by Tony Mayo | Client Comments, For Business Owners, How to Set Goals, Recommended Books
I am pleased and flattered that my clients, Chris Haddon and Jason Balin, gave specific, detailed credit to me and some of my techniques in their new book, The Whiteboard: Go From Blank Canvas to a Productive, Leveraged and Highly-Profitable Business. Here is just one paragraph.
We sought out our executive coach, Tony, to show us the most strategic, effective way to design our success. A business coach will help you make the right moves at that right times consistently; it’s a precise recipe for getting ahead. Our decision to partner with an executive coach has been a very fruitful investment. By working with Tony, we were able to meet our ten-year business goal in three years. That’s the power of having an expert help you structure your decisions and career movements on a regular basis. Having a career coach isn’t a luxury; it’s smart business and smart living.
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners
Does your job trigger primitive survival instincts? My book presents alternatives.
Those best equipped to compete mercilessly for food, ward off any threat, dominate territory, and seek safety naturally passed along their genes, so these self-centered impulses could only intensify. But sometime after mammals appeared, they evolved what neuroscientists call the limbic system, perhaps about 120 million years ago. Formed over the core brain derived from the reptiles, the limbic system motivated all sorts of new behaviors, including the protection and nurture of young as well as the formation of alliances with other individuals that were invaluable in the struggle to survive. And so, for the first time, sentient beings possessed the capacity to cherish and care for creatures other than themselves.
Although these limbic emotions would never be as strong as the ‘me first’ drives still issuing from our reptilian core, we humans have evolved a substantial hard-wiring for empathy for other creatures, and especially for our fellow humans.
–Karen Armstrong
Fields of Blood and the History of Violence
Knopf, 2014 page 7
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners, How to Set Goals, Technology Tips
Here is a simple yet powerful tool to establish habits, learn a skill, or complete a project. I used it to reinforce my daily meditation practice and to write two books.
The method is as old as procrastination but has been attributed recently to billionaire comedian Jerry Seinfeld, as in this frequently cited LifeHacker article, where it is called Don’t Break the Chain. I prefer positive instructions, so let’s name it Link-a-Day.
Buy or make a simple, clean one year calendar. Do not just print your Outlook or Google calendar; those have too many distracting details for this purpose. You can start your own on any date and fit 365 days on one sheet by downloading my template here in Excel format or use the Google Sheets version here.
Place your calendar in the physical world rather than in a computer or app where it can hide. Hang it where you will see it everyday. I put mine on the wall right next to my computer monitor. After you complete the promised activity for the day, mark it complete. When you miss a day or two, start again. No regrets, no excuses. Just start again. You can play games with Link-a-Day by playing for a longer unbroken chain or a shorter gap than last time.
That’s it. As Aristotle observed, a person is what she consistently does. Use this to start doing something you will be proud to be.
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners
Book Signing
Reston author Tony Mayo will meet readers, sign books, take questions, and conduct readings.
Small Business Saturday
Saturday after Thanksgiving
November 28, 2015
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Reston’s Used Book Shop
Lake Anne Plaza
1623 Washington Plaza N
Reston, Virginia 20190 (703) 435-9772
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners, Leadership Development
The “prison experiments” by psychologist Philip Zimbardo show “that ethical problems in organizations originate not with “a few bad apples” but with the ‘barrel makers’—the leaders who, wittingly or not, create and maintain the systems in which participants are encouraged to do wrong.”
–Warren Bennis &
James O’Toole in
Harvard Business Review
June 2009
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners
My new novel Crimes of Cunning exposes the roots of some serious problems in today’s largest organizations. I much prefer owner-operated business, like those of my executive coaching clients–and independent booksellers.
I will be supporting Small Business Saturday™ with a book signing and reading at Reston’s favorite bookstore. Please join me there on the Saturday after American Thanksgiving.
Saturday, November 28
11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Reston’s Used Book Shop
Lake Anne Plaza
1623 Washington Plaza
Reston, Virginia 20190
703-435-9772
Click here to see other special events at
Reston’s Used Book Shop on Facebook
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners
My novel just received an amazing review from bestselling author Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. He begins by calling it, “Deep and Powerful Wisdom.” Read the whole review by clicking here.
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners, For Executive Coaches
Someone posted the most amazing review of my book. Not only is the writer not my mother, I’ve never even met him.
Did I laugh out loud? Yes, a lot, but this novel is not pure comedy. There will be many interpretations about the heartbeat of this story because it’s written in such a way that each reader will get hooked in his/her own personal way. I see it as a story of … <click here to read the rest>
by Tony Mayo | For Business Owners
by Tony Mayo | Communication, Conversation, & Confrontation, For Business Owners, For Executive Coaches, For Fun, For Salespeople, Leadership Development, Meetings, Sales Techniques
Chapter One is below.
Read the Author’s Preface by clicking here.
Book Sample
Chapter 1
Haunted Hallways
I reminded myself that we were in a well-lit office, not a dark alley. No need to get aggressive yet. I relaxed my jaw and tried to keep the fear out of my voice as I replied, “If you pull my people off your project, there’s no way you’ll meet the delivery date.”
My client looked at me blandly, as if he had delivered a weather forecast. In fact, he had devastated my sales forecast. Five fewer of my consultants billing their time to this client meant there was no way I would meet quota to earn my bonus. I needed him to engage with me. I forced a response with a direct question that was also a threat. “Did Juan approve this staffing cut?”
“Why would I check with Juan?” asked the Director of Information Systems Development (ISD) for Billing Systems. He ran his finger down a page of the MCI internal directory as he spoke, “Nobody (more…)
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