I am writing this from a nice little hotel in a suburb of Tijuana Mexico. I’m here this week with my family, friends and clients. Five years ago we started our annual trek to a very impoverished community in Tijuana called Valle Verde. We travel down here to help the people of Valle Verde by building homes, building a community center, and doing some needed repairs.
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and as we all remember to be a little more thankful, I am struck by the people I know who live with this attitude daily. I’d like to tell you about a couple of these people who have inspired me.
The first is a friend named Hector, who lives down here in Valle Verde. In his earlier years, Hector raised five children in a one room shanty and rode a scooter for transportation as he looked for work. There is no way for me to do his story justice here, but what I want to share is that he is a man who has known what it is like to have very, very little.

As many of you know, I have spent the last 13 years of my career building an
A few months ago I had the wonderful privilege of having an executive client come to my office for a full-day coaching session. The purpose of the extended session was to help her sharpen the skills required for her to advance as a leader in her company. My client is incredibly smart, a very hard worker, well respected and passionate about her longstanding role in this international organization. She is also the highest ranking female leader in her male dominated firm.
Whether you are a leader, a salesperson, a spouse, a friend, or all of the above, your success in life depends greatly on how you communicate with others. Some people appear to sail through life naturally blessed with interpersonal skills, while others just seem to struggle. But I believe that anyone can learn to be a better communicator.
In challenging times, most leaders spend the majority of their time playing defense. This means time spent reviewing cash flow, sales reports, and financials so they can make the best reactive and tactical decisions in order to survive. Cost cutting, expense control, layoffs…..ugh! 
