Enjoy Ron Culberson's insights on a variety of topics
On October 10, 1979, when I was in my first year of college, the University of Virginia got three inches of snow. A few days later the student newspaper reported that we had witnessed three inches of “partly cloudy” — which had been the weather forecast for that day. You’d think we’d see a significant […]
Continue ReadingWhen we were expecting our first child, I had a hard time grasping the idea of being a parent. I suspect that I, like most men, was more preoccupied with the conception of a child than the raising of one. As a young man, I wasn’t quite sure if I was responsible enough for myself […]
Continue ReadingRecently, a colleague said to me, “I guess there really is an art to running a meeting.” The comment came after we had spent two hours that felt like several days in an airtight room with blinding fluorescent lights where the chair of our volunteer committee not only had trouble keeping to the agenda but […]
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Do you like personal development books or are you basically content with your current level of mediocrity? Unless there is a major problem, most of us are happy with the status quo. Or perhaps you’re a personal development addict and read self-help books incessantly. If so, have you gotten better or are you more of […]
Continue ReadingI recently had the privilege of speaking for the Alta Vista Chamber of Commerce’s annual awards dinner. I love these events because they bring businesses together and recognize them for what they’re doing to keep the business community strong. And in turn, I believe it makes the entire community strong. If you’d like to read […]
Continue ReadingAs the day begins, the dim light slowly exposes the wondrous nature that surrounds me. A little later, the sun will peek over the mountain range and a red-streaked sky will welcome a new day. Often, deer or wild turkeys (the feathered kind, not the bourbon kind) amble through the yard looking for food to […]
Continue ReadingOK, be honest. How many resolutions have you created for 2014? Now, be really honest. How many have you already decided you’ll put off until 2015? This time of the year is full of possibilities. We’ll lose 20 pounds. We’ll exercise every day. We’ll demonstrate a more positive attitude. And we’ll finally cut the comb-over […]
Continue ReadingAround 2:00 a.m., as I came back to bed from an all-too-common, middle-of-the-night trip to the bathroom, I ran into the corner of the bed. The impact and the expletive that followed woke my wife. Yesterday, I could not find my favorite pair of jeans. They seem to have been abducted by denim fairies. Last […]
Continue ReadingWhat do you think of when you hear the word “service”? Do you think of service organizations like Rotary International? Do you think about the start of a tennis point? Or do you think of what always seems to be missing at Denny’s? When you hear service applied to leadership, as in “servant leadership,” you […]
Continue ReadingA reprint from Speaker Magazine, the magazine of the National Speakers Association. One of the most common questions funny people get is, “How do you ever come up with that stuff?” As a professional humorist (as opposed to an amateur humorist or even an unprofessional humorist), I can tell you that there is a formula […]
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