The startup holidays

How does something become a big name national holiday? How does a holiday go from the start-up tier (think National Taco Day or National Talk Like a Pirate Day) all the way up to that rarefied air of Christmas or Thanksgiving. Or, not even that, how does a startup holiday climb the ranks to reach the Columbus... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
today at 7:44 am • 

The surprising business case for the Locker Room Guy/Gal

In business, there’s something called the 20-70-10 rule. What this means is that in a group of 10 people, two employees will stand out as the top performers. The next seven are like the peloton in the Tour de France. And then the bottom person is a non-producer. If you follow this system (created by GE’s Jack... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
February 11, 2019 at 7:40 am • 

Direct Primary Care: Guest Post by Dr. Alex Lickerman, Founder and CEO of Imagine MD

I remember sitting in the waiting room for an annual physical. There were four or five people around me reading People Magazines from three years ago. The person behind the counter would answer a phone call, schedule a time with a patient, hang up, and then immediately the phone would ring again. The image I remember... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
February 4, 2019 at 10:41 am • 
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Please, take this idea: Toothpaste for breakfast

“There’s an app for that.” These five little words completely changed the world of inventing things. Prior to the iPhone, inventions were a physical object, some sort of contraption that would change your every day life. After the iPhone, it seemed like every new invention was delivered in app form. As inventions became smaller, going from... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
January 30, 2019 at 8:34 am • 

Cauliflower is having a moment

On the night the original food pyramid was revealed, Vegetables sat in the crowd assuming they would land the coveted bottom block. It was like the Oscars and they were the clear front runner. There was, seemingly, no real competition for “Healthiest Food.” But then it happened. The new food pyramid was displayed and the bottom block... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
January 21, 2019 at 7:15 am • 

What happened to the good old fashioned sick day?

In the entire history of the world, there has never been a better era than right now to take a sick day. And yet here we are totally wasting it. The situation has become so bad that I’ve started to see articles titled, “Are sick days a thing of the past?” A thing of the past? The sick day... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
January 14, 2019 at 7:31 am • 
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Reducing healthcare costs: Q&A with Brian Uhlig

Reducing healthcare costs: Q&A with Brian Uhlig
Have you ever been walking behind a parent and their kid and the kid is like four rounds into the “Why” game? Why did he miss the field goal? Well, because sometimes the end-of-game pressure.. Why? And the timeout right before adds to it… Why?  Eventually the parent breaks down and replies, “Because that’s Chicago sports, alright! Now let’s get some... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
January 7, 2019 at 8:12 am • 

Please, Take this Idea: The Compound Shopper

December 26th is the most fascinating day of the year. It doesn’t receive a ton of hype with Christmas as its next door neighbor, but there’s still a lot going on and everyone experiences this day a little bit differently. There’s the guy who wakes up in his apartment, hears the neighbor below him banging on a... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
December 31, 2018 at 7:09 am • 

It's a Wonderful Life at the Music Box Theatre

You haven’t seen It’s a Wonderful Life until you’ve seen it at the Music Box Theatre. It doesn’t matter if you’ve watched this movie every year on TV or own it on a dusty VHS tape, everyone who enters the Music Box Theatre’s annual showing for the first time is starting at ground zero. And man, I couldn’t... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
December 24, 2018 at 8:05 am • 
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Medium Rare Trip to Italy: With you I shall leave

I don’t remember any mice in Michigan. I think it was too cold. Or my Mom was just that clean. The only invaders in my childhood house were the occasional ant, spider, or Satan’s favorite insect: the earwig. All of these could be squished with a paper towel. The apartment in New York City wasn’t the same... Read more »
By Chris O'Brien,
December 17, 2018 at 7:55 am •