“I believe that being successful means having a balance of success stories across the many areas of your life. You can’t truly be considered successful in your business life if your home life is in shambles.” – Zig Ziglar One of the most common responses I hear when I ask leaders how things are going … Read more
“The secret to getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex, overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.” – Mark Twain There are plenty of things on a leader’s plate on a daily basis. We’re constantly bombarded with new ideas, new challenges, new … Read more
“Take calculated risks. That is quite different from being rash.” – George Patton Managing risk is a critical part of any leader’s job. It’s important to understand the risks that are potential threats to your business, how severe they are, how likely they are to occur, and whether you have any systems in place to … Read more
“Know thyself.” – Socrates It’s not a secret that we all have blind spots regarding our behaviors & capabilities. Leaders aren’t immune to that condition. I’ve lost track of how many leaders I’ve watched do and/or say things that made everyone else cringe while they had no idea there was any problem whatsoever. There are … Read more
“Great stories happen to those who can tell them.” – Ira Glass There are literally dozens of things that impact the success or failure of an organization. Some of them get a lot of press: do you have a great product or service, are you great at sales & marketing, etc. Those are the kind … Read more
“Every great work, every big accomplishment, has been brought into manifestation through holding to the vision, and often just before the big achievement comes apparent failure and discouragement.” – Florence Scovel Shinn We ascribe many qualities to great leaders – intelligence, work ethic, strategic thinker, etc. All of those things are important, and all of … Read more
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle I don’t think I’ve ever been in a meeting where I heard somebody say, “You know, what I’d really like for this organization is to be consistently mediocre. Run of the mill, average, maybe even a little bit … Read more
“Diversity is a competitive advantage. Different people approach similar problems in different ways.” – Rich McGinn One of the realities of being a leader is that at times it can feel pretty lonely. The world is full of leaders who have the sense that they’re pretty much on their own, working without a net. And … Read more
“Be yourself – not your idea of what you think somebody else’s idea of yourself should be.” – Henry David Thoreau There are literally dozens of capabilities and behaviors that define great leaders. All kinds of things matter, from vision, to work ethic, to communication skills, to emotional intelligence, and on and on. They all … Read more
“If you start to think the problem is ‘out there’, stop yourself. That thought is the problem.” – Stephen Covey I spend the vast majority of my time helping people make change, whether it be in themselves or in their organizations. When I first entered into that arena, I had some preconceived ideas about why … Read more
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