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Family
The values our parents instill become the foundation we build our lives upon—and that foundation carries us farther than talent, luck, or circumstance.
This Week's Story
One of the things I can tell you about life is that a good foundation matters. When we look at a building, we admire the architecture, the windows, the design, and the height. We rarely think about the foundation hidden beneath the ground.…
Read or ListenRecent from the notebook
Personal Growth
You don't have to have a lot of time left to have a lot of life left.
I've had a strange couple of weeks. I've been going home for reunions. Going home for funerals. And I've discovered…
Lessons from Life
Yesterday is already written. Tomorrow is not promised. So choose carefully what you write with today.
I am in an interesting season of life. Maybe you reach a certain age when reunions and funerals begin teaching you some…
Lessons from Life
Sometimes the story that changes your life isn't the one you finally have the courage to tell — it's the one you finally have the courage to hear.
I went back to Leavenworth, Kansas, for my 55th high school reunion thinking I knew the story. After all, I'd been…
Personal Growth
Sometimes you don't discover your purpose by looking for something new. You discover it by paying attention to what keeps showing up in your life.
I’m 72 years old, and I think I’ve finally figured out what I want to be when I grow up. I want to be me. Now, it took…
Business
A leader isn't the person at the point because he can do everything. He's at the point because he knows he can't.
★ Featured Aug 31, 2026
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.” — John Quincy…
Personal Growth
You can cheat the test, but you can't cheat the lesson.
★ Featured Aug 24, 2026
The other day, I learned that one of my fraternity brothers, Roy Jones, had passed away. When someone from your past…
Personal Growth
AudioA rule somebody else gives you is one thing. A standard you give yourself is something else entirely.
★ Featured Aug 24, 2026
I got fired from one job for stealing. Then I went to work for Southwestern Bell and didn't miss a day of work for the…
Running
AudioOld age doesn't begin when your hair turns gray. It begins the day you stop showing up.
★ Featured Aug 10, 2026
The January air was cold enough to make you question your sanity. As I stood at the starting line of the Mansfield Run…
Wisdom
AudioPositive people don't have fewer bad days — they keep looking until they find the blessing.
★ Featured Aug 3, 2026
People sometimes ask me how I stay so positive. The truth is, I don't think positive people have fewer bad days than…
Storytelling
AudioComparison doesn't just steal our joy. Sometimes it steals our participation.
People have been telling me for years that I should sing. Sometimes it's after church. Sometimes it's after a speech.…
Wisdom
AudioCourage and wisdom aren't always the same thing — maturity is knowing which battles belong to you.
★ Featured Aug 31, 2026
"Wisdom is knowing the difference between what is worth fighting for and what is worth walking away from." Just the…
Wisdom
AudioDiscipline is far more dependable than motivation — extraordinary lives are built by ordinary habits repeated with extraordinary faithfulness.
★ Featured Jul 20, 2026
Every morning at six o''clock, my alarm clock and I have the same little disagreement. The alarm says, "Time to get…