by John M. DeMarco | Nov 7, 2023 | Program Management & AI
I was 22 the first and only time that I ran out of gas. This was in late 1990, which might as well have been the stone ages for a lot of today’s professional workforce. I had no cell phone, no AAA membership, and no gas can. As I stood on the side of the road next to...
by John M. DeMarco | Nov 6, 2023 | Mindfulness & AI
It was my 16th birthday and I’d had my learner’s permit for exactly one year. I had more driving experience than most friends my age and was determined to get the “real thing” on my actual 16th birthday. I even had a tentative date planned for...
by John M. DeMarco | Nov 6, 2023 | Learning Agility & AI
“Describe your ideal job,” said Bob Suttles, the then-vice president of HR for Central Florida’s 5,000-employee Health First organization.Thrilled that a leader in that type of influential role would pose such a question, I described that job on the...
by John M. DeMarco | Nov 6, 2023 | Communication & AI
It was the summer of 1977, I was a 9-year-old day camp dropout, and Star Wars took over my life. The culture-changing movie was playing at the “Daytona 6” theater attached to a mall where my mother worked in retail. For six weeks in a row I convinced her...
by John M. DeMarco | Oct 25, 2023 | Human & AI Collaboration
I love jazz but didn’t grow up as a jazz listener. However, as an adult I was heavily influenced by my older brother Frank, who passed away two years ago this week. Frank vibed jazz more than any other type of music and listened to it with zeal and focus. I noticed...
by John M. DeMarco | Oct 11, 2023 | Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion & AI
In late 2007, for the first time in my life I was the “minority.” I’d left a job and colleagues I loved at a Central Florida health care organization, and moved to Nashville to work as a leadership development coach and consultant for T-Mobile. My first assignment was...
by John M. DeMarco | Sep 28, 2023 | Coaching & AI
When I was 12, my father enrolled me in a Little League baseball team….and I was undoubtedly the worst player. During that first season my bat didn’t even “foul tip” a single pitch, let alone produce a hit. I was also prone to errors during the occasional...
by John M. DeMarco | Sep 15, 2023 | Communication & AI
I walked out of the room at the beginning of my own speech. When I returned a minute later, my hair was dripping wet and I was carrying a hairdryer, a brush, and Paul Mitchell “super-clean sculpting gel.” The audience waited for more. I made eye contact for a...
by John M. DeMarco | Jan 1, 2020 | Mindfulness & AI
By Alexandra DeMarco, Guest Writer As a busy college student, I often find that it can be difficult to live and act mindfully. With ever-decreasing acceptance rates, the academic environment in collegiate America has gradually grown more and more competitive. This...
by John M. DeMarco | Jan 1, 2020 | Learning Agility & AI
By Alexandra DeMarco, Guest Writer In many modern societies, learning is often displayed as a social construct. We are required to attend school, complete homework and prepare for our academic futures. Although there are benefits to required learning, learning in and...
