Brian Graham

EXPECT DELAYS!

Have you ever seen that sign along the freeway?  EXPECT DELAYS. What happens when you see that sign?  Chances are you get tense, begin wondering if you will get to your destination on time, you may even begin to get anxious, perhaps even angry, “Why me, why today?” you ask yourself. I have noticed that […]

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I’ve got an idea!

I’ve got an idea!  This is the greatest idea ever, it will save the company (or our family, or our program) so much!, then you present the idea and it falls on deaf ears, it is like we are speaking a dead language.  How deflating that can be, and often we respond with anger, or

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Fatigue

OK, I admit it, after five days here at the All American Soap Box Derby, working from 6:30 in the morning until 9:00 at night, following a very interesting trip through Denver, I am feeling a little tired.  What keeps me going is the joy I see in the faces of the champions and their

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I am a “star”

So that completes my week at the All American Soap Box Derby in Akron, Ohio.  And a fine week it was, lots of personal insights, lots of opportunities to serve the Champions and their families. I also got lots of opportunities to be a “star”. For at least 12 hours during the week I was

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Life is amazing!

When I set out for the Soap Box Derby last weekend I wrote that I would report on what I learned from the young drivers, ages 7-17.  How delightful that at the Akron Rubber Ducks minor league baseball game Tuesday night I met an 89 year old Korean War veteran named Harold. Harold has an

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Mistakes?

Today at the All American is car repair day.  Every single car, every single washer, nut and bolt has been inspected.  If a car has something wrong, a mistake if you will, today is the day they are taken care of.   The cool thing is that once that mistake has been rectified, the car

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Possibility

Day one of the All American Soap Box Derby Championships for 2014.  Today I had the honor of working with almost 500 champions and their families as they were welcomed to Akron.  Here is my take-away: For almost every one of these racers there is a chance, a good chance that on Saturday THEY will

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Preparedness

The All American Soap Box Derby week in Akron, Ohio began today with a 5K run.  I participated in honor of my friend Bill Speeg who was also a Derby nut.  Bill passed away training to run an Ironman event.  Even though he was training in a nation-wide chain of fitness centers, when his heart

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Diminishing Returns

No, this blog is not about the number of returns being sent to the IRS, it is about how we can find ourselves working longer, and getting less from the effort.  In a few days I will be heading to Akron, Ohio to work with the All American Soap Box Derby, one of the truly

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Staying ahead of the Curve

I hereby confess, I am not a person who was born to the computer.  I am not a person who was born with a mobile phone in my hand.  This brave new world of instant communication is a puzzlement to me, and occasionally I have to be pulled, kicking and screaming into the world of

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