Last month I wrote about the power of a recipe. If you want to bake an incredible chocolate cake or apple pie, find and follow a great recipe. Abide closely to the directions; don’t deviate.

The fact is most businesses fail. Sorry to say, the odds are not in favor of the typical new business owner.

Recently I was talking to a client who works for a very difficult boss.

Most of my research verifies that most floorcovering sales people and stores do not do well in creating totally satisfied customers.

As I looked around the room at the faces of the audience I was addressing, I was inspired. I recognized what I believe is the heart and soul of what makes the United States of America a great country: its people.

Early in my training career, a student came to me after a three-day training class and exclaimed, “I’m going home and quitting my job.”  My first thought was, Wow, what have I done?

Long ago Peter Drucker, the father of business consulting, made a very profound observation that has been lost in the sands of time

Be real: If you are the boss, would you follow you? As I have written before, there is a lack of leadership in our culture. And it’s not because we have a lack of bosses.

If you’re anything like me, you sometimes find it difficult to step up and be candid. Even worse, there are times you fail to initiate difficult discussions with others, including loved ones, on critical matters.

Last month I shared research that showed those who are the most successful in leadership, relationships and marriage are those who are not afraid to step up, address and discuss sensitive issues with others. The struggle with sensitive issues is that they are often very emotional and generate our age-old evolutionary response: fight or flight. That defense mechanism causes us to use ineffective methods of communication. When we are loaded with adrenalin, our brains lack the necessary blood flow to remain calm and think clearly.