If you’ve read my earlier post on The Half-Life of Cross-Sell, you know the uncomfortable truth: your window to sell more to an existing customer decays rapidly—often in days, not weeks. But here’s what I didn’t fully explore: the psychology behind why that window closes so fast, and more importantly, how both B2B and …
Do You Want Fries With That? Revisiting the Half-Life of Cross-Sell Read More »
As we kick off 2026, I’ve been thinking about an uncomfortable truth: the biggest limitation on most teams isn’t talent, resources, or market conditions—it’s the invisible beliefs team members hold about their own potential. After spending three decades building and leading teams across multiple industries, I’ve watched countless smart leaders inadvertently create cultures where …
From Fixed to Flourishing: How Leaders Build Teams That Embrace Growth Read More »
As we settle into 2026, I’ve been thinking about an unlikely source of marketing wisdom: the game of Rock, Paper, Scissors. Recent neuroscience research reveals that this simple game, which we’ve all played as children and adults, is actually a microcosm of human decision-making under competition—and the insights have direct implications for how we …
What Rock, Paper, Scissors Can Teach Us About Marketing Read More »
You’ve invested eighteen months and $2 million into a product that was supposed to revolutionize your category. Customer pilots came back lukewarm. Your team keeps finding reasons why next quarter will be different. But pulling the plug means admitting those 18 months were wasted—and nobody wants to be the executive who burned through capital …
The Sunk Cost Trap: When Loyalty to a Bad Bet Drains Your Future Growth Read More »
January’s here, which makes this the perfect time to address one of the most expensive biases in business. The fresh start effect—a behavioral science principle showing that temporal landmarks like New Year’s Day boost our motivation to change—gives us that extra push to tackle hard truths (Dai et al., 2014). Here’s one worth facing: …
The Halo Effect: Why Your Best Hire Might Be Your Worst Decision Read More »
A Holiday Message for the Leaders Who Keep Going As I post this on December 23rd, many of you are still working—checking emails between family gatherings, reviewing Q4 numbers, planning 2026 strategy. That relentless commitment got you here. But particularly this time of year, I need to talk to you about something rarely discussed …
December planning sessions are in full swing, and leadership teams across companies of all sizes are setting aggressive targets for the new year. Throughout my career, I have consistently seen savvy executives projecting 40% revenue growth, record-time product launches, and flawless execution. Here is the uncomfortable truth: most of these plans are built on …
In the high-stakes realm of executive decision-making, even the savviest CEOs and founders can fall prey to subtle cognitive traps. One of the most insidious is confirmation bias—the tendency to favor information that reinforces our existing beliefs while disregarding contradictory evidence. This bias isn’t a sign of poor intellect; it’s a human default that …
The Confirmation Bias Boardroom: When Data Becomes an Echo Chamber Read More »
Most founders think they have a product problem. In truth, they have a traction problem. You can build something extraordinary, pour your heart and capital into it, and still fail—because you never figured out how to acquire customers predictably. That’s the hard truth behind Traction: How Any Startup Can Achieve Explosive Customer Growth by Gabriel Weinberg and Justin Mares (2015). …
Traction Is Not an Accident: The Science of Predictable Growth Read More »
You don’t see the 99 companies that failed doing what the one did right. That simple truth should reshape how every CEO and founder thinks about strategy. Yet business leaders consistently fall into the same trap: studying success stories, benchmarking against winners, and copying “best practices”—all while ignoring the invisible graveyard of companies that …
The Survivorship Illusion: Why Copying Winners Rarely Works Read More »
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