Leadership as Empowerment

Rod St Hill (1) Leadership expert, John Maxwell, has famously written, ‘The true measure of leadership is influence… nothing more, nothing less’(2). Ken Blanchard characterizes leadership, ‘As an influence process in which you try to help people accomplish goals.’ (3) One of the most popular undergraduate textbooks on leadership defines the concept as, ‘A process…

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Growth Ideas #1: Wood or Heat

I was in a conversation with some colleagues this week about constraints to growth. Now, these are smart, committed leaders in our company and they were struggling with not being able to take advantage of growth opportunities that required an additional hire—the client wants us and we had to say, “No.” Needless to say they…

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Clutter

No doubt that our lives are filled with clutter. Too many things to do. Too many trips to take. Too many meetings. Too many calls or calls to return. Am I the only one who thinks this? I don’t think so. For most people, a cluttered room or house or car or desk creates a…

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I Broke My Heart in San Francisco

I’m writing this on the flight home from San Francisco—a beautiful but blighted city. A quick survey of photos of the City by the Bay, as Tony Bennett sang, will demonstrate it’s amazing views, architecture, bridges, water and so on. A truly gorgeous place. Yet, at the same time, the squalor on the streets and…

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4 Words for Sales Success

So I was asked to speak to a sales summit recently and landed on “4 Words.” Simple. Clear. Effective. Knowledge. Spend more time learning your business than you do talking about it. Learn your industry. Most importantly, learn your customers’ businesses. This last point matters because prospects and customers don’t care about your knowledge except…

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You Can’t Do It All

I’m pretty sure that many of us not only think we can do it all but that we must do it all. My guess is that’s why we often go to bed frustrated, guilty, and already behind for tomorrow. Can I set the record straight?  First, you don’t have to do it all.  Second, you…

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Gut Plus Science – Fostering A Fearless Culture

Mike Bear is a guest on the Gut Plus Science podcast discussing strategies to diagnose and treat disease in your companies culture. Hire for attitude and beliefs. Don’t hire based on competency. Skills can be trained. Beliefs—not so much. What attitude are you looking for and what kind of mindset do you need in your people? Are…

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First ‘Who’ Then ‘What’ – Good to Great Revisited

The types of companies that Jim Collins researched for Good to Great were quite large (think Wells Fargo and Kroger) so when he wrote this chapter he was looking at global corporate strategy. His point was to look at your talent and let that drive your direction. His specific points were to make sure you…

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A Culture of Discipline – Good to Great Revisited

Once the “one thing” (Hedgehog Principle) is discovered, according to Collins’ research, the good-to-great companies became almost fanatical in their discipline to remain focused on it compared to the also-rans who flitted from one thing to another and turned innovation into a fetish. Squirrel! Shiny object! Collins contrasts the three types of organizations he discovered.…

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The Hedgehog Principle – Good to Great Revisited

Great leaders don’t just motivate and inspire; they also bring focus and clear direction. The great companies are no different; they are focused and know exactly what they should be doing and, consequently, avoid wasting energy, money and talent on things that are not core to their business. In the famous scene from City Slickers,…

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