• Blog
  • Sunny Side of the Street

    The other day it occurred to me that I live on the sunny side of the street. But only literally. Our house faces south. In the suburban wilds of California where I grew up, we had no need for the compass. Here in Colorado, I can north-south-east-west with the best of them (or at least […]

  • Blog
  • I Pitch

    Some negotiations are complicated dances. Others can be stripped down. If I am in the dance setting, I try to put my Getting To Yes skills to work. I know I am supposed to identify the underlying issues for both sides and keep an open mind about the resolution. But sometimes, dammit, there is something […]

  • Blog
  • Pecking Order

    Academic institutions have a rigid hierarchy. The effects of that hierarchy are everywhere. Most of those effects are not good, so when I see them, I mutter to myself, Nothing like a pecking order to make you want to peck someone. I had always attributed this saying to David Rakoff, from his book Don’t Get […]