Seeing Possibility
The philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer said "Ours is not to see what no one has yet seen, but to think what no one has yet thought about that which everyone sees." We are so often committed to this idea that great leadership is about pure originality. We have to see...
Thoughts, Emotions, Actions: A Trifecta of Resources
If you always do what you've always done You will always get what you always got If you always get what you always got You will always think what you've always thought If you always think what you've always thought You will always feel what you've always felt If...
Living in the Moment: The Holy Grail
Living in the moment. It really is a sort of holy grail, isn't it? Everyone says they want it, but so few seem to be able to achieve it. That seemingly illusive state of being, that ability to live just where you are, just when you are, without the constant attempts...
Are You An Evening Primrose?
"The Evening Primrose" John Clare When once the sun sinks in the west, And dewdrops pearl the evening's breast; Almost as pale as moonbeams are, Or its companionable star, The evening primrose opes anew Its delicate blossoms to the dew; And, hermit-like, shunning the...
Management, as a Position, is Obsolete
"Everyone has received the gift of leadership, unfortunately, not everyone has opened the package - yet." Management vs Leadership: Ask anyone the difference between the two and the answer nearly always puts management in a negative light and leadership in a positive...
The Calendar of Your Life
Today I want to encourage you to see where you stand in the calendar of your life. In the appendix of my book, Leadership Just Got Personal, I include a timeline exercise. In this exercise you make a list of all the significant events in your life, good, bad or...
Leading Up: 3 Ways to Handle a Boss Who's a Poor Leader
Have you ever faced the "Peter Principle" in real life? That principle states that "in any hierarchy, a person rises to their own level of incompetence." Perhaps you've faced this yourself, or perhaps you are currently experiencing this with a superior, where they...
Authority, Responsibility & Leadership–Oh My!
Traditionally, I've found people associate the word authority with a title, with the "influence" and power necessary to make things happen. Responsibility, on the other hand, is something entirely different. Many people have responsibility without having authority,...
Communication and Lack Thereof
To answer another question I've received from the blog community: A woman is upset at the dwindling communications skills in our society. When she is faced with rudeness, she tries to combat it by respectfully asking them to use a different tone of voice. Recently,...
The Misalignment: When You and Those You Lead Want Different Things
We were talking last week about leading and parenting and how to empower those that we lead, but what happens when there's no alignment between your story and theirs? What do you do? In a professional setting, ask yourself this: Are you interested in helping them...
