I’ve been watching reruns of Magnum P.I. Magnum was a 1980s television show about a former naval intelligence officer turned private investigator. The main character, Thomas Magnum, was played by Tom Selleck. During Season 3, Magnum was “surf skiing” in the Kaiwi channel, which runs between Molokai and Oahu. A reckless power boater capsized him….

On a clear day, you can see the north and south shores of Maui. On the north is Kahului, and to the south is Ma’alaea Bay. These two points intersect by an isthmus between Maui’s two volcanoes, Haleakala (“house of the sun”) and Halemahina (“house of the moon”). Both shores appear very similar. In reality,…

Most days we don’t think about power plugs. We plug them in. They do their job. That is, until we need one and we don’t have it. Or, we are traveling and our plug doesn’t fit the local receptacle. Then it’s a big deal. The plug is a model of simplicity, but without a precise…

The sand trembled almost imperceptibly. Soon, the disturbance became pronounced. The sand came alive, churning and shaking. Within minutes, over 100 young turtles, barely 2 inches long, emerged and scurried toward the ocean. Another generation of the Honu, or Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle, had just entered the world. In the water, the turtles disperse immediately,…

There is an unmarked dirt road along the Hana Highway, on the North shore of Maui, not far past the town of Pa’uwela. The only landmark is a small general store on the opposite side. The nondescript road, which at times is only accessible via 4 wheel drive, leads to Pe’ahi, which is home to…

On April 8, 2000, Saturday Night Live featured the skit “More Cowbell.” It is considered to be one of the show’s most iconic, frequently used as an example of excessive enthusiasm or overindulgence in any activity. (Click below if you’d like to take a trip down memory lane and get a good laugh in the…

In the late 1980s I took a class in cost accounting as part of some post graduate work. The textbook for the class was called Relevance Lost. In 1984, both the Macintosh and the IBM PC hit the market. For the first time in history, individuals had access to sophisticated computing power at their fingertips….

One of my favorite games as a kid was “Battleship.” “It’s a Hit!” still rings in my mind. In 2012, a movie of the same name came out, loosely based on the board game. In this case, aliens had invaded earth, and in the end the “Mighty Mo” – the battleship Missouri of World War…

My guest this week is Terry West. Terry is CTO at e2ip Technologies. He and his wife Leesa are also the founders of Equipping Leaders Global (click button below for the web site). Terry and I have become good friends these last few years and also serve together on the Board of Directors for Unleash…

It turns our that our little corner of the universe is a pretty cool place to hang out. Here are a few interesting facts about our solar neighborhood: It takes the Earth 365.25 days to complete one full orbit around the Sun. Thus, every four years, we have a leap year. If your birthday is…

Archimedes, an ancient Greek mathematician, once said: “Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.” This quote illustrates the principle of leverage. In both physics and engineering, leverage is a force amplifier. Leverage is also a force amplifier in leadership. The “force,” in…

In 1968, the movie “Bullitt” was released, starring Steve McQueen. Frank Bullitt, McQueen’s character, was a police lieutenant working in San Francisco. He was assigned to protect a high-profile witness in an organized crime case. His witness, however, was killed in his hotel room by a hitman while on his watch. This drove Bullitt to…

On Christmas Day, 1969, Seiko introduced a watch called the Astron. So what? Just another watch, right? Not really. This watch almost brought down the entire Swiss watchmaking industry. The reason? It contained a quartz movement. Since the 1700s, the Swiss had pioneered the development of mechanical timepieces, which were clocks and watches driven by…

Most of us are familiar with the image of the lone wolf. We usually associate this with strength, independence and self-reliance. This resonates with leaders, since we are out in front creating opportunity, health and growth for the individuals and organizations we serve. But, what about the other side of the coin? Can being a…

Water resistance is a key specification for watches. This applies to mechanical, quartz or fully electronic devices like an Apple Watch. The determinant of this rating is hydrostatic pressure, or as our Swiss watchmaking friends would say, “pression hydrostatique.” This is the pressure of a fluid at rest due to the weight of the fluid…

Ronin were Japanese samurai warriors who became masterless, with no feudal lord to serve. Ronin literally means “wandering man.” Societally, ronin were in a difficult position. They were excluded from the traditional samurai hierarchy and lacked the privileges and benefits associated with serving a lord. They were displaced. Sounds like what happened to a lot…

I’ve watched a few samurai movies lately. I didn’t think there were that many, but now my feed is full of them. Like rabbits multiplying. Or Tribbles, if you are a Star Trek fan. This flurry of feudal activity has piqued my interest in Japanese culture. Today, we’ll discuss the concept of Ikigai, which has…

A verse in the Old Testament book of Proverbs says this: “Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox.” – Proverbs 14:4 (ESV) In other words, if you want to produce results, there is going to be a mess. This is a great corollary…

I know. I know. Most of you are probably thinking I meant to say “Whale Watching.” This is the correct title. Let me explain. My sailboat, Kayleigh, is in a charter fleet at my sailing club. The club charters Kayleigh to club members when I’m not there. Chartering offsets my cost, and the club maintains…

This is the final installment in our Language of Progress series. Buttons are down below for parts 1 and 2 if you missed those. I loved the original Karate Kid movies, featuring Mr. Miyagi and Daniel-San. They are a bit outdated by today’s standards, but they conveyed a great message. One of the items featured…

Last week, we discussed a few basic project management terms. Click the button below if you missed that one. This week, we’ll take a look at basic testing and feedback, which are also essential elements of running a smooth project. The mechanisms for this differ somewhat depending on whether you offer products or services. The…

Most of my professional career was spent in the technology world. As such, project management principles and language have become second nature to me. Collectively, I think of these principles as “the language of progress.” Effective leadership, of course, is all about progress and accomplishment, both of which require solid project management. To this end,…

This week marks the first anniversary of Leadership Adventure. The time has certainly flown by quickly. Thank you for hanging in there with me this far. I’m excited for the future, and for what our collective Leadership Adventures hold in store for us during this next year. If you’ve enjoyed the content, please consider sharing…

Last week we defined resilience as the ability of a leader to recover quickly from setbacks, adapt to change, and maintain a positive attitude in the face of adversity. I shared six ideas with you for intentionally fostering resilience in your leadership. This week, part two. The most extreme sport on the planet (in my…