Are there any universal truths? “I support anyone's right to believe in anything they want (with only a few constraints).” Why have constraints? If you have constraints then you must prescribe to something that is of a higher order? Why not allow people to believe in genocide, or supremacy of a race or a whole host of other bad beliefs? Claiming to be spiritual is a soft position. Are you an evangelical person if you speak up about something you believe is wrong? Is it a matter of degree? You might say nothing about abortion but definitely speak up about infanticide? How about selling young girls as sex slaves – that’s bad right? What about a lady who kills her newborn girl because she wanted a boy? If abortion is OK why not allow for the killing of the child one second after birth? That’s ridiculous – so how about one second before birth, one day, one month, two months? Maybe we can look towards technology to help us decide when the child is viable outside the womb. What if technology allows for the baby to survive one second after conception? Tricky stuff – religion gives us the ability to answer these tough moral issues and to set standards of behavior. Without it we will have no common beliefs of right and wrong – no human rights – no basis for society. To be spiritual means that you adhere to some moral compass which has a basis in a higher power. To not give it a name or to not say you aren’t religious is simply being hip. You’re religious, I’m religious most of the world is too because we believe that there is more to the world than just us. Perhaps you are simply objecting to following all the tenets of a particular named religion. I get that position but I think it allows you to not really test your moral fortitude. Most religions offer guidance on how to live a “pure” life – an idealized existence. These standards are impossible to achieve yet set the standard for the moral man. Having an ideal to strive for is a great way to focus your spiritual development – without a standard you get to pick and choose what works for you at a moment in time. You then stagnate and become more absorbed in your own ideas of right and wrong – this is how governments can justify the wholesale killing of a race. Religion gives us the ideal to strive for and a community to help us improve our spiritual self. The good news is we’re all in the same boat – enjoy the journey it ends when you die, then you’ll really know the truth.

I disagree with your conclusion because I think you have a false premise. You assume that CEOs will simply rehash what they talked about with the directors prior to the meeting. That is not the case for most well run meetings (based on my experience). The pre meetings accomplish several tasks: 1 - Allow each director the opportunity to present concerns in advance so that management can address them at the board meeting (a good director will never blind side a CEO – likewise the CEO should never walk into a meeting without knowing how the directors will vote / react) 2 - Solicit each director for agenda items in advance 3 - Solicit the directors for feedback on performance - "How am I doing?" in a private session 4 - Lay out expectations for the directors during and after the meeting. "Hey I want the board to provide feedback on this new sales plan we will be presenting - I'd like for you to make an introduction to XYZ company" So during the BOD meeting you can breeze through those items that you know everyone understands and has no concerns. You can provide additional information for areas that were confusing, you can open dialog for issues that were hot spots for directors and most importantly you can spend the majority of the time talking about business issues that director feedback is helpful to developing your strategy. When the directors arrive at the meeting hopefully they would have been pre briefed by the CEO on the topics, read the material and had time to either do more research or formulate some thoughts that are germane to the subject. Coming in cold makes the meetings less useful - having a director go sideways because he doesn't understand the material, or go off on some tangent that could have been dealt with in advance is just a waste of everyone’s time. Pre meetings are critical (and their length is dependent on the subject matter to be discussed) to running a fruitful BOD meeting. Remember the BOD's primary job is to govern and secondarily provide the CEO with guidance and advice regarding management's strategy. The BOD doesn't create strategy - nor should you use your BOD meeting as a brainstorming session. Drama / conflict can happen – but not during the BOD meeting. Structure time for such discussions. Do your business, adjourn the BOD meeting, then have a dynamic discussion (everyone stays in the room except the attorneys and members of management that aren’t necessary). For the formal BOD meeting, drama and conflict should be dealt with and resolved in advance.

Ben - You forgot to mention that the cadets were more interested in your story than mine - they couldn't believe a 14 year old high school student could start a software company and make money. You planted the seed - they could start a business in their free time even though they are in the USAF. Thanks for coming on the road trip I'm glad you enjoyed your time.