Parker Houston

How Badly Do You Want to Change?

by Parker Houston | Aug 1, 2024 | How People Change

Today’s Big Idea—Research identifies six stages of change people pass through when trying to change their behavior. Leaders need to understand these stages in order to make...

The Greater the Awareness, The Greater the Choice

by Parker Houston | Jul 25, 2024 | Personal Leadership, The Science of Mindset

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” –Victor Frankl One...

What is the good life?—Research on the 7 Habits of Happy People

by Parker Houston | Jul 18, 2024 | The Science of Happiness

“Our greatest fear in life should not be of failure, but of succeeding in life at things that don’t really matter.” –Francis Chan The Big Idea: Whether you lead a business,...

Work…Reimagined

by Parker Houston | Jul 11, 2024 | Boost Your Organizational Health

Several years ago, I decided to learn more about investing in order to plan for retirement. I read a few books and took some classes. It all seemed so confusing at first....

The Relationship Between Happiness and Success

by Parker Houston | Jul 4, 2024 | The Science of Happiness

The modern formula for success is broken. In today’s world, most people act as if they believe that happiness will be a guaranteed result of success. But if that were true,...

Are You Over-Gripping the Steering Wheel of Your Life?

by Parker Houston | Jun 27, 2024 | Mind and Body, Self Leadership

“Just hold on loosely, but don’t let go. If you cling too tightly, you’re gonna lose control.” –Donnie Van Zant, .38 Special A few years ago, I hired a personal and...

10 Best Practices for Hiring (and Keeping) a Top Team

by Parker Houston | Jun 6, 2024 | Top Teams Made Simple

Ever since I became a manager 14 years ago, I’ve been curious about best practices for hiring. I’ve been part of organizations that struggled to keep vacancy rates of over...

The 80-20 Rule

by Parker Houston | May 9, 2024 | Productivity Best Practices

“If you don’t have time, you don’t have priorities.” —Tim Ferriss The BIG Idea—A minority of your actions create the majority of your results. Wilfreid Fritz Pareto...

Run Your Household Like A Great Company

by Parker Houston | Apr 25, 2024 | Family Leadership

Starbucks has become renowned for their atmosphere of impeccable customer service. In fact, just go online and you will find a wealth of books written about business...

The Five Science-Based Practices of the Thriving Organization

by Parker Houston | Feb 29, 2024 | Boost Your Organizational Health

If you have been in the workplace for a while, chances are good that you’ve had a job you didn’t love. The research we discuss today will help you understand what was...

Perfectionism—The Number One Joy Killer

by Parker Houston | Jan 11, 2024 | The Science of Happiness

In a prior post, I summarized the main findings from the 75-year study at Harvard on happiness. While reading the study, one sentence absolutely jumped off the page at...

Not the Days in Your Life, But the Life in Your Days

by Parker Houston | Dec 14, 2023 | Family Leadership, Personal Leadership

Last month my wife lost one of her closest friends. They met in fourth grade and had been friends for more than 30 years. Casey Lynn Wakefield lost her battle with cancer at...

Whatever You Do, Stop Multitasking!

by Parker Houston | Dec 7, 2023 | Productivity Best Practices

“If you chase two rabbits, you won’t catch either one.” —Russian Proverb The BIG IDEA—Once you have recognized the importance of carefully investing your...

Lead YOU First

by Parker Houston | Oct 26, 2023 | Personal Leadership

My friend Trey asks great questions. Shortly after starting my blog, he asked, “So why did you call it lead you first?” That inquiry inspired this post. What does it mean to...

Your Habits–Over Time–Will Make or Break You

by Parker Houston | Oct 12, 2023 | Personal Leadership

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.” –Aristotle It would be impossible to talk about personal leadership without talking about...

Disentangle Yourself From Device Addiction

by Parker Houston | Oct 5, 2023 | Productivity Best Practices, Self Leadership

“I fear the day that technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.” -Albert Einstien If the photo above looks anything...

Great Leadership Always Includes Gratitude

by Parker Houston | Sep 28, 2023 | Self Leadership, The Science of Gratitude

Here is today’s BIG IDEA—The research is very clear that gratitude changes your brain chemistry and wiring, your leadership results, your physical health, and the health of...

Embrace Experimentation and Fail Forward

by Parker Houston | Sep 21, 2023 | How People Change

“Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It’s quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure.” -Thomas Watson, CEO IBM Today’s BIG IDEA:...

Your Brain is Fooling You Every Day, Without Your Awareness—Here is What to Do About it

by Parker Houston | Aug 24, 2023 | Personal Leadership, The Science of Mindset

The Big Idea: The phenomenon of Cognitive Bias has been studied for more than 50 years. Despite decades of research, most leaders are not aware of how these errors in...

Self-Compassion Is Not Fluff. Research Shows It’s Inseparable from a Champion’s Mindset.

by Parker Houston | Jul 20, 2023 | The Science of Mindset

“Having compassion starts and ends with having compassion on all of those unwanted parts of ourselves.” –Pema Chodron The Big Idea –One thing is certain—leaders cannot...

Deliberate Practice—Becoming a Master of Your Craft

by Parker Houston | Apr 27, 2023 | Optimal Performance, The Science of Mindset

“Practice doesn’t make perfect, it makes permanent.” –Author Unknown This post originally appeared in the Optimal Performance Series, but is also vital for a strong Mindset....

Great Leaders Put People in Their Strength Zones

by Parker Houston | Apr 13, 2023 | Top Teams Made Simple

Leadership expert John Maxwell tells an illuminating story about his high school basketball team. One typical afternoon, Maxwell showed up to basketball practice. The coach...

Confront Your Weaknesses: A Sobering Tale and Ideas For Action

by Parker Houston | Apr 6, 2023 | Personal Leadership

Years ago, I heard John Maxwell says something I’ve never forgotten. To paraphrase—A great leadership legacy can take decades to build, but can be lost in an instant. An...

10 Tips for Leading Remote Teams

by Parker Houston | Mar 9, 2023 | Top Teams Made Simple

The modern leader must know how the to lead remote teams. As of 2022, 2 out of 10 people work at a job that is entirely on site, and 8 out of 10 people work in a job that is...

Money is an Essential Personal Leadership Skill

by Parker Houston | Jan 19, 2023 | Family Leadership, Personal Leadership

“You either learn to manage money, or the lack of that skill will manage you for the rest of your life.” –Dave Ramsey With the current housing market, inflation, and...