Half the art of ballooning is to make your crashes so gentle that you can fool yourself into calling them landings.

Remember the to-do list but don't forget the to-be list.

When people are placed in positions slightly above what they expect, they are apt to excel.

If you're hurt, lick your wounds and get up again. If you've given it your absolute best, it's time to move forward.

When employees tell you about their good ideas for the business, don't limit your response to asking questions, taking notes and following up. If you can, ask those people to lead their projects and take responsibility for them. From those experiences, they will then have built the confidence to take on more and you can take a further step back.

Communication: the thing humans forgot when we invented words.

A generation ago, the image was that you had to trample everyone else down to succeed; but I don't believe that makes good business sense.