It’s time to scale back, let go of weekly column

Since 2001, I have written approximately 800 unique columns – one every week. Didn’t even miss a week when I was walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain. It is something I really have enjoyed doing over the years.

In each column, I tried to offer sage advice and a clear vision to help managers and entrepreneurs facing a variety of tough decisions every day. The subjects have been numerous and broad, from not having designated smoking areas where customers can see them to dealing with employees who are too valuable to let go.

There were, however, issues that I wrote about many times. Those were customer service and managing staff, two of the most common and difficult issues managers and business owners face.

People often tell me that, even though I was an academic for more than 40 years, that the way I express concepts is simple and easy to understand. This stems from the fact I have to understand things in simple terms before I can share them with others.

A couple years ago, I was speaking at a writing workshop where they insisted I was a writer. However, I never considered myself a good writer, and the less-than-stellar grades I received in my English courses at Georgia Tech seem to support that assessment.

I consider myself more of a story teller. I always try to use examples from real life to make concepts easier to understand. I am so grateful to the many entrepreneurs and business owners who have allowed me to share stories about their businesses and management challenges over the years. Without them, this column would have died a long time ago.

With my 75^th birthday a few days away, I now realize that I need to take some of my own advice. I have written about how important it is for entrepreneurs and business owners to let go, and now it is my turn to do the same.

I have decided to step back from writing weekly columns.

You will still see my columns, but rather than writing weekly, I will write when I have something important and worthwhile to communicate.

I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to write this column for more than 16 years. It has been gratifying knowing people found value in what I was doing.

I also want to thank the many people who have taken the time to share their thoughts about my columns and ideas. I have always appreciated hearing your perspectives, even when they differed from mine.

Thank you so much for allowing me to share with you all these years.

This story was originally published March 2, 2017 at 12:23 PM with the headline "It’s time to scale back, let go of weekly column."