledge acquired through my experience in change consulting, leading change, or living. I was quick to point out that I did not consider myself wise. I am more of a wiseacre, quick with sarcastic humor, which I have […]