As I remember it, only a few weeks ago we were ALL focused on understanding, containing, stopping, beating, or otherwise thwarting a potential pandemic of something we have come to know all too well as COVID-19. We ALL wanted to neutralize the threat and protect our people; we had our focus on the greater collective [...]
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.”
Depending on the context and what we're going to explore, one of my favorite executive case studies has to do with Sir Ernest Shackleton and the voyage of the Endurance. It is a deep and rich mine of executive discovery opportunities. This year is the 100th anniversary of the conclusion of the Endurance adventure. The [...]
Everyone tells stories. Not everyone uses stories. Stories existed long before recorded history. Human life is narratively grounded; we have always had stories to interpret our experiences, construct our lives and shape our world. Stories are universal, adaptive, and foundational to the human experience. We think in narrative structures, remember facts in story form, and [...]
"Leadership involves leading." I read that somewhere and it's true enough, but leadership also involves implementing change. Sometimes (often?) change has a way of generating resistance in people. The best way to avoid resistance to change is to stop it before it starts. Really. You may not be able to eliminate all resistance, but what if [...]
One of the great discoveries about participating in leadership is that “it’s not about you any more.” You can focus your energies, efforts and expertise on that vast population of … others! ...leadership is about building willing followership for a cause, an idea or a course of action It’s because leadership is about building willing [...]
Communication is more that speaking words. It’s more than just delivering content. Consider Albert Mehrabian, Professor Emeritus of Psychology at UCLA, who has become known by his work on the relative importance of verbal and nonverbal messages. He drew two conclusions from his research. First, that there are basically three elements in any face-to-face communication: [...]
OK, you’re a smart person. Really smart. Earlier, during your education and your career, your “smarts” were both reinforced and rewarded. Good for you! You’ve done well. There is a pattern of behaviors for people like you (smart and successful) that you should be aware of: you may be adding too much value by overusing [...]
I won’t say I’ve heard it all, but I have heard a lot when it comes to “Why I don’t give much praise.” It’s interesting that praise (positive reinforcement for behavior/results that you want repeated) works and is free, but some still resist. Here are a few examples of the “logic” involved: The Excuses The [...]
Solid self-esteem does not negate the need for outside affirmation and praise. It’s the feel-good reward for the do-good activities and results. Affirmation is asserting the truth or existence of something. Praise is an expression of approval and commendation. The nexus of these two involves truth-telling approval and favorable expression about something another person has [...]
