Published in Hand on the Shoulder·PinnedHand on the Shoulder: Finding freedom in the confluence of love and careerwww.handontheshoulder.com The Introduction It was a cold day in June when I arrived at the Susquehanna River. The town of Endicott lay across the river, still shrouded in a morning mist and looking like a place from another era. …Memoir4 min read
Jul 31The Angelic Asshole of ArmonkThe Angelic Asshole of Armonk has arrived. Like a corporate lemming, I’m standing by my rental Ford at the only helipad close to Sterling Forest. …Corporate Culture5 min read
Published in Hand on the Shoulder·Jul 31The Black KidAt the age of six or eight, I liked to play with toy soldiers. World War II was raging in Europe and the far East, so I tried to simulate some of the small battles. One morning, sitting in our front yard on Main Street, I assembled a fight between…Race Relations2 min read
Jul 5Pistol Packing in PublicI remember the first time. It was in an outdoors equipment store, not really a surprising place to see a guy packing a gun. He looked like a normal fellow, with jeans, strangely pressed in a pleat, a forest green LLBean shirt, and scuffed ankle-high brown shoes. But, his belt…Guns3 min read
Jun 18The Great ReboardingWillowTree, a leading app-developer with headquarters in Charlottesville, posted a picture of a band greeting people as they showed up for one of their first all-employee meetings after the pandemic. This, it seems, is their first step in reboarding their team members. In well-run organizations, new employees go through a…Reboarding2 min read
Published in Hand on the Shoulder·Jun 14The Silk MillAn excerpt from “Hand on the Shoulder: Finding freedom in the confluence of love and career.” As far as I know, Dad never had a day of formal management training in his life. He simply used sound human relations and family values. …Management And Leadership3 min read
Published in Hand on the Shoulder·Jan 26TrainsIn those days, Orange was a railroad town, a dangerous little town. Two tracks, one owned by Southern Railways and the other by the Chesapeake and Ohio split the town right down the middle, cutting through Main Street with the power and authority of black, smoke-breathing dragons. The townspeople could…Hometown4 min read
Jan 8So You Want to be a Freelancer: You need to know the 2–2–1–2 Rule“I feel stuck. We’re just drifting around in circles, and my company’s leadership doesn’t know what the hell they are doing. Because they can’t see us at our desks every day, they keep adding new software to keep track of us. And my team leader has no idea how to…3 min read
Dec 17, 2021A Holiday MessageTwas the week before Christmas, and all through the town, Not a smile was in sight, not even a frown; The people were masked as they shopped with care, In hopes that Covid would never be there; The children were online with their computer at home, While visions of real…Christmas2 min read
Published in Hand on the Shoulder·Nov 15, 2021The LightThe light is on. Last night, when I left the workshop, I checked to make sure it was off. I remember pulling the cord and tripping over a toolbox while feeling my way to the door while cursing the dark. But tonight it’s on again. Perhaps the result of a…Memories2 min read