Author: John Rue

...is a contradiction.   Apathy and "settling" are enemies of OPUS, too -- but FEAR is the biggest (and the root of most others).   Wednesday I'd scheduled a special practice for a team to share their OPUS with each other.   This is a very cool little team of 8 in a very profitable, small … Continue reading Fear & OPUS

At yesterday's practice where Toto was a meanie (no surprise -- just ask Miss Gulch, Toto bites), we picked up telling stories about choosing ACUTE pain per the homework assignment. The team wanted to hear from Toto, who shared about a newbie client who'd just embraced acute pain during Discovery.    His pain was rooted in his acute FEAR of laying aside his carefully-crafted … Continue reading As you DISCOVER your voice, TRUST it…

New Year is a time for resolutions.   Most are well-intentioned.   But resolve isn't enough -- like muscle fatigue,  sooner or later it hits a wall.    Generally it's after just a few days or weeks. The essence of  BUILT TO LEAD is all about WHY deep change -- i.e. lasting transformation -- depends on something more than resolve.    Something more than … Continue reading Before you RESOLVE…re-SOLVE

I don't like transitions.  Mostly they just happen before realizing it, marked by sadness.  Even though Toto calls me GuRue,  I know I'm just a student, still journeying toward a basic level of emotional intelligence in areas like this one. I'd totally forgotten the reminder that opens our September Playbook-of-Productive Action (PoP) page: "September is a month of transitions. . . With transition … Continue reading Tears, Fears. . .AND Cheers

You know him as Chet. . . I know him as Toto -- here's why Those whom we luv have nicknames.     If you know Toto well, u have one that he gave u.   B/c he understands their POWER. Of course u remember Wizard of Oz.   What u forget is that it starts with the town leader … Continue reading Toto. . .

Actually it's for your S-CORECARD -- known in bizness lingo as your 'metrics'. But if it had a sponsor, it would be Missouri -- known as the 'SHOW ME' state.    Have a fellow builder read through what you've written for your O-verarching Vision, P-urpose, and each U-nifying Strategy.    For each little phrase in your O-P-U, have them … Continue reading The S in O-P-U-S is for ‘SHOW ME’. . .

This is an AND to Chet's blog about 'nosier and noisier' and becoming more like a creative genius in the most important areas of life. . . Many of you are familiar with our 'Master in the Art of Living' quote by Chateaubriand -- this one's by by another dead French guy named Blaise Pascal. “What else … Continue reading Don’t get the 3 Opus questions backwards. . .

We believe Thoreau was right.   Most men, leaders & teams live lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with their song still inside them. Which is TRAGIC. Your song is the symphony for which you were born -- it's your great life work, your magnum OPUS.     It comes from yearnings that are hardwired deep within … Continue reading A metaphor for our Melody Line