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Social Media Responsibility
My wife pointed me to an LA Times story today that made me cringe…The article recounted how TV personality Bill Nye (“The Science Guy”) suddenly passed out while speaking at USC. While this caused a tense moment, he appears to be okay now. However, what incensed me was how the crowd reacted. Witnesses noted the crowd did nothing, they did not come to his aid, and they were of no help to Bill…
Leadership & Veterans Day
Today's post is part tribute, part rant, and part leadership tutorial. The tribute is to commemorate the celebration of Veterans Day, the rant to vent some of my pent-up frustrations about what I view as some disturbing trends, and the leadership tutorial to share what I believe our business leaders can learn from their military counterparts. While my thoughts may seem to be a bit fractionalized…
Great Leaders Make Decisions
News Flash: There is one tell-tale sign, a dead give away that you're a weak leader - I can see it a mile off, and so can everyone else. What is it? Everyone knows you're a lousy leader if you can't make decisions. Sound harsh? Perhaps so, but that doesn't mean it's not the truth. Nothing signals leadership trouble more than an executive who can't make decisions. If you can't make decisions, you…
Buzzwords Aren’t All Bad
Here's an "out of the box" idea - buzzwords aren't all bad, and when used properly in business-speak, they can actually be valuable. The problem is that many people tend to tune out anyone who chooses to use them immediately. The vitriol is so intense that many have taken to trivializing anyone who utters these buzzwords as an incompetent, uneducated, and completely inferior corporate citizen.…
Marketing Success
How do you know when marketing is out of control? Those of you familiar with this blog know that I'm generally a strong marketing advocate. That said, my typical pro-marketing position assumes that certain key fundamentals are in place to ensure that the lunatics don't somehow become in charge of the asylum. In today's post, I'll discuss how to keep marketing in check so that brand focus is…
Leadership Interview – Michael Hyatt
CEOs that make great decisions are rare these days. Humble, authentic leaders who really understand their craft are equally scarce. Chief Executives who actively engage in social media also find themselves in the minority among their peers. Michael Hyatt (@MichaelHyatt - www.michaelhyatt.com) is that rare commodity. As Chairman and CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, the largest Christian publishing…
How To Create Lasting Influence
Anyone can create moments of influence, but creating lasting influence is where your sights should be set. Understanding how to leverage the influence factor can make a defining difference in your ability to drive change, build cohesive teams, and to successfully implement strategic vision. As a leader, your “Influence Quotient” is the IQ you need to pay attention to. In fact, your influence…
The Benefit of Dissenting Opinion
I love vigorous debate and generally have an open mind, and I actually enjoy having my thoughts and opinions challenged. If everyone always agreed with me then conversations wouldn't be very stimulating, and acquiring new knowledge and insight would certainly be more difficult. That said, there is a benefit to dissenting opinions... Here's the thing, I only really have the patience for…
How Dumb is Your Business?
How dumb is your business? At the risk of drawing the ire of corporate elitists, I submit to you that the dumber your business is, the better off you are. The truth is that great companies are those which can thrive and prosper in the absence of sophistication. As odd as it sounds, businesses that are not dependant on smart talent, capital, or technology can scale faster and easier than those…
The Problem With Coaching
Today's rant has been building inside me for a while now. The text that follows is not going to sit well with a number of those in my profession, but hey, that's never stopped me before. During a recent interview, I was asked how I felt about the coaching profession - I jokingly referred to myself as a coaching heretic and went on to say that I really don't like the word "coach" as a descriptor…
Culture Trumps Strategy – Not
Does culture trump strategy? I think not, and I'll explain why. Even though I have seen this phrase quoted by some very bright people whom I respect, it just doesn't resonate with me. I thought perhaps I was misunderstanding what was being said, so I decided to Google the phrase "Culture Trumps Strategy" and found that Stanford offered an Entrepreneurship Lecture by this title, I found several…
Questions and Team Building for CEOs
An army of one isn't really much of an army is it? And I can assure you that any CEO who views him or herself as an army of one will fail. Whether you like it or not, your success as a CEO will be largely tied to your team building ability. Not only do great CEOs understand how to recruit a top executive team, but they also understand how to build cohesion among team members through collaboration…
Humility and Leadership
News Flash – the phrase "humble leadership" is not an oxymoron. While many people immediately conjure up an image of the ever so confident, bombastic extrovert without an ounce of humility as the picture of what constitutes a real leader, nothing could be further from the truth. As my wife has always said, "Those who talk the most usually have the least to say." While feigned humility is the…
What All Great Leaders Have In Common
All great leaders have one thing in common: They read voraciously. Did you know that the average American only reads one book a year? Worse than this is the fact that 60% of average Americans only get through the first chapter. Contrast this with the fact that CEOs of Fortune 500 companies read an average of four to five books a month. Even more impressive is that some of the most successful…
Leadership, Fear & Failure
“Fear” and “Failure” are NOT dirty words, but you’ll find most leaders treat them as such. They go out of their way to hide their fears and explain away their failures rather than confront them and learn from them. One of my pet peeves is the current trend of labeling fear as a weakness and failure as unacceptable. In fact, things have gone so far that the word failure is quickly being removed…
Leadership & Presence
Can you be a true leader without possessing a presence? In my experience, very rarely...I'm not referencing the wannabe leaders oozing bravado, false confidence, arrogance, or self-delusion spun as confidence. Nor am I referring to the weak, innocuous or timid, who while viewing themselves as leaders, are perhaps the farthest thing from a leader. Rather I'm addressing those true leaders who…