I am a writer, speaker, teacher, and bullshitter. I like: golf, reading, country music, TV & the Minnesota Twins. I value right seeing, swapping stories, unwaxed conversations, real people, true friends, and a few laughs. I believe in God, the USA, doing right by others, and aging gracefully. When I pass, I want them to play, “The Cowboy Rides Away," by George Strait.
The single most important principle I've learned in my career is best expressed in the words of Black Elk, holy man of the Ogalala Souix: "It is in the darkness of their eyes that men lose their way."
This notion has been put in a business context by Clay Christensen: "The 'innovator's dilemma' is in his head. Well, first it's in his eyes: not seeing what you don't believe is possible is the first problem; not believing what you're seeing is the second; not being able to imagine it as a threat is the third; not responding to it in time is the fourth."
The only ways to surmount these obstacles to are: realize that the "darkness" is not on the path ahead of you, but in your own eyes; and find new "lenses" that help you see what's out there more clearly.