leaders – Page 11 – CainEllsworth

Your Best Chance

“Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors.” – African proverb When I was growing up, I remember cringing whenever I heard some adult (usually one of my parents) refer to something as “a learning experience.” Invariably, that phrase was used when something wasn’t going well, or was really difficult, or some failure had happened. I … Read more

Craziness

“Whatever you are, be a good one.” – Abraham Lincoln For most people reading this, availability of the things we want has rarely been a problem over the past few decades. If we want to buy something, we go to the store and it’s there. If our businesses want something, we call a vendor and … Read more

Plan to Adapt

“It’s a bad plan that admits of no modification.” – Publilius Syrus It’s the understatement of the year to say that we live in a world that’s constantly changing. Right now, most leaders feel like things change so fast that before they understand the current situation, it changes, and they never get caught up. Some … Read more

Think Change

“Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.” – Bertrand Russell It’s a huge understatement to say that one of the biggest challenges we face as leaders is attempting to make change in our organizations. We all know change is hard. I would guess that half or … Read more

The Uncomfortable Path

“You’ve got to continue to grow, or you’re just like last night’s cornbread – stale and dry.” – Loretta Lynn With all the preaching about comfort zones lately (here, here, and here, for example), I’ve heard from a number of people offering similar feedback. “That’s great,” they say, “but once I find stuff I’m good … Read more

You, Actually

“No man can, for any considerable time, wear one face to himself and another to the multitude without finally getting bewildered as to which is the true one.” – Nathaniel Hawthorne There are dozens of leadership buzz words that show up in books, in webinars, wherever any kind of discussion of leaders and what they … Read more

Who’s A Fit?

“You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.” – Winston Churchill Last week in this space the topic was focus & the idea that we need to figure out what we do well and stick to it without getting distracted by every new possibility. One of … Read more

Know What You Are

“Indiscriminate action is a form of laziness.” – Tim Ferris We’re taught early on in our careers to try & make people happy. When customers approach us and ask if we can help, we almost instinctively say “yes”. We’re paranoid about customers going somewhere else, so we agree to do whatever they want or need. … Read more

What Aren’t You Saying?

“What would happen if we spoke the truth?” – Alison Bechdel Last week in this space the topic was truth telling, and the fact that as leaders we give up the right to remain silent when we see things in our organizations that aren’t the way they should be. A few loyal readers pointed out … Read more

Don’t Avoid the Truth

“Truth-tellers are not always palatable. There is a preference for candy bars.” – Gwendolyn Brooks Almost everyone on Earth wants to be liked. It’s a standard part of the human condition. When people like us, it makes us feel good about ourselves, it makes us feel safe, it makes us feel comfortable. And there’s nothing … Read more

GPS Blog

It's time to go "Beyond the Numbers".