Today’s Wall Street Journal has an important editorial piece about John McCain I really encourage you to read for two reasons (click here). First, there are some powerful stories about McCain’s character that will give you insights into who he is that you probably haven’t and won’t see elsewhere. Second, there is a lesson to…
Larry Bossidy’s book Execution was a bestseller. My friend Sam Giest just wrote a book called Execute…or Be Executed. Both books speak to the crucial need for leaders to create results. The road to Hades, as it is often said, is paved with good intentions. The road to success is paved with results. Nearly fifty…
We hear much about our next president providing America hope…but what kind of hope. Lloyd Ogilvie said, “What we hope for determines the vitality of our lives. But the question is: When we have arrived at where we are going, where will we be; when we get what we want, what will we have; when…
Frances Hesselbein is one of my favorite leadership thinkers. She helped reinvent The Girl Scouts of America and it thrived under her leadership. Of late she is involved with the Peter Drucker Foundation and writes and speaks on leadership issues. She is a livewire and a delightful person. Here are some of her ideas I’ve…
Frances Hesselbein is one of my favorite leadership thinkers. She helped reinvent The Girl Scouts of America and it thrived under her leadership. Of late she is involved with the Peter Drucker Foundation and writes and speaks on leadership issues. She is a livewire and a delightful person. Here are some of her ideas I’ve…
Nostalgia is a powerful force. Research shows that we are all capable of creating an idealized memory out of a less-than-ideal past. There are psychological benefits to that, but not when you’re trying to lead people into the future. Obama has, somewhat surprisingly, positioned himself as an old-school Democrat with a bad case of nostalgia.…
I define leadership as an invitation to greatness that we extend to others. After I spoke this weekend a woman asked me what books I would suggest for parents who want to invite their children to greatness. Here are three of my favorites: Raising Kids for True Greatness by Dr. Tim Kimmel Nurturing The Leader…
Next to hubris, anger will sink a leader quicker than anything. Right now in the Democratic race, Obama has the upper hand not because of experience or even his superior speaking skills but because of his temperament. He stays calm, focused and seemingly unflappable even when he’s being attacked. He seldom returns the attack but…
The next president of the United States will be elected primarily on the power of his or her ability to communicate well. This isn’t as it should be; it simply is as it is. Regrettably, style often trumps substance. Recall some years ago when Dennis Miller famously ranted that V.P. candidate Stockdale committed the unforgivable…
In his excellent new book, The Breakthrough Company, Keith McFarland makes this point: “A search of the Harvard Business Review web site revealed that nearly 50 percent of the articles published by the Harvard Business Review mention at least one of the following companies: IBM, GE, Dell, Wal-Mart, and Southwest Airlines.” Is it surprising that…