Recently, our Beacon & Blade team gathered for our quarterly offsite. We call it The Forge, and it’s a day we carve out each quarter to slow down, connect, and strengthen one another. It's always a life-giving experience, and it consistently demonstrates something that can be easy to forget in the busyness of leadership: Growth doesn’t just happen through execution. It happens through connection. Great teams aren’t built by simply developing a strong strategy or aligning around common goals....
5 months ago • 2 min read
Some lessons can’t be learned in victory. They’re forged in defeat. This fall, my son made his school’s JV soccer team. After spending recent years playing in our local town travel league, this was a significant step up for him. Not only would he be practicing and playing a lot more than he was used to, he'd be alongside stronger players, experiencing tougher competition, and having to adapt to a faster pace. We were proud, hopeful, and ready for what we thought would be a season of growth....
5 months ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader, You can’t think clearly when you never stop to think. The higher you lead, the harder it can be to find space for it. Your calendar fills up, your inbox seems to be in a constant state of overflow, and you eventually find yourself reacting to what's around you rather than leading purposefully and confidently. I've been there at times myself. I've struggled as a leader to keep up with all the busyness while wondering if I was really making any progress that mattered. I know that...
5 months ago • 2 min read
One of the most underestimated roadblocks to momentum is ambiguity. Have you ever been stuck wondering what your boss was looking for from you? I have. Have you ever failed to provide clear direction or feedback to your team? I've done that too. When people are left guessing about what you want or how they're doing, they’re not set up to succeed. In the end, unspoken expectations will become unmet expectations. Those unspoken expectations can also leave your team in fear of making a misstep....
6 months ago • 1 min read
Contrary to the popular saying, knowledge in and of itself isn't power. It's the knowledge we apply that has the ability to drive impact. I've seen this reality across organizations throughout my career. Leaders understand that clarity matters, that execution requires discipline, and that alignment drives results. It's not our understanding that's the issue. The problem is the gap between what we know and what we actually do. As some of you are aware, in partnership with Beacon & Blade, I...
6 months ago • 2 min read
Confidence is part of a leader's job description. At least, that’s how it feels. We're expected to walk into the room, steady our voice, and project assurance. But even when we project that on the outside, it can feel very different on the inside. I’ve left meetings wondering if I measured up, questioning whether I belonged, or worrying I might let my team down. If you’ve felt the same tension, you’re not alone. Many high-performing leaders wrestle with this quiet battle. The good news? Doubt...
7 months ago • 1 min read
Some of the most impressive growth I’ve seen didn’t last. From the outside, things looked great. There was an excitement around the new ground being taken. But over time, cracks began to show, and what once looked so promising started to unravel. Perhaps you've seen this with others or walked through it yourself. It can happen to us professionally or personally. Why? Because fast growth can hide weak roots. We live in a culture that celebrates acceleration: new launches, quick wins,...
7 months ago • 1 min read
Some of my most meaningful growth didn’t look like success. It came from walking through what felt like a mess. When we talk about growth, we can envision a heroic image of taking the hill, pushing bravely past barriers, and being recognized and celebrated for some new level of achievement. But growth is often far less pretty and polished. At times, my most significant development came through facing doubt, struggling with tensions I didn't know how to name, sitting in discomfort I wanted to...
8 months ago • 1 min read
It feels good to be the one with the answers. I’ve been in rooms where I knew the most or where my perspective carried the most weight. It felt safe. It felt validating. But here’s the problem: the rooms where we're seen as the smartest rarely grow us. Jack Welch once said, “From the first person I hired, I was never the smartest guy in the room…if you’re a leader and you’re the smartest guy in the world — in the room, you’ve got real problems." He’s right. Leadership isn’t about being the...
8 months ago • 1 min read