Today is Dr. Martin Luther King Day in the United States. We could move in fifty directions to explore the leadership ground that Dr. King laid out for us, but I want to explore one part of that territory. I always finish this e-column with the line “Lead with your best self.” That line … Continued
Wow! The results from my survey on goal-setting were pretty wild! I figure people who self-selected to do it would be the ones most likely to set goals. A couple things jumped out: 1. Only 25.55% (70 of 274) believe in annual goal setting and do it religiously. Another 36.86% (101) believe in it and “do … Continued
Some see annual goals as essential, others as optional, still others as a waste. How about you? Today, a very simple 3-question survey, with immediate cumulative results. Question 3 might help you think about how to make your goal-attainment more successful. I’d love to have your input! Here’s the link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/J5F56CM Lead with your best … Continued
If you think about your own leadership — the passion you have for something important — I wonder if you might find this line from author and minister Michael Beckwith rings true: “Pain pushes until vision pulls.” I know from my own life that my pains, discomforts and losses became fuel — knowingly and sometimes … Continued
I find myself thinking back to high school. It’s “back, back, back,” as ESPN’s Chris Berman would describe an outfielder’s movement before everyone realizes it’s “long gone.”* I went to University of Detroit High School on 7 Mile Road in Detroit from 1972-1976. The teachers made you feel like they were teaching in an unbroken … Continued
Tis the season to . . . Collect from slow-paying clients. Cram for exams. Grade those exams! Shop. Wish you didn’t have to shop. Decorate. Pray for snow. Pray for sun (December 21 can’t get here fast enough!) Prepare for family – Yay! Boo! Yay! We never lead outside context. There is rhythm to life, … Continued
I have frequently written about how leaders go first. For three years I have been researching “paired leadership.” And this morning I offer a wonderful example of both. Until yesterday, a gay marriage was essentially conceptual to me. But, I only realized that as I sat down for Fred and Jim’s service. Jim and Fred … Continued
Over the 20 or so years I have been explicitly reading, writing and thinking about leadership, I have tried to see it in simpler and simpler ways. Originally, I was captivated by vision. Whether you lead from “above,” or, from below-where-the-action-is, you can generate power by helping people to focus on just what we are trying … Continued
When a scene is well written, directed and acted, we can feel targeted or triggered. We are treated or entreated — we are drawn to something that evokes what’s best in us. These dramatic figures are like a gift to us, and they hit each of us in our own way, in our own spot. … Continued
At Berkeley, as on so many campuses, and in offices, in the NFL, in churches, we’ve been struggling with disturbing cases of sexual harassment. As with the Black Lives Matter case, we’re confronted with damning evidence that just had not been fully seen, accepted and acted upon. My public policy grad students were assessing this … Continued