Musicians and businesspeople succeed by practicing much more than they perform, writes Gerald Leonard, professional bassist and a longtime consultant who is CEO of Principles of Execution. "To become a world-class performer, most experts spend time imagining themselves delivering a world-class routine, whether giving a speech, writing a novel, developing code, or performing music on stage," he writes.

Even strong, optimistic leaders will carry on negative internal dialogues, but there's a simple process to reset your thinking and finding positive opportunities, writes Art Petty. "Instead of allowing your negative emotions to rule you, engage in a little self-trickery and reset and reframe the negatives to positives," he writes.

Keep team motivation going by celebrating small victories, encouraging the next action and creating a sense of accountability, writes Dan Rockwell. "Describe, honor, and celebrate behaviors that create winning environments," he writes.

Leaders set the tone for what employees are willing to share, so be clear that you want their ideas and share examples of the kinds of help you're seeking, writes Karin Hurt. "The more people see their peers speaking up, sharing ideas, and not just surviving, but thriving, the more they will be willing to give it a try," she writes.

Companies don't necessarily have to match competitors on price if they know who their most profitable customers are and support those buyers with customer service and other resources, write Profit Isle founder Jonathan Byrnes and CEO John Wass. "Doubling down on the traditional strategy of choosing all customers -- which is no strategy at all -- coupled with across-the-board belt-tightening is a recipe for disaster," they write.

Speakers who understand the cultural and contextual makeup of their audiences will fare better on understanding and connection, writes Jim Anderson. "We need to understand what the values of our audience are and we need to understand that they all may not share the same values," he writes.

Hope and gratitude are companions in difficult times such as the pandemic, rather than being burdens that you "should" be feeling, writes Jennifer Garvey Berger. "Any practice I create to diminish my connection to the difficulty itself becomes a twisted thing in my hands, stabbing where it should soothe, hiding where it should illuminate," she writes.

A challenge in a Welsh pub in 1980 sprouted the competitive sport of growing giant vegetables, including 67-pound cabbages, 10-pound potatoes and pumpkins weighing about as much as a small car. Many of the vegetables are inedible, but leading competitor Kevin Fortey says Australian researchers in Antarctica requested his seeds to grow giant cucumbers.

Why it matters: This isn't a surprise. Pandemic countermeasures like mask mandates, school closures and limits on large gatherings are just a few of the factors that have helped curtail the spread of the flu. It's just a bummer that it took a pandemic for people to do things like start washing their hands regularly!

If you squint, you can see part of the Melbourne skyline in the distance on the left. This photo was submitted by Claire Brown.