Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” – Winston Churchill A story is told of Leonidas, King of Sparta, who was preparing to make a stand with his Greek troops against the Persian army in 480 B.C. when a Persian envoy…
Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen. – Winston Churchill The story is told of Franklin Roosevelt, who often endured long receiving lines at the White House. He complained that no one really paid any attention to what was said.…
Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined. – Henry David Thoreau The year was 1947 and to date no one had broken the sound barrier. Most believed that it could not be done. Some argued that the sound barrier was a literal wall that once hit at 760…
I am often asked about the keys to leadership. Of course, there are core characteristics that we can list and quantify. Most often, however, I hearken back to sound advice. The best bosses I have had assisted my career development through very human interactions. The strategy book is thrown out the window and you talk to one another…
Last year, I was blown away by The Lean Startup by Eric Ries. It was the top read of the year for me, and the most impactful book on my business life since Good To Great. Why? Because the Lean Methadology changes the game, whether you are a startup or a big-old-company. When you are…
Encourage v: to inspire with courage, spirit, or confidence- Random House Dictionary A story is told about the Duke of Wellington, the British military leader who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo. He was not an easy man to serve under. He was brilliant, demanding, and not one to shower subordinates with compliments. Yet even Wellington realized…
Positive self-talk expands your power; negative self-talk restricts it. Your personal power dramatically shapes your professional, personal, and social destinies, all with multiplying impact. Take the situation of entering a large ballroom full of unfamiliar faces. Immediately, if fearful thoughts take hold, you can talk yourself right out of a positive experience and the potential…
I have a couple questions for you – How are your driving skills? How smart are you? How are your people skills? Most likely you answered something to the effect of ‘above average’. And you’re not alone. 93% of Americans believe they have above average driving skills.* 87% of MBA students at Stanford University rated…
You seldom hear the word “fear” in management development workshops. Of course the word is not welcome anywhere in organizations. It’s the “F word” in offices and plants. Odd, isn’t it, since fear is always lurking in our workplaces, especially during the last few years of economic hell?
Professor Alex Haslam of the University of Exeter, in a recent presentation put on by the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, took the following position in answer to the question, “What makes a great leader?”
By James M. Kouzes & Barry Z. Posner Jossey-Bass, 2006 ISBN #978-0-7879-8296-6 Reviewed by Ian Cook As a leader, would you say one of your goals is to leave a legacy? Based on their observations of leaders over the last twenty years, Kouzes and Posner expect your answer is probably “yes.”