Making the pivotal decision to give up drinking completely was one thing, backing it with action required far effort and commitment. I can’t point to any specific leisure activities in the decade prior to that where I didn’t consume a tremendous amount of beer. That said, I never viewed it as a prob...

I had a few things going for me leading into the interview for the behavior-based safety facilitator role: a tremendous work ethic, a willingness to jump at any opportunity that was even mildly offered, and a hunger to advance. That said, there was very little polish to any of it. Couple my rough ed...

I can barely wait to push forward in sharing more about how impactful serving as bouncer for my friend’s sister was as well as how my working relationship developed with the maintenance supervisor who walked by my machine a few times each day. We’re not quite ready for that yet, though. First, we ne...

Consistency nurtures seeds from bad situations, turning quiet efforts into visible growth and preparation for bigger roles. During my second year as a second shift manufacturing employee, I applied the same persistence I was developing during my shift to my new found love for working out. Throughout...

My senior year of high school was a whirlwind. While I did the bare minimums to skate through my required classes, I was working as hard as I knew how in what turned into a full time job before I even graduated and dove in head first to every other kind of shenanigan I could find as soon as I clocke...

Just so it’s fresh in our minds, let’s revisit Napoleon Hill’s quote from Think and Grow Rich that serves as the foundation for all we’ll be working through moving forward: “Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit.” Nearly three and a h...

One of my earliest memories of the behavior-based safety concept was hearing Terry Ward say that no one wakes up in the morning and decides they’re going to lose a body part in an industrial accident later that day. But because of at-risk behaviors, often behaviors they’ve practiced for years withou...

I opened Leading With A Clear Purpose by sharing how a conversation with a lifelong friend gave me an acute understanding for how even the toughest among us can feel empty or burned out when the work they’re doing no longer provides them with fulfillment. In telling that story, I mentioned how he an...

To this point, I’ve shared intentionally basic high-level scenarios and I’ve purposefully shied away from anything remotely adverse. Not only am I sure you’ve experienced similar situations, I’d bet you’ve been through far worse - and I’ll bet you’ve found yourself back in that headspace as I allude...

Before I go on, I need to be very transparent with you. As I began noodling around the idea of listing and sharing leadership lessons I’ve learned through my adversities, I was more than a little conflicted; I’m nothing special and I’ve certainly seen people face far more difficult circumstances tha...

I’ve often heard the phrase, “God won’t give you more than you can handle” in reference to adversities we face. From what I can tell, that’s often tied - at least loosely - to 1 Corinthians 10:13. In fact, there’s apparently even a Christian song based on that. All said, I can’t say that I interpret...

I’ve often heard the phrase, “Life is tough. It’s even tougher if you’re stupid.” As harsh as that may be, here’s some context: I could share dozens of difficult situations I fought through in my teens and early twenties, most of which were self-induced, that could have provided me with far more val...