I am the child of a successful writer and a librarian. To me, nothing beats the smell of a good book. Whether it is old and musty or...

How many times a week do you find yourself saying, jokingly or otherwise, “I need to get out more”? For me, there are weeks where it’s...

Obituaries are fascinating. When you really get down to it, your last impression is very much like your first impression: you only get...

The classic “make-or-buy” decision often neglects one important aspect: what the end-user wants. That became clear to me as my team and I...

This is the latest in a series of blogs on what we at Present Tense LLC call a “Master Story”. In this installment, Elana Duffy examines...

The military has perfected a few things over the many years of its storied existence, and one of those happens to be paperwork. You don’t...

Every now and then since leaving the Army, and even sometimes while I was in the Army, I wonder if I didn’t slip into a wormhole and pop...

I’m a soccer (or, really, football) fan. Having followed the sport, and only that sport, for years, it wasn’t much of a shock that many...

Let’s step back from business for a second. We will get back to it, but just for a second: Think about the last time someone said “It’s...

- Elana Duffy There is a point in our business lives where we can all set aside our pre-supposed differences and get along. Reaching that...

- Elana Duffy Serve your customers well and they will serve you in return. That concept sounds so easy, right? Two run-ins lately have...

An online article in New York Magazine following the recent northeastern Blizzard-That-Wasn’t addressed an interesting implication of...

The response was perfect. Your cubicle buddy is going to laugh at your slightly snarky but still informed response to his recent push of...

We’ve published our first “self-help” ebook on storytelling skills Present Tense LLC is launching a series of ebooks aimed at executives,...

Elana Duffy Veteran’s Day, Armistice Day, whatever you call it in your country, the idea is the same in many countries that took part in...

- Elana Duffy My favorite book is Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. Between the sardonic humor, sarcasm, and - however ridiculous the book may...

- Elana Duffy Understanding what makes a band sync well together on stage has nothing to do with the style of music, in the same way that...

A story is personal; you don’t want to tell it to a stranger. This post is to provide perspective and information, and ultimately to be a...