Do you remember the scene in Animal House when Stork redirects the band during the parade? Under the direction of Marion Wormer, he takes the baton from the conductor, makes a hard left, and marches the band into a dead-end ally. When the band gets to the end, Stork quickly escapes the compacting instruments and band against the brick wall. If you listen closely, you will hear the distinct sounds of horns crinkling while playing their final chord. I routinely use this scene w

Let's take a moment to interrogate a time-series plot in your next monthly review, shared PowerPoint slide deck, or performance boards around your facilities. As you are reviewing, recognize the aesthetical ease of interpreting time-series plots and the speed to plot them. Take the time to see what is being described on the x-axis and how it relates to what is shown on the y-axis. Look carefully because this time we are going to interrogate the chart. In your example, the y-a

A colleague and I were talking about sustainability the other day. Exploring the word, what it means to her, what it means to me, and where we can take action in our personal and professional lives to improve. During this unraveling of concepts and strategies, she asked me the question, isn’t sustainability what you want to be known for? With an awkward pause, I responded that I want to be known as an individual that always gently placed an empty barbell onto the floor. Most