Where Have I Been?

I’m sure many of you are wondering: Where is Brian? Well, I’m still here, working, studying, learning, loving married life, traveling, and working on a variety of business ideas. This blog has certainly had its ups and downs and I appreciate you bearing with me through the light postings. Some thoughts and random musings since my last post in February:

1. A friend of mine at work let me borrow the best book on leadership that I have ever read. It should be a mandatory read for every Officer in the Armed Forces and every manager in every company. The book, called It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy by Michael Abrashoff takes you through the most common fallacies about leadership, and the reasons behind why many organizations (especially bureaucracies) fail to reach their true potential. In addition, Abrashoff gives clear examples of not only the art of leadership and the importance of being yourself, but also the how and why various techniques are effective. After all, leadership is all about getting people to believe in themselves and to internalize shared beliefs in the pursuit of a common goal. A must read.

2. Cameron Schaefer wrote a great post today titled: The Unpursuit of Happiness? The concept is a good one, and a reminder that happiness is often achieved without the help of money and material things. Happiness comes most freely and naturally when you don't pursue it. Although you may have fleeting moments of happiness with money and material things, sustained happiness is often a result of the most simplistic of things. “It is an oft-repeated, but accurate axiom that “things” are not the key to attaining happiness. For those who have traveled the third world, the smiles of men and women who live on less per year than we make in a few days deal a mighty blow to our notions of the good life and what is necessary to attain it.”

3. I’m working on two separate business ideas at the moment that both have promise. Entrepreneurship is a passion of mine and I enjoy working on various things even if they will never amount to anything. I think it is the idea of creating something of value that many people can use that intrigues me the most. Also, I think it is important in any organization to have people that constantly seek to improve the people, systems, and processes that form the foundation of that organization. “It’s the way we’ve always done it” is the worst answer and yet the easiest answer to give. Rules and inefficient processes that don’t make sense and don’t help people are meant to be broken or changed—break and change them carefully, and do so with an entrepreneurial mindset.