Quitting for the Right Reason

Quitting can be hard. I’m not talking about quitting smoking or some other addiction, although that’s no walk in the park either. I’m talking about quitting something you’ve started, something that was once a part of a dream. This can be especially difficult for women who are over achievers, individuals who are used to hanging…

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The Gift of Long Walks on a Winter Afternoon

During this holiday break, I’ve been taking long walks in the afternoons with my sister. She moved to my town last year, after living in other states and countries for decades. Inspired by the crisp winter air and the snowy landscape, we let our minds wander to places that normal conversation doesn’t usually touch. One…

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Diversity of Thought

I ran across two articles that speak to the importance of boundary crossing, the second just published today by The New York Times: Diversity of Thought:The Next Frontier Innovative Minds Don’t Think Alike Both articles emphasize how breakthroughs depend on resisting the temptation to surround ourselves with people who are like us. Homogeneity is the…

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How to Save a Life

Students from Northwestern University’s law school, medical school, management school and engineering school, are part of a boundary-crossing entrepreneurship program. Placed into teams of four, one from each school, these students shadow hand-picked physicians in hospitals.  The intended outcome of these groups: To develop ideas for new medical devices To identify process improvements that will…

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Brilliant Gift Giving…for next year

My 50 something brother-in-law appreciated my gift to him–a book that I ordered from Amazon. In fact, he raved about it as soon as he opened it up–a book about a naval explorer of China from the 15th century (famous, if you are into this period of world history). It was one of the best…

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