by Brooks Mendell | Nov 16, 2021 | Leading/Managing, Learning, Thinking/Analysis
Growing up, I enjoyed the science fiction movies Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Star Wars, and television shows such as Battlestar Galactica and Buck Rogers. The stories combined space travel, advanced technologies and humor with themes that demonstrated a...
by Brooks Mendell | Oct 15, 2021 | Leading/Managing, Learning
During my career in forestry, I learned that managing trees is about managing people. Forest resource managers and timberland investors are also human resource professionals. The work gets done through building productive relationships and teams. As with...
by Brooks Mendell | Sep 29, 2021 | Thinking/Analysis
Four years ago, in September 2017, spacesuit technician Joseph Schmitt passed away at 101. The Economist magazine reported how, at NASA, Schmitt helped design and fit spacesuits during the years when Alan Shepard made America’s first manned space flight (1961), John...
by Brooks Mendell | Sep 11, 2021 | Books
When visiting family or eating with friends (or interviewing job candidates), I often ask “what are you reading?” I find books or other long form writing a better source of conversational kindling than discussing the weather, recent doctor visits or the op-ed pages. A...
by Brooks Mendell | Aug 17, 2021 | Communication Skills, Leading/Managing
According to the late author and management expert Peter Drucker,[1] “one either meets or one works.” While our sympathies agree with this, we’ve also experienced effective, well-run meetings that got things done. Meetings either leverage or waste company...
