Michael McGough

Job reviews, performance appraisals, employee evaluations, and accountability monitoring have long been an important aspect of most professions, careers, and jobs. As a result, both personal and professional leadership are serious matters. There’s an almost endless number of scales, ranking models, rating systems, detailed rubrics, and evaluation plans for both quantifying and qualifying individual and

Rush of the Season The holiday season is a grand time for traditions and customs. Over years some of them become part of the bedrock routines that make the season special. Such established practices are a key ingredient of the mortar that binds holiday memories together into a cherished whole. Giving them up, or even

Hello, this is just one last test post to ensure that my blog is working properly. The web development company asked me to do it. I apologize for the inconvenience, but after this we should be good.

Her day started off well.  The coffee was hot, the donuts were fresh, and she enjoyed the company of the four other drivers in the breakroom.  The weather was clear, so she was looking forward to another pleasant day on the road.  Over the past 31 years, she had had dramatically more pleasant than unpleasant days.  That was in

Sitting by a camp fire one evening, he came to a stark realization; he wasn’t nearly as engaged in life as he had once been. He wasn’t neglecting himself or anyone else, but his engagement, his involvement, and maybe his usual zest for life had slipped a bit. Some minor health issues over a few

It started out as a small gas station along the Lincoln Highway located between two large towns. Over the century they’ve been open for business, Abe’s Garage has grown and changed with the times. The original owners, the Nicolay family, called it Abe’s place for two reasons. The first and maybe the most obvious was

Over the years, people learned to expect periodic flooding. Usually, it caused little damage, and within a day or two everything was back to normal. Even when there was a little more water, the damage wasn’t serious.  The last flood was a bit unusual. As a result, it left a fair amount of damage in

The building was 150-plus years old. The years had taken a toll. Several efforts had been made to modernize it. Some worked, some didn’t, and some created more problems than they solved. Even so, it was structurally sound, and it stood as a local landmark. A small group of interested people wanted to restore it

She retired on December 31, 2003 from the printing company where she had worked for more than 35 years. She was 55 years old, her health was good, and she was okay financially. She had a nice circle of family and friends. Her marriage ended in a divorce 30 years earlier, but in the best

As was true for many companies during the Covid crisis, they faced numerous slowdowns and temporary shutdowns at their cookie plant.  During those times, management took a thorough look at their facility, their workforce, and how they could update, improve, and expand both.  As the company emerged from the darkest days of the pandemic, the