Recently I was trying to replace the batteries in my wireless mouse and couldn’t get the cover off—again. I had struggled with this same task previously (trying paper clips, pens, X-ACTO knives, scissors, brute force, etc.), but this time it was different. I stopped trying to fight it and sat back, relaxing the frustration. “Certainly,” I said to myself, “a massively successful company such as Apple would not make replacing batteries in a mouse for a Mac difficult. Everything Steve Jobs designed was about elegance.” That shifted my focus. If taking this cover off is super easy, what is the [...]

Often we hold back from giving feedback to others, even when it’s important to us and to the health of our relationship. Maybe we’re afraid we’ll hurt their feelings even if it's constructive, or we’re afraid of their reaction. Or maybe we think they’ll feel we’re criticizing them. But if we don’t give others feedback, we may hold on to resentment or anger toward them, which can spill over into later communications and even cause distance in our relationship.

Often I am in Billings conducting team trainings and recently landed at NaRa Restaurant for dinner with friends. You either love sushi or you don’t. I happen to love it, even though I was born and raised in the Midwest. Go figure.

The delicious dinner rounded off a flawless day. It was so much fun watching Dae Shin, the Korean chef, make sushi rolls, while I enjoyed the company of friends I don’t see often enough. The beauty he crafted with relentless precision was so inspiring to observe! It reminded me that when you apply attention to an activity over and over with precision, magic happens.