We returned to the moon this week.

The technology is extraordinary. The moment should feel bigger than ever.

And yet… it feels different.

Not because the wonder is gone.

Because we’ve stopped noticing it.

Good metaphors are doorways, not cages. This essay explores why leadership metaphors often collapse complexity into tidy labels, and how better metaphors can deepen thought instead of locking us into stereotypes.

Two shows recently reminded me that the look of a story often tells you more than the dialogue.

Andor feels exhausted. Cold corridors. Hard geometry. A world built to reduce people into functions. Palm Royale feels saturated. Bright colors. Perfect symmetry. A world where belonging is a performance.

Different genres. Same lesson.

Dave Brubeck, the jazz innovator who made odd time signatures feel natural, reminded me through his records that the unfamiliar can become its own kind of fluency.

That may be the most useful way to think about AI.

Not as a machine for answers, but as a new instrument—one that can help us test ideas, challenge our habits, and discover thoughts we would not have reached alone.

Years ago, when I interviewed Ray Bradbury, he told me inspiration doesn’t wait for permission. It shows up — and dares you to move.

Today, my muse doesn’t sound like a spirit prodding me to hammer away on a typewriter.

Sometimes it’s two AIs acting like a copy editor and a news editor. poking, prodding, and inspiring me.

Somewhere out there is a product that claims it can improve your sleep, focus, mood, metabolism, gut health, skin, joints, energy, hormones, stress, and probably your golf swing.

It’s the Swiss Army Knife of wellness… except the knife is mostly adjectives.

Maybe it’s a solid product. But when something claims everything, the real question isn’t “Could it help?” The real question is: “Which part is true, and how would we know?”

That question is the entire reason Reframe the Claim was created.

In 2013, I had the honor of announcing GM’s five-year sponsorship of Back to the Bricks car show and cruise in Flint. The event continues to grow, along with GM’s support. This is just one of many proud moments I’ve had during my 25 years at GM.

It’s easy to talk, give directions, and pontificate on a topic. I’ve been known to do that. However, the best way to convey a message is to know how to first listen to your audience. Part 3 of my walk down memory lane focuses on this critical art.

When I include my time as a journalist, I have been involved with the auto industry for 38 years. However, milestones - like my 25th anniversary at GM - call for me to take stock of my learnings. Part 2 offers a look at what I have learned about people.

I wasn’t planning to make a thing out of my 25th anniversary at General Motors on Feb. 1.

But if I’ve learned anything, it’s that the best milestones are the ones you turn into something useful for others. So for the next two weeks, I’m sharing a short series of reflections, the things I got wrong, and what I’m still learning, in hopes it helps employees and leaders.

Don’t have time to read back issues of the Re-frame newsletter on LinkedIn? Check out this audio summary that delves into several of my more recent posts. I used NotebookLM to analyze my writings and create this audio podcast that connects the dots on leadership, communications, and being human.

Re-frame has a new home.
I’ve launched the Re-frame website to expand myLinkedIn posts into a more useful format—longer breakdowns, practical frameworks, and templates you can adapt.

The goal is simple: calm, clear communication that protects trust—especially under pressure.