More Than Hot Dogs and Cookouts: Honoring Our Fallen This Memorial Day As the scent of barbecue fills the air and summer vacations beckon, it’s important to remember the true meaning of Memorial Day. It’s not just the unofficial start of summer, it’s a solemn day dedicated to remembering the brave men and women of […]

If you’ve ever envisioned yourself as a successful business leader, shaping a company’s future and reaping the rewards of your hard work, then you’ve come to the right place. The journey to business ownership is full of exciting opportunities, and it all starts with finding the perfect business to buy. You’ll discover many possibilities in […]

Diverse employees team listening to coworker at corporate meeting in office, colleagues workers involved in briefing, brainstorming discussing project strategy, sharing ideas, partners negotiating ” data-medium-file=”https://dougthorpe.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/admanity-173657588_l-650×433.webp” data-large-file=”https://dougthorpe.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/admanity-173657588_l-1024×683.webp” /> Empathy – it’s a leadership buzzword thrown around a lot. But what does it truly mean to lead with empathy? Sure, it involves understanding emotions and perspectives. […]

If you are thinking about making a change at work, at home or for yourself, don’t take the scenic route. We’ve all done it. You went on a trip. Somewhere along the way you see signs for the scenic route. So you take a detour. You begin traveling down smaller, winding roads. You see fewer […]

Embracing the Post-Covid Mindset: Rethinking Work and Family As an executive coach who’s guided leaders through thick and thin for over 20 years, I’ve witnessed a fascinating phenomenon: a large-scale mindset shift triggered by the global pandemic. COVID-19 didn’t just disrupt our health; it fundamentally changed the way we approach work, family, and even our […]

  In learning how to fly an airplane, one of the first lessons has to do with understanding winds. Winds come in basically three types; Head winds – those hit you right in the face Tail winds – those from behind Cross winds – those at angles from the side I believe the challenges we […]

What Exactly Is Presence? Presence is letting the most powerful version of yourself shine through. I like to cite the renowned leadership expert Sylvia Ann Hewlett, who defines “presence” as a combination of gravitas, communication, and appearance. Together, these elements form an impression of trustworthiness, competence, and authenticity. Gravitas is signaling that you have the […]

In today’s complex business world, change is hard. Companies venturing through major culture shifts, mergers or other forms of change often struggle to make it to the end. The idea that people hate change is a phenomenon that is taught, coached and wrestled with in many ways, shapes, and forms. Regardless of your mindset about […]

Company culture. It’s a buzzword thrown around in boardrooms and plastered across job postings. But what exactly is it, and how do you achieve it? There seems to be a common misconception: culture is something you build, a foundation laid from scratch. But a thriving company culture is more akin to a garden – something […]

A few years ago I wrote a piece contrasting the “cool breeze” and the “fog machine”, whimsically (at least my attempt at whimsy) to illustrate extreme possibilities in the way a leader can show up at work. I think It’s time to delve deeper into that idea (minus the whimsy part). While the “Cool Breeze” […]