From Beads to Beans: Building Better Business
When I first met the women who would change my life, I was 19 on a gap year from university. They were mothers, daughters, entrepreneurs — women who made the most of every opportunity to support their families. What began as a field project grew into a global social enterprise, partnering with more than […]
Brick by Brick: FabBRICK
Fabric scraps find new life as functional, aesthetic building material. It started with a bold idea: Turn textile waste into renewable building material. French architect Clarisse Merlet realized his dream by founding FabBRICK in 2018. Today it continues to combine aesthetics, durability, and environmental consciousness while growing on an international level, proving that innovation and […]
Exits Are Not Retreats
It was after midnight on the ramp — one C-17 in front of me, two C-130s idling nearby. We were receiving the remains of a fallen soldier while prepping for another mission before sunrise. The engines never stopped humming, and the mission clocks kept ticking, but for a moment, everything stood still. I remember the […]
Hiring with Heart: Frontier Co-op
Employee-focused initiatives unlock value for a company. Imagine over 20% of your manufacturing workforce were formerly incarcerated or had struggled with homelessness, you grow consistently year over year, and your goodwill adds to the value of your intellectual property — your brand. If you knew that this would work, would you still take the risk? […]
The Crisis Leadership Surprise
When I joined BL Companies as CFO in 1999, no one expected I would become CEO. I was hired as CFO for a fairly well-established architecture and engineering firm. I came from the telecommunications industry with degrees in economics and business. In a field where technical credentials traditionally define leadership, I assumed I’d spend my […]
Attention Getter — Gary Vaynerchuk
The master of knowing what’s next, Gary Vaynerchuk tells real leaders where their brands need to be — right now — if they want to stay competitive. Gary Vaynerchuk — or GaryVee as many know him — has more than 44 million combined followers across social media. Vaynerchuk has built his personal and business brands […]
From Survival to Significance
I was 9 when the doctor told me I had bone cancer. I didn’t understand everything, but I understood one sentence: “You have a 50% chance to live.” My early years began with a question: If I survive, what will I do with it? My survival — that fragile miracle — became my compass. I […]
Creating a Culture of Focus
Learn how to master attention regulation to improve the future of your organization. Here’s a hard truth most leaders overlook: If you can’t control your focus, you can’t control your organization. Attention is the currency of leadership today, and how you manage it determines your ability to inspire, strategize, and lead effectively. The most successful […]
Making the Wrong Call
Ten years ago I made an ethical lapse that still makes me wince. I was under pressure, and I made the wrong call. At the time, ClimeCo was growing fast. I was working on a large environmental commodity transaction and had been collaborating with a friend at a major trading company. When his firm passed […]
Seeing Eyewear Differently: Karun
Beyond sustainability, this company is working toward regeneration with its recycled glasses. Cigarette butts. Used fishing nets. Old carpets. Their next stop is typically the landfill, but one company sees these items as ready for their next life and in an unexpected place — on your face. Karun makes fashionable eyewear from recycled materials. Founded […]
