Epiphanies

The Strategic Advantage of Mapping the Known Unknowns TL;DR Most business cases and pitches fail before they even begin—because they overlook the hidden dynamics shaping the decision. You can do everything “right” and still walk into a losing room. The real skill isn’t just presenting well—it’s mapping the terrain in advance: surfacing competing interests, unspoken […]

TL;DR: Most people think a business case is about getting a “yes”—but in reality, it’s about engineering alignment. A great business case doesn’t just present a smart idea; it surfaces hidden landmines, appeals to individual incentives, and enlists the real centers of power—before the pitch even hits the boardroom. The Turning Point In the early

How Listening—and KPI Chaining—Become Your Competitive Advantage One of the more revealing advisory calls I’ve had came from a client asking a simple but powerful question: “Why aren’t our clients renewing with us?” I did the craziest thing you could imagine, I asked them. The top responses from former clients? “They’re not meeting our needs,”

Most companies still pitch like it’s 2010, heavy on promises and narrative, light on proof. However, in a world increasingly shaped by AI-driven content discovery and structured visibility, that model no longer holds up. We no longer win hearts or deals with lofty promises. We win with performance clarity. That’s why I’ve recommended a different

Clint Eastwood popularized those three words as the gruff Marine in the movie Heartbreak Ridge, where he was trying to make a group of undisciplined misfits into an elite fighting force capable of any challenge. As a Marine, three words were drilled into me until they became instinctive: Improvise, Adapt, Overcome. It wasn’t just a

Every business owner must be ready to accept the idea of “eating your own” and “disrupting your own business” to maximize long-term opportunities. The concept of “eating your own” is rooted in the idea that companies must be willing to disrupt their existing business models to capture new opportunities, even if it means cannibalizing current

Why Showing the Path is More Powerful Than Pushing a Sale Most people walk into a conference presentation expecting a pitch. It’s become the default. We’ve all sat through sessions thinly disguised as keynotes, where the real agenda was to funnel us into a sales conversation. So when someone teaches or enlightens with no strings

As a Marine, I learned that success comes from deliberate and careful movements, achieved through slow, controlled actions, ultimately leading to faster and more accurate performance. Focusing on “slow is smooth and smooth is fast” emphasizes precision and minimizing unnecessary movement to maximize efficiency and effectiveness in close-quarters combat situations. But when I transitioned into the