Do not expect a narrow-minded person to be open-minded. My most popular post! We can spend an enormous amount of energy trying to explain things to people who neither understand nor care to understand. It often leads to frustration, because no matter how carefully we explain, their world is too limited to take in what we are saying. The frog that lives in the well will never grasp the vastness of the ocean. That doesn’t make it a bad frog or a stupid frog. It simply means it is a well frog. Expecting it to see beyond its walls is unfair to the frog and exhausting for us. In life, some people simply cannot see beyond their own well. Instead of wearing ourselves out trying to make them, we can accept their limits, move forward, and invest our energy in places where it will make a difference. Life is good. Marshall

Drop the L from IDEAL and you get IDEA. That is more than wordplay. It is how positive change begins. An ideal does not sustain itself. Ideas bring it to life, one possibility, one experiment, and one small step at a time. Neuroscience supports the power of imagining our ideal self. Brain-imaging research suggests that focusing on the person we hope to become activates systems associated with vision, openness, engagement, and connection with others. The positive effects can remain evident days later. I call the result the three O’s: Optimistic. Open-minded. Opportunity-aware. When we enter this state, we collaborate more effectively. We become more empathetic. We see possibilities that we might otherwise overlook. Most importantly, we feel energized about the future rather than trapped by the past. Show me a leader who would not want to get there. So drop the L. Start with an idea. Then another. Let your ideas move you toward your ideal. Life is good. Keep on designing your life to make it better. Ayse Birsel + Marshall Goldsmith

Lasting change requires lasting effort. From my experience, there is no “quick fix” or “easy answer” that leads to meaningful change over time. I have spent more than 45 years coaching great leaders around the world. While their intelligence, talent, and dedication vary, this one lesson is always the same. Even the most brilliant leaders do not improve through a single insight, workshop, or decision. Real change happens when they commit to a process and stay with it. They practice. They reflect. They adjust. And they keep going, even when progress feels slow or uncomfortable. Sustainable change is not dramatic. It is quiet, repetitive, and often invisible to others. It shows up in daily choices, consistent behavior, and the willingness to keep learning long after the excitement has faded. If you want to get better as a leader, do not look for shortcuts. Commit to the work. Stay engaged. Keep moving forward. It is hard work and it is worth it! Life is good! Marshall Goldsmith Please visit MarshallGoldsmith.ai and ask as many questions as you wish. It is fun and it is free!

The next time you hear yourself saying, “I am no good at that,” ask yourself, “Why not?” I am impatient. I get easily bored. I always give people “a piece of my mind.” I have never been able to listen. I do not like giving people positive recognition. I am always disorganized. I am just no good at… Over the years, as a coach, I have heard every one of these self-stereotyping statements from otherwise intelligent, capable, and decent people. My first question is simple: “Do you have some kind of incurable genetic defect that prohibits you from being good at this?” They always laugh and say, “No.” Then I say, “Raise your right hand and repeat after me: I can change if I want to.” As a person, look in the mirror. Quit stereotyping yourself. As a coach or leader, challenge the people you are helping to look in the mirror as well. The real question is not, "Can I change?" The real question is, "Why not?" Life is good. Marshall Please visit MarshallGoldsmith.ai. It might help you in you journey to be the person you want to be.

It’s wonderful to have goals. Don't forget to celebrate when you achieve them! As we grow older and achieve more, it is fine to keep 'setting the bar' higher and higher. But here’s something I’ve learned from working with many high achievers: We get are so focused on the next big thing, we forget to pause and appreciate the last one. Please don’t forget to “declare victory” when you’ve earned it. Take a moment. Smile. Enjoy your successes - even the small ones. You don’t need a trophy or a parade to celebrate. You just need to give yourself permission to say: “Yes, I did that. That was good.” I’ve seen this pattern over and over again in the research I’ve done with people like you. You care. You try hard. And too often, you're too hard on yourself. Keep being a high achiever. Keep striving. Enjoy your everyday wins. You’ve earned them. Life is good. Marshall

In the new world, loving what you do will not be a bonus. It will be a requirement. The future belongs to the curious, the driven, and, most importantly, the passionate. Hard work and constant growth are now the baseline. Enjoying the journey is no longer optional. If you're not in love with your work, the world will wear you down. If you are, it will lift you up. Life is good. Marshall Please visit MarshallGoldsmith.ai. It is now available in 32 languages. We are having a contest for my readers who ask questions in Hindi! People who do not speak English have been at a huge disadvantage. I hope that my project helps them. Thank you Fractal for supporting me in this effort!

Think of a person who makes you feel bad, guilty, angry, or crazy. How much sleep is that person losing over you tonight? Probably none. Who is being punished? You. Who is doing the punishing? You. Let it go. When we hold on to resentment, we carry the pain long after the moment has passed. The other person may have moved on, forgotten, or never even realized the impact. Yet we replay the story again and again in our mind. Letting go is not about saying what happened was acceptable. It is about making peace and moving on. Let it go. Life is good. Marshall

We talk WAY too much about how smart WE are and how stupid THEY are! Why? We don't have to do this. My latest LinkedIn survey indicates the average person is seen as spending 4.5 hour per week complaining about the company, their boss or their co-workers. That adds up to 225 hours per year. If a company has 1,000 employees, that is 225,000 hours. Spend half of that 'complaining' time working out and you will be in great shape! Before speaking, have the discipline 'to ask yourself, "Why am I saying this?" If the answer is 'to make a positive difference'. Great! If the answer is 'to prove I am right or I am smart' - or even worse 'to put them down'. Maybe not. Life is good. Marshall Please visit MarshallGoldsmith.ai.

"Great leaders, like great coaches, ask the right questions." The best leaders aren’t the ones with all the answers. They’re the ones who are still willing to learn. Being coachable doesn’t mean you’re weak—it means you’re strong enough to grow. If you can’t be challenged, you can’t get better. And if you’re done improving, you’re done leading.

A problem with success. If you take the good offer, you may miss the great offer! I have coached many extremely successful leaders including Deanna Mulligan. After very successful years at Guardian Life, she was wise enough to 'leave at the top'. As with most of my wonderful clients she had lots of opportunities. This quote not only helped her in determining her next steps, it helped her help other leaders in the same fortunate position. This same logic applies to successful leaders in any booming market. You cannot to it all. Do not get over-committed on 'good' and leave no space for 'great'. I would love your reflections. Marshall

"We spend more time designing our home remodel than designing our life." Ayse (Eye-Shay) Birsel has helped - and is helping - me design my life! For example, this is one exercise you can apply immediately. Write down the names of two of your heroes. Then write down WHY these people are your heroes. Then ask, "How can I be more like the person who is a hero to me?" Design YOUR life around the answer to this question. Today over half of all of the professional time that I spend has been influenced by my answer to this question and her coaching on designing my life. Thank you Ayse! Life is good. Marshall

With each promotion, the amount of positive recognition we receive tends to increase. Our jokes somehow become funnier. Our observations sound more profound. People become more eager to agree with us and more reluctant to tell us what we need to hear. If we are not careful, we can begin to believe that we are wiser, funnier, and better than we really are. The higher we rise, the harder it becomes to get good advice and the easier it becomes to believe we no longer need it. Great leaders understand this danger. They have the humility and wisdom to proactively seek out honest advice, listen carefully, and act when change is needed. They make it safe for others to disagree. This post was inspired by my wonderful friend Caroline Webb. Caroline has written an amazing new book, 'Leadership Intelligence'. This science-backed reference guide gives leaders practical tools they can return to again and again as they face everyday management challenges. It may also provide some of the good advice you are no longer getting at work! Life is good. Marshall

"I am most proud of the people I have helped and how well they are doing today." I have asked many retiring CEOs, "What are you most proud of?" It is NEVER about how much money they made, how big their office was, or how many awards they won. It was ALWAYS about the people they helped. At the end of the day, your most important performance appraisal will be conducted by the person you see in the mirror. This advice will help you get a great performance review on what really matters. Life is good. Marshall Please try out MarshallGoldsmith.ai. It is now being tested in 32 languages incluing Hindi and Hinglish. Please share it with people who might benefit. Like the CEOs I have interviewed, I am most proud of the people I have helped.

We live in an incredibly complex world. In this new world, one of the most important ingredients in successful strategic planning is perspective. I love the idea that “perspective is borrowed.” To design for the future, we need to look beyond our own experiences. We need to seek different views from customers, colleagues, communities, and other stakeholders. Each sees something that we cannot see. When we bring these perspectives together, we gain a clearer view of both the challenges ahead and the opportunities waiting to be discovered. Amos Winter and my wonderful friend Vijay Govindarajan have written a fascinating new book, Global by Design. It provides a valuable roadmap for designing innovations that can scale, travel, and make a positive difference in the world. In this new world, none of us can see the whole picture alone . Fortunately, perspective is one thing we can borrow - and we never have to pay it back! Life is good. Marshall

In our rapidly changing new world, get ready to fail MORE - not LESS. Quit pretending there is no such thing as 'failure'. Yes there is. Don't hide from it. The most successful people in the world have failed many times. That is how they learned! Do not be ashamed of failure or afraid of failure. Look at life as a series of experiments! Most experiments fail. They also lead to learning. I am often asked, "If you had to relive your life, what you would do differently?" My answer is "Absolutely nothing!" Have I made mistakes? Countless! Have a failed? Often! If I eliminate my failure, I also eliminate all that I learned from my failure. Looking at your life, assuming you are doing pretty well, do you really want to eliminate all that you have learned from your failures? Life is good. Marshall Please visit MarshallGoldsmith.ai. It is getting better and better. It may still fail on occasion. That is OK. We are always learning.

Why do the great leaders that I work with have a coach? They want to improve! We can all get better! Anyone who thinks they have no room for improvement needs to work on HUMILITY. In many ways, the more successful we become, the more room for improvement we have! Why? More new great opportunities keep emerging - that we have not anticipated! In my own life, my work today is so different than it was even five years ago. I am now learning all about AI and its potential impact in the world (MarshallGoldsmith.ai). I have developed a new website, where I give away hundreds of my articles and videos (MarshallGoldsmith.com). I hope that some of what I am learning helps you! As Bob Dylan said, "He is is not busy being born, is busy dying." Life is good. Marshall

When we cling to the past, we do not stay still, we go backward. We have all done this. We hold on to the past, to old regrets, to mistakes we cannot change, or to problems that are not really ours to solve. What begins as responsibility slowly turns into burden. What begins as caring slowly turns into being dragged. Letting go is not about being careless or indifferent. It is about recognizing what no longer serves you, what you cannot control, and what is costing you peace in the present moment. When we let go, we create new space for learning, for growth, and for a little more peace today. For joy. Here is my question for you: What are you still holding on to that may be time to let go of? I would love your reflections and comments. Life is good. Marshall

Every year comes with lots of ups and downs. You do not have to. The Bhagavad Gita teaches that "One who is not disturbed by happiness or distress and remains steady through both can find freedom and peace. "While the language is ancient, the lesson is timeless and deeply practical. My wonderful friend Safi Bahcall, a wonderful thinker, author and entrepreneur, teaches a similar idea in modern terms. He often reminds executives, “When the stock price seems too high, your companywo is probably not that good. When the stock price seems too low, your company is probably not that bad.” The same wisdom applies to life. As you journey through the inevitable highs and lows, try to keep your balance. Do not let success inflate your ego, and do not let setbacks define your worth. You are never always wonderful. You are never always awful. You are always human. Enjoy your journey, through the 'ups and downs'. Life is good. Marshall Please visit MarshallGoldsmith.ai and try it out. It is free and you may get some new ideas.

In life, knowing how to finish is just as important as knowing how to get started. This spring I spent a day with ten remarkable, successful people. Each told the story of their life and career. It was fascinating to hear how their journeys unfolded. What did I learn from this wonderful session? Learn how to declare victory and move on. Many high achievers how to start. They know how to work hard, build momentum, and get results. Far fewer know when it is time to finish a chapter with gratitude and begin the next one. In the new world, you will probably experience many career transitions. The ability to recognize when a phase of life has run its course is an essential skill. Do not wait until circumstances force the decision. Do not stay so long that the joy disappears. Finish well. Appreciate what you have accomplished. Thank the people who helped you along the way. Then declare victory and move on. Life is good. Marshall

The key to success in coaching is not the coach. It is the great person being coached. I have received far more recognition as a coach and leadership thinker than I deserve. Why? Because I’ve been honored to work with many “Leonardo da Vincis” of leadership. My advice to other coaches is simple: work with great clients. Alan Mulally, former CEO of the Year in the United States, once told me, “Marshall, if you work with great, dedicated clients, your coaching process will always work. If you work with people who are not dedicated, your coaching process will never work.” That insight didn’t just change my career - it changed my life. Most coaches I meet are wonderful people with great hearts. But sometimes, they end up working with the wrong clients. This hurts the coach, the client, and the entire field of coaching. I have lots of readers who are coaches. My advice to you is simple, help great leaders get even better! Life is good. Marshall

Dear community, I have wonderful news to share. The Seismic Shift in YOU, which I co-authored with my great friend Dr. Michelle K. Johnston, has been named a 2026 Business Book Awards finalist! Michelle and I built this book around one simple idea: Connection starts with YOU. If we want stronger teams, relationships, and organizations, we have to start by looking at our own behavior. The book explores seven practical shifts in our perspective, priorities, calendar, meetings, conversations, language and energy. This started with a conversation in London. Michelle asked, "Will you be my coauthor?" I said, "Let's do it." Michelle, congratulations! I am proud of you and proud of this book. Thank you to everyone who has read it, shared it and put these ideas to work. I hope this recognition helps the message reach even more people. Life is good. Marshall