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Facts tell, passion sells — people make emotional decisions

A few years ago, at an industry conference, my closing story was running my first half-marathon with our daughter, Dannielle. The audience needed to know they have the ability to do great things if they believe and do the work. I’ve told the story over a hundred times. This audience was hearing it for the first time. To keep it fresh, I relive the events, telling it with the same passion as if it happened yesterday. This week Lynnda and I are in Phoenix at Influence, the National Speakers Association’s Annual Conference. Professional speakers know; No. 1 It’s all about the ...

Helping to redeem the soul of America

Next month will be the 62nd anniversary of the March on Washington that took place on August 28, 1963. It is believed that between 200,000 and 300,000 people participated in the March. The last speaker was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He was not on the original program, but because of his recent work during that time, two speakers who were to speak for 10 minutes each gave up their time to let this young pastor speak. That is when he gave the iconic speech called the “I Have A Dream” speech. It is interesting to note according to Dr. King’s own writing that he did not plan to ...

Vivek Ramaswamy is the right choice for Ohio governor

In 2012, I was invited to a conference held by the Milton Friedman Institute in Indianapolis. The Institute invited 20 or so legislators from around the country to discuss school choice issues and how much progress had been made to that point. Like most conferences we heard from a variety of speakers, one of whom was Tony Bennett (not the singer and not the basketball coach), the superintendent of Education from the state of Indiana. Bennett oversaw the institution of educational reforms including expanding School Choice options for then Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels. Bennett made a ...

How it all started — a 50-year love story

Lynnda and I have done a prolonged celebration of our 50th wedding anniversary. This only happens once, and we wanted to enjoy it to the max. We started in mid-June with a second honeymoon to Disney World and dinner at the top of the Contemporary Resort. The weekend of the actual anniversary date we had a special cake and celebration with our church family. Last weekend, Lynnda and I celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary with our three children and most of our grandchildren at a mutually convenient resort since they all live out of state. That’s why I do the work I do at Shale ...

The nutty story of a tree that wouldn’t quit

Despite the fact that my husband, Mike, and I deliberately decided we would not plant a garden this year, we still have an unexpected bumper crop of a different type. Although we raised very successful gardens for about three years in a row, we were losing the battle against the neighborhood groundhogs that were eating every plant that popped up. So this year, rather than fighting against Mother Nature, we decided to focus on other projects and maybe return to gardening next year. Over the past couple of weeks, though, I noticed something other than vegetables growing like ...

Ohio’s energy edge: Powering the next Silicon Valley

Ohio’s economy is undergoing a dramatic and positive transformation. Thanks to forward-thinking leadership from officials in both Columbus and Washington, the Buckeye State has become an increasingly attractive destination for tech companies fleeing California’s sky-high taxes and heavy-handed regulations. The latest example came in Congress. Responding to President Trump’s call for a nuclear resurgence, the Ohio delegation helped lead the charge to pass his “big, beautiful bill.” The legislation includes preserving the nuclear production tax credit (PTC), a provision ...