Business today is all about improvisation, which is the essence of jazz. Perhaps in the past we could just follow the operating manual and do what we were told, but today the world is too complex and fast. Today it's all about real-time innovation and creativity. Individuals may get hired based on their resumes, but they'll get promoted and reach their dreams based on their ability to create. In that context, being a jazz musician was the best MBA I could have ever received.

Fear is the single biggest blocker of creativity.

You don't often see the words "Discipline" and "Dreaming" in the same sentence. But I believe this duality is critically important to win in both business and life. Dreaming without discipline is fantasy land. Discipline without dreaming creates rigid and stifling bureaucracies. Having a process to enable the creative process will help liberate the creativity that lives within every organization and individual.

It's better to over-pay for A-level talent early on, even if you can't afford it. They will drive exponential value and help you win faster.

I admire mold-breakers. People that bust free from traditional thinking and change the game completely. Steve Jobs. Charlie Parker (jazz saxophonist). The Groupon guys. Seth Godin (author). People who dare to be different and end up creating something truly different and remarkable.

You can't be great at everything, but you are world-class at something. Go. Figure out what that is. It's how you win.

The inhibitor of creativity isn't potential it's fear. We worry about saying the wrong thing or looking foolish so we govern our imagination.