Lessons from Mom

Everything I know about networking I learned from my mom. She was indeed a master connector and a very successful real estate agent. During the late ’70s, Renault (the French car company) opened a U.S. headquarters in Detroit and transferred many of their top French executives to oversee the transition. My Mother’s well-developed and cared-for…

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Learning Curves and Frustrations

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young – Henry Ford In a recent Sports Illustrated article, Lars Anderson writes of the learning curve and challenges of rookie NASCAR driver Danica Patrick. A former IndyCar driver, Patrick is not new to racing but is new to…

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Learning Curve or Incompetence?

Experience is the best teacher. Learning from your mistakes is powerful. Innovation requires taking risks. But how much tolerance should leaders have for repeated mistakes? What is the difference between someone on the learning curve versus an employee who is incompetent? This subject came up when I was chatting with the senior leader at one…

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Leading with Talent Development

Using talent management software packages to administer employee performance has suddenly become hugely popular. Within this new-found appreciation of the need to better address the management of human capital is the need to develop the actual talent within that resource pool. According to a recent report titled Human Capital Management: The CFO’s Perspective, sponsored by…

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Leading With Purpose

I am always asked what makes a great leader. We are all different. Some people have exceptional product knowledge while others know how to fill in strategy gaps. There are those who inspire their team and others who keep their team honest. While every individual has their distinct areas of expertise, there is a method…

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Leading Through Barriers

A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles. – Christopher Reeve Sports Illustrated columnist Kostya Kennedy wrote a moving tribute recently in honor of Rachael Robinson, the widow of the late baseball Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson. Now 93-years old, Rachael Robinson remains very…

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Leadership: The Ultimate Act of Defiance

In 2006, William Taylor wrote a book called Mavericks at Work. I devoured the book! I loved the concept of rule breakers sticking to their guns to gain authority. This, to me, is the true definition of winning. That you do not need the most gifted players but those with conviction, an uncompromising purpose, the…

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Leadership Wisdom from Kermit the Frog

It’s not easy being green. – Kermit the Frog In the book, The 101 Most Influential People who Never Lived, authors Allan Lazar, Dan Karlan, and Jeremy Salter expose readers to a litany of fascinating characters who never existed. From fiction, myth, television, and movies, they reveal how these characters shaped our society, changed our…

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Leadership whack-a-mole?

When we head to the amusement park, a favorite game is Whack-a-mole where the little critters stick their heads up and you try to whack them with a mallet. The person with the highest score wins a prize. Management and supervision can be like playing a never-ending game of whack-a-mole except there usually is no…

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Leadership Malpractice

I was teaching a session to front line leaders this past week on how to coach, confront and correct employees when there is a gap between expected behavior and performance and the actual behavior and performance. Understandably, confronting and correcting conversations are not easy on the leader or the employee which can result in procrastination,…

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