Leadership Lessons on Netflix
You’re receiving this Leading Thoughts in the last week of April. Soon, summer will be upon us. I hope you have plans to enjoy family, nature, and some recreating. I also hope you’ll make time to read some good leadership books and watch some films that will help you lead more powerfully. I want to recommend seven videos or video series that I hope you’ll take time to enjoy and be challenged by this summer. They are all on Netflix, they have all helped me lead better, and I trust they will serve as a stirring summer course in leadership[read more]
Leveraging Circadian Rhythms and Chronotypes
It was Benjamin Franklin who once wrote the maxim, “Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” The words are typical of the wisdom he offered in his Poor Richard’s Almanack, a guide to industrious living meant for the ambitious founding generation of Americans. It has shaped generations since. Throughout American history, it has been common for parents to extol the “virtue of early risings” to their children as they went off to college or started a new job. “The early bird gets the worm” has been quoted to the young for more than two[read more]
Don’t Float Your Future
Part of my role in these Leading Thoughts is to present hard-hitting wisdom that may not come to you in other ways. I do this in part because I know that our leadership roles can often insulate us. The people around us may not feel comfortable giving us troubling news. We may not have “outside eyes” on what we do—like consultants or caring friends with perspective do. We may be so busy that we miss that trenchant book or vital conference. When I can, then, I want to put hard truth before you to save you from trouble and destruction.[read more]
Harnessing Your Business for Noble Causes
One of the arts of transforming leadership is connecting the immediate and the mundane to inspiring vision and purpose. People are willing to do the hard work of daily life. What they hope is that it all has some higher meaning. That perhaps God is pleased. That they are earning a better life for their children. That they are fulfilling their purpose. And, in certain seasons of history, they hope that their labors are contributing in some way to victories in the battles of their day. My man Churchill did this masterfully. He was leading a nation during a world[read more]
Cast Down Your Bucket Where You Are
The great Booker T. Washington, founder of Tuskegee Institute, once told a story that I want to recount to you now. Here it is in his words. A ship lost at sea for many days suddenly sighted a friendly vessel. From the mast of the unfortunate vessel was seen a signal: “Water, water. We die of thirst.” The answer from the friendly vessel at once came back: “Cast down your bucket where you are.” A second time, the signal, “Water, send us water!” went up from the distressed vessel. And was answered: “Cast down your bucket where you are.” A[read more]
Read to Lead
It is absolutely true that you must “Read to Lead” and it is absolutely true that this is more necessary in our time than ever in history. The sheer volume of information and literature today demands it, as does the sheer pace of change. So let me give you some tips on how to read more. I’ve written previous Leading Thoughts on what you should read, but now I want to help you with how to read and digest more material. Train Your Eye Your eye cannot move as quickly as your brain can absorb. So, train your eye to[read more]
Immerse Yourself in Other Cultures
There is a tactic of effective leaders I want to commend to you. It is a tactic that will give you greater clarity about who you are, greater insight into what your leadership possibilities are, and that will also give you greater wisdom and creativity in leading people. This tactic is to know your culture and immerse yourself in cultures not your own. We are all the products of a culture. For our purposes here, culture refers simply to what is encouraged to grow, what is nurtured and developed by what is around you. You can imagine the possibilities here.[read more]
Lead Like Zelensky
I imagine you are as grieved as I am by what is happening in Ukraine. The Russian invasion of that heroic nation is the largest military mobilization in Europe since World War II. Though Russian forces only entered Ukrainian territory a few days ago, hundreds of lives have already been lost, largely as Russian missiles struck Kyiv, the nation’s capital. I could write for pages about this moment in history, but since Leading Thoughts is about leadership, I want to focus on one man and his emergence at this critical time. His name is Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine.[read more]
You are the Chief Communications Officer
I have a CEO friend who says that he is going to have these words put on his tombstone: “Damn it, people, talk to each other!” I get it. I can tell you that in all my years of leadership and advising leaders, the biggest messes and the most pain has been created when no one took responsibility for communicating. Usually, people only realize their communication failures after the fact. The CEO says, “I didn’t know she was unhappy.” The family member says at the funeral, “Why didn’t anyone talk to Aunt Christy?” The Colonel says, “Why didn’t someone tell[read more]
Thinking Differently About Older Age
Let’s talk about age and your role as a leader. I mean this two ways. I want you to think about your own age and I want you to think about the age of those who work for you. Here’s why. There is a bias towards youth in our culture today. This is largely because we are much about looks and much about certain forms of energy. When this bias gets absorbed into business culture, we retire people early and are somewhat bigoted in our promotions and assignment of responsibility. I guest lecture for a university in the Middle East.[read more]