Rice University Football Stadium, September 12, 1962 - President John F. Kennedy put the United States and the rest of the world on notice. The US was going to put a man on the moon and bring him home safely by the end of the decade. He went on to say why he had committed [...]
The best leaders have withstood direct contact with life's realities. “A cynical habit of thought and speech, a readiness to criticize work which the critic himself never tries to perform, an intellectual aloofness which will not accept contact with life's realities—all these are marks, not ... of superiority but of weakness.”
In a client meeting I inquired about a mutual acquaintance I had not seen in a long time. My client said, “He plateaued early.” I discovered our mutual friend was tracking in new orbits now; new friends and acquaintances, new hangouts, new everything. Long term relationships, plans, and priorities – and all that goes with [...]
“I recently had the opportunity, responsibility and privilege of apologizing to a colleague.” “You mean you HAD to apologize to someone, right?” “Well, I didn’t HAVE to, I chose to take advantage of the opportunity to clear things up. It was my responsibility in that I contributed to the misunderstanding at least 50%. It was [...]
I was recently in the home of friends who have a LARGE family. How large? Large enough to field almost any sports team from their ranks; large enough to be lovingly referred to as “the swarm”; large enough to make me – the youngest of two children – take notice of all the “activity”. Yet, [...]
As a young man coming of age in America in the 1960”s I did not understand Dr. King and therefore did not appreciate what he believed or his goals for a better America. Besides, I was busy with the interests and activities of a teen-aged male of the times (primarily "the fumes” – perfumes and [...]
Standing for something is not always comfortable. Yet, discomfort brings engagement and change. Discomfort means you're doing something that others were unlikely to do, because they're hiding out in the comfortable zone. Standing for something will likely require a special strength; one that allows for choosing discomfort over comfort as being a good and right [...]
Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. was the eldest son of President Teddy Roosevelt and Edith Roosevelt. Ted, as he was often called, had served in WWI on the front lines and again in WWII as Brigadier General. He volunteered and was the first general to hit the beach on D-Day even though he was in his mid-50s, [...]
Charisma is to leadership as external stimulants are to getting in shape or winning. A leader's charisma can make the leader – and their followers – feel like things are going great. Sometimes performance IS improved by a charismatic leader – but only temporarily, and not in a sustainable fashion. Followers, like the human body, [...]
Sometimes executives, and other managers, exhibit bad behavior. It happens. Managers are people, too. Occasionally, however, executives are abusive, in the same way that a few people are “abusive personality types.” As I said, managers are people, too. With these abusive types we have come to expect raised voices, outrageous accusations, flushed faces, stern looks, [...]
