September 9, 2013

Confessions of an entrepreneur

A client of mine recently made a confession that startled me: “I don’t think I’m an entrepreneur.” Just months earlier I had helped her successfully acquire a business that she had led for over a year. Back then she ...

September 5, 2013

What your inner critic wants

My inner critic woke up with me this morning. I hadn’t noticed his noxious voice until I started journaling. Until I had an idea for a blog post, in fact. The more I wrote, the more I heard his ...

August 23, 2013

Over 50? Don’t die before your time

Someone once said, “Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what the heck happened.” Maybe you thought you’d be somewhere different than you ended up. And you now think it’s too late to get there. Well ...

August 21, 2013

The best assessment instrument ever created

By some estimates, there are over 74,000 personal assessment instruments on the market today. Clearly, there’s a lot of interest in self-discovery. Misusing any tool can be dangerous, however. In my last post I mentioned three dangers: we may ...

August 19, 2013

The danger of personal assessment tests

Years ago I attended a Myers Briggs Type Indictor (MBTI) assessment training. It was one of those “date” things you do to show your spouse you’ll take one for the team and go to something only because they want ...

August 7, 2013

The right question for your big idea

What’s your BIG idea? You know, that thing stirring within you that you can’t seem to shake? Regardless of whether you think you’re creative, God made you in His image — with a creative spirit within you. As Julia ...

August 5, 2013

What “Gold Rush” can teach you about your dream

I have an increasing attraction to wilderness adventures. Last year, I was captivated by the Vendee Globe; sailors single-handedly confronting the wildest seas to race their vessels around the world. And though I’ve never been there, I’ve been fascinated ...

July 31, 2013

3 truths when panic threatens

Every worthy pursuit hits a snag. Most are minor annoyances and you get through them pretty quickly. Others are more entangling, tearing at your sense of vitality. Prolonged indebtedness. Unresponsive markets for your products and services. Chronic health challenges. ...

July 29, 2013

Keeping feedback from turning into a frenzy

You’ve got a great idea. At least you think so. Never before has there been a better time to find out. Google. Facebook. Twitter. Zillions of blogs and discussion groups. Even ol’ conventional email. All of these can give ...

July 26, 2013

5 things that shut down your idea factory

You’re an idea factory. Every day a thought might run through your mind that is truly remarkable, perhaps even life-changing. It’s vital that we keep our idea factory pumping out at high volume. To do that, we need to ...

Leary Gates | Venture coach

Turn your vision into venture. Ideas into action.

Category Archives: Venturing