Category: Personal Thoughts

The One Thing I Wish I’d Told Small Business Owners About Marketing a Year Ago

Written on January 28, 2026. Posted in Brand Marketing, Business Leadership, Hands In The Soil Marketing Leadership, Personal Thoughts.

About a year ago, I shared a post from a former coworker and good friend, Michal Linehan that asked a deceptively simple question: Can a small business still do its own marketing? At the time, my answer was immediate and confident: of...

The Most Dangerous Leadership Trap I Ever Fell Into

Written on January 26, 2026. Posted in Business Leadership, Hands In The Soil Marketing Leadership, Personal Thoughts.

From one leader who’s been there to another Hey, I want to be really honest with you. I’ve struggled. I’ve failed spectacularly at times. And looking back, a lot of those failures came from the same place: pride and...

Authentic Growth, Career Stories, Hands in The Soil, Marketing Leadership, Personal story, Thought Leadership

Why Cancer Was Good for My Career

Written on January 23, 2026. Posted in Business Leadership, Hands In The Soil Marketing Leadership, Personal Thoughts.

(But Not My Financial Statement) Most people don’t separate career success from financial success. We treat them as if they’re locked together – emotionally synced – where one validates the other. Earn more, you must be winning....

Urgency Was Lying to Me….

Written on January 22, 2026. Posted in Business Leadership, Hands In The Soil Marketing Leadership, Lifestyle Business, Personal Thoughts.

A few years back, I was deep in the trenches—running marketing for a telecom startup. The kind of mornings fueled by coffee and chaos. Juggling team dynamics, competing priorities, and that constant sense that we were always reacting instead of...

The Best Worst Job I Ever Had — And That’s Saying a Lot

Written on October 22, 2025. Posted in Business Leadership, Personal Thoughts.

Norman Building & Design. A job I took after a divorce and the closing of Cascade Hop Farm. When the phone rang, it was the new CEO, a man I genuinely liked from an earlier interview and considered a professional friend. I didn’t know it...

Authentic Growth, Career Stories, Marketing Truth, Personal story, Thought Leadership

37 Voices, One Common Thread: Hands in the Soil Leadership in Action

Written on October 21, 2025. Posted in Business Leadership, Hands In The Soil Marketing Leadership, Personal Thoughts.

Every once in a while, it pays to pause—not to look at numbers or dashboards—but to look back at people. Recently I took the time to read through the 37 recommendations written about me on LinkedIn. Each one stopped me for a moment. Not...

Authentic Growth, Brand Stategy, Hands in The Soil, Marketing Leadership

From Mockery to Momentum: Kristi Noem and Hands-in-the-Soil Leadership

Written on October 18, 2025. Posted in Brand Marketing, Business Leadership, Future Marketing, Hands In The Soil Marketing Leadership, Personal Thoughts.

You don’t have to agree with her politics to appreciate the playbook. Kristi Noem just gave a masterclass in real-time leadership. SNL went after her hard — portraying her as the overzealous head of Homeland Security, recruiting every...

Authentic Growth, Brand Stategy, Hands in The Soil, Marketing Leadership