You may know I always carry a camera and enjoy capturing and sharing photos.

Here is a short video with my favorite/best images of 2020. In so many ways, it’s a year you may want to forget. But perhaps there are reflections here that provide joy.

Happy New Year! See you in 2021!

http://bit.ly/2020PhotosofYear

Elizabeth Shelton, the executive director of United Way of Southeast Missouri, was working from home on a Friday in late May when a nasty ghost appeared. The apparition arrived as a fake Facebook profile named Rachel Steenberg. Rachel’s post ridiculed George Floyd with a disgusting racist meme.

Rachel, the ghost, claimed to work for Elizabeth at the United Way.

Rachel wasn’t real. But the threat to United Way was very real.

“We have a small team of just six, so we know everyone,”...

We live in the Fake News Era. When a news outlet publishes an unfavorable story about someone, he or she screams, “Fake news.” Bots, internet trolls, and disreputable web sites promote phony stories, undermining the credibility of honest reporters and publications.

It’s a tricky time to work in media relations. Reporters are suspicious. Audiences are dubious and distracted. Executives at companies we advise are impatient and want accurate—and favorable—coverage.

So how do we deliver...

Leaders and communicators face an extraordinary set of fast-moving challenges today. If you haven’t learned any lessons about leadership during the storms of 2020, then you’re not paying attention.

We still have a long way to go in 2020, but here are ideas to inspire and inform.

1) Be Flexible and Keep Moving – Remember all those carefully laid strategic plans for 2020? The pandemic put them on ice. The best leaders made swift decisions to move major events online, and keep employees and...

Everyone, from project managers to CEOs, are suddenly being asked to be TV performers.

Calendars are filled with more Zoom, Skype, Webex and GoTo Meetings than ever.

There is so much more to manage in an online meeting than in person. In addition to the subject, you have to worry about lighting, sound, and distractions.

Let me share from my experience in both TV news and video conferences. These are practical tips to maintain your presence, even when you’re not present in person.

1. Get...