Thought Leaders

Being stuck is a common experience. We get stuck as individuals, and we get stuck as organizations. Getting unstuck is tricky business because it requires... Careful examination of how we got stuck in the first place (aka Reflection) Honest assessment of any...

Most organizations exist to accomplish something important. Most people who work in organizations want their organization to succeed (even if it's for purely selfish purposes). Two debilitating ailments commonly compromise organizational progress: Complacency and...

Volumes have been written about what does and doesn't make a good leader. To be sure, there are many moving parts to being an effective leader. And, constantly changing contexts do nothing but make the challenges more ominous. Nothing inhibits our ability to lead...

As leaders, we can create the conditions of our own demise. Here are some of the pitfalls to avoid if we intend to truly make a difference: Become Disconnected - Losing focus on the most important things the we are trying to achieve. Stay in the Spotlight - Letting...

Individual excellence is tough.  It requires skill + intense work + highly focused effort + ongoing learning + commitment to continuous improvement + getting up one more time than we get knocked down.  Organizational excellence is even tougher.  It requires skill +...

HOPE is not a strategy. Hope is only the genesis of strategy development. Hope is the mindset that can ignite within us purpose and action. The best leaders I know use HOPE as the starting point to pull folks into meaningful conversations about... 1) Vision - clarity...

It is immensely comforting to work for/with people (especially leaders) who operate On Principle. They speak, move, act, react, make decisions that are grounded solidly on principles of rightness, fairness, trust, and honesty. Minute-by-minute, day in and day out....

Who? Who do I know that needs to hear from me today? Who needs my ear and mind today? Who will enter my sphere of influence today, and why, and am I prepared to engage? Who do I need to meet today? Who do I need to seek out for advice and counsel today? WHO needs me...

One of the first exemplary leaders (aka JB) I worked for taught me the immense value of slowness. JB exuded an aura of stoicism, unflappability, studiousness. I now better understand WHAT he was doing, and WHY. JB understood, and was teaching me, that those of us who...

I am a pseudo-musician. Occasionally I use an amplifier during a musical performance. While I am not classically trained, nor is my voice superbly polished, the amplifier makes me sound better than I really am. What does that amplifier do? It allows me to project my...