“The responsibility of each generation is not to please our predecessors – it’s to improve conditions for our successors.” – Adam Grant A few weeks ago, I was working with a leader who faced a frustrating, but not unusual problem. He was dealing with what I’ll call an Alumni Leader. The individual who had been … Read more
“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” – Albert Schweitzer Money matters. It’s not something we directly address in this space very often, but as a business, at some point you have to be profitable, or you won’t … Read more
“If you don’t modify workloads to retain your best people, you’ll be forced to modify workloads when they leave.” – Jeremy Clopton Last week in this space the topic was people, and how no matter what great ideas we have, or what great products and services we offer, we won’t get very far if we … Read more
“The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it.” – Theodore Roosevelt I was fortunate enough recently to have the opportunity to assist the leaders of a 120+ year-old business that was … Read more
“Not to decide is to decide.” – Harvey Cox I talk to a lot of leaders who say that “being decisive” is a key trait of a leader. I’m not sure exactly what they mean by that. The dictionary says that the word decisive means “settling an issue” or “producing a definite result”, or “having … Read more
“My favorite things in life don’t cost any money. It’s really clear that the most precious resource we all have is time.” – Steve Jobs People talk constantly about how busy they are. For some people it’s a badge of honor, as though being busy is the ultimate goal in life. For others it’s a … Read more
“The world changes in direct proportion to the number of people willing to be honest about their lives.” – Armistead Maupin Last week in the is space, the conversation was about letting go of what’s worked in the past in favor of what can work in the future. That’s a hard thing to do. And … Read more
“When you’re through changing, you’re through.” – Bruce Fairchild Barton One of the most challenging things leaders have to deal with is what I call a “legacy of success”. Leading an organization with a long history of high achievement sounds like it should be a great thing. It usually means a solid foundation of people, … Read more
“There exists in the world a single path along which no one can go except you: wither does it lead? Do not ask, go along it.” – Friedrich Nietzsche One of the marks of a great leader is the willingness to ask for and accept help from others. Regardless of the topic – people, products, … Read more
“If you’re the boss and your people fight you openly when they think that you are wrong – that’s healthy.” – Robert Townsend One of the struggles that many people in leadership roles face on a regular basis is a lack of honesty. It’s not because leaders are surrounded by people who are habitual liars. … Read more
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