Bauer Hockey Leading By Example

If you know me, you know that my passion is to help advance the availability, diversity and inclusion of the game of hockey. As a member of the NHL’s Fan Inclusion Council, Chairman of the Inner-CIty Education Program and an advisor to the Chicago Blackhawks Foundation, I have had the good fortune to work with teams of people that are making a measurable impact on the game. We can all agree there is much work to be done and it will take years to accomplish, but it will take the entire hockey village to make it happen. Over the years, I have worked with and consulted with Bauer Hockey, the #1 global hockey brand, on brand strategy, creative and finding ways to improve the availability of the game. This past week, Bauer launched their Everything For The Game movement that uses the iconic Barn as the place to introduce stories of players that have broken through the barriers to play the game they love. I am proud to have been a part of this campaign partnering with my former Havas creative partner Jason Peterson and his agency The Times along with the amazing team at Bauer.

The Barn is just the beginning of what the brand has planned and I know the leadership team at Bauer is fully committed to making a real difference in the game. Take a watch here and share your thoughts with me.

Why Clubhouse Is Different.

Why Clubhouse Is Different.

Until now, Clubhouse is different than other platforms in many ways. People seem to be gracious with their experience, knowledge and perspectives much more than other social platforms. Celebrities, pro athletes, recognizable executives and others don’t hide behind a fake profile and are open to mixing it up with common folk. Where else can this happen? The platform is what you make of it by deciding who to follow, which rooms you engage, what topics you follow and what you seek to learn.

Leaders Are Readers Pro Tips: Two Reading Hacks

Leaders Are Readers Pro Tips: Two Reading Hacks

I wanted to share two reading hacks for faster and more productive reading I learned over the break. If you love reading as much as I do, you probably have a stack of books on your nightstand and piling up in your Kindle. With these two hacks I recently learned, you can both continue to revisit your notes and highlights from your library and import others into an app and also some ideas for improving your rate of reading speed.

Leaders Are Readers Collection 01: 5 Essential Books For New Leaders

Leaders Are Readers Collection 01: 5 Essential Books For New Leaders

The journey of leadership never ends. And as we move through the ranks, the challenge of leadership changes with us. Becoming a new leader whether managing 1-person or 1,000 we can absolutely learn from those that came before us. Learn from their mistakes, their successes, their research and choose for ourselves, which to apply to our own path. These books are not one and done, they are references we can find solace in when faced with new challenges, feelings, or events in leadership. There is calm in knowing that leaders before you have felt what you are feeling, had the knots in their stomach that you have and that they do not know it all, regardless of how they portray their confidence. For new leaders, this opens up a world of possibilities. I hope you find some wisdom and inspiration from these selections.

The Four Mentors You’ll Meet Along The Way.

The Four Mentors You’ll Meet Along The Way.

To find a fruitful mentor/mentee relationship, we need to keep our hearts and minds open to the possibility. Stay in tune with the present for the people that come into your life each day, one of them could be a person that has a profound and everlasting effect on you. The key is staying open and in gratitude for that to happen. In my experience, there are 4 types of mentor relationships that you may come across on your journey: A positive mentor, a negative mentor, someone that becomes a mentor unbeknownst to them and a reverse mentor.

HWPO (Hard Work Pays Off)

HWPO (Hard Work Pays Off)

Having executive stamina is something that’s been long written about, especially for a new senior executive or when in start-up mode like I am now. Having less but more restful sleep, the ability to focus on a myriad of tasks, staying present with family and friends and finding time to do the things we love is absolutely critical for an executive looking to perform at the highest levels.

,

Pivoting With Passion & Purpose

,
Pivoting With Passion & Purpose

Pivoting is scary, especially when you’ve been in the same industry for most of your career but the opportunity to transfer your skills, passions and experience to other industries, categories or changing the angle on where you sit in the ecosystem is possible with some careful planning and relationships. I know many of my friends and followers are feeling the same way about their careers and how the pandemic may have opened an opportunity for them, I implore you to step off the curb and believe in yourself.

, ,

The Art Of Resilience

, ,
The Art Of Resilience

The topic of 2020 is most likely “resilience.” Resilience is an intangible that has varying degrees depending on the pressure and the experience of the person having to draw on its power. Resilience is also a counter to the level of pressure and negative effects one let’s skew their mindset and emotional state. We get hit with a right cross and it hurts, we stumble back shake it off and regain our composure. We think to ourselves, “it can’t get worse” and then blammo, an uppercut hits us square on the chin. Some people stay on their two feet and some go down for the count. However, without question, we can take more punches than we ever thought by staying on our feet and counter-punching.

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

,

Breaking Status Quo

,
Breaking Status Quo

Almost every industry and product is ripe for disruption. We usually tend to think of the big industries like automotive, electronics, or others - but even the smallest, rote products are being thought of differently - think of the toothbrush and toothpaste - quip came into that category with a newly designed electric brush and a DTC model that changed the razor/razor blade model for the category. Harry’s for shaving, Stance for socks and many more. These companies all focused on breaking the status quo in a product or category with newly designed business models, attention to design thinking and a better customer experience. And yes, while companies like Tesla reinvent entire industries, I like to focus on everyday essentials that are being re-thought with leaders that are determined to transform.

The Pursuit & Curse of Standards

The Pursuit & Curse of Standards

Imagine the level of standards that went into designing and building the Empire State Building. Imagine the company at Shreve, Lamb and Harmon, the company that designed it; I thought of this when I was flying open-door helicopter over it a few years ago. The audacity of the people to think they could design a building so high and so beautiful inside and out must have been met with calls for insanity at the time. The detail on the outside and the beauty of design on the inside is still a sight to behold all these years late.

,

Growth Mindset In The Pandemic

,
Growth Mindset In The Pandemic

During the pandemic, it seems people embraced a growth mindset against all odds. Masterclass, Udemy, Peloton and other areas of “newness” for people to break the cycle of what has been their past. Get into shape, learn a new skill, dive into new topics and really explore the sides of their brains they did not know existed.