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How To Navigate Doing Business with Family and Friends
Many will tell you not to do it. We are told that doing business with those very close to us can spell disaster for personal relationships if things go wrong. But isn’t there a way?navigate these relationship without the drama and trauma? Here are five principles I?ve found to be effective when working with people […]
When Your People Don’t Do What They Should
Some of the hardest times I have ever faced as a leader were those when someone on my team was not doing what they should. If you are like me, inevitably you will have at least one person on your team who is in this camp, and sometimes more. And so we ask ourselves, “What […]
How Daring Have You Been?
At the end of June of this year, during my 2014 mid-year self-review, I uncovered something interesting. I had listed every activity, decision, or notable occurrence that had happened in the last six months. I listed people I met with, mentors I talked to, trips I took, and activities at work, among others. There were […]
The Chapters of Life
Shortly after the end of the Civil War, the highly regarded commander of the defeated Confederacy, Robert E. Lee, was visiting a Kentucky woman at her estate. She commented on a beautiful old tree that was dying due to the Union?s bombardment. She asked the General what she should do with this ailing tree, alluding […]
Preemptive Leadership
As a leader, you can either invest your time in preemptive leadership by training your people from the beginning and pulling them together all along, or reactive leadership where you find yourself on the back-end of every issue, always solving problems and putting out fires. Preemptive leadership will always give you the advantage. Which style […]
Three Steps to Branding Anything
When Steve Jobs brought us the iPod in 2001, we were charmed. I don?t know if you bought one at the time. I did, even though I was not into listening to music via small devices, as some of my friends were back then. The iPod was sleek, simple, and hot! You had to have […]
Is My Best Good Enough?
We cannot give more than our best. As a parent, a spouse, a boss, a team member, or as a leader?our best is our limit. What is your best??And has it been enough to take you where you want to go in life? Most parents I meet?teach the best things they know to their children. […]
Back to the Basics: What is Leadership?
Last year I heard the well-known writer, Richard Reeves, say something interesting about US presidents. He was referring to President Kennedy and why he was considered to be a great leader, when he said, “We don?t elect presidents to manage the government. We elect presidents to lead the nation.” But can you lead a nation […]
The World is Crying Out for Excellence in Leadership
On a recent visit to Vienna, Austria, I was riding a bicycle on the banks of the famous Danube River. It was an absolutely beautiful day. But I had a dark feeling gnawing at me. Beauty The weather was phenomenal, just cool enough to keep your senses invigorated. I caught myself smiling. Suddenly I started […]
How To Take Advice
We all love to give advice. Taking advice?well, that’s a different story. It can be difficult to hear about areas in our lives that may not be exemplary. So while we intend to listen, we internally and sometimes vocally resist. We interrupt, defend, or protest. We explain our position and clarify our perception. Eventually the […]
13 Questions to Ask Yourself Mid-Year
It?s mid-year. Time to stop and reflect. I encourage you to block out a few hours for your mid-year reflection. You?ll need to: [unordered_list style=’circle’ number_type=’circle_number’ animate=’no’ font_weight=’regular’] Seclude yourself. Turn your phone off. Take your journal or something to write on. Reassess. [/unordered_list] Here are some key questions to consider during your evaluation. These […]
Don?t Let Your Hurt Poison Your Heart
Absorb your pain and transform it; don’t transmit it. Don’t let your hurt poison your heart.? I recently posted this statement on our?Aspire Facebook page, and one person commented, ?How do you do that?? Good question. Most people in prison come from broken homes with pasts full of misery. We see this often. The abused […]