“By trying to not get anyone mad, and by treating everyone equally ‘nicely’ regardless of their contributions, you’ll simply ensure that the only people you’ll wind up angering are the most creative and productive people in the organization.” – Colin Powell Today’s quote is a long one, but the whole thing is worth reading repeatedly. … Read more
“Destiny is a name often given in retrospect to choices that had dramatic consequences.” – J.K. Rowling I can’t remember the last time I was in a meeting or having a conversation with leaders and one of them used words like “fate”, or “destiny”. Those aren’t the kinds of words that typically get used in … Read more
“I’m no longer quite sure what the question is, but I do know that the answer is yes.” – Leonard Bernstein It’s easy to live in a world of “no”. The world seems chaotic and often scary, and when we’re surrounded by chaos and fear, as humans we have a natural tendency to seek safety. … Read more
“Take action. Success is not guaranteed, but inaction will guarantee failure.” – Ken Poirot I’m fortunate enough in my career to spend a lot of time with people who lead successful organizations. Those organizations provide a wide array of products and services, come in all shapes and sizes, and are structured in a variety of … Read more
“If I’ve got one thing that I really believe about fiction and life, it’s that there are no minor characters.” – Jane Gardam One of the most frustrating things for me to watch is any organization that underachieves. When you see a group of people with talent and nothing to show for it, it feels … Read more
“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” – Neale Donald Walsch It’s in our nature as humans to seek comfort. It probably dates back to our time as cave dwellers. If you’re sitting in the cave, and you have a fire, and you have food, why go outside where the lions are? Just … Read more
“Wherever you are, make sure you’re there.” – Dan Sullivan Human beings are easily distracted. We might be in the middle of doing something we think is really important, and then suddenly a bright shiny object appears and we’re completely distracted. It seems like we’re always looking for the next exciting thing that’s going to … Read more
“There are two kinds of companies – those that change, and those that disappear.” – Anonymous Some of the most fascinating sentences you will ever hear begin with the words “I wish”. They’re fascinating, not because of whatever words follow “I wish”, but because of whatever action follows the conversation. Those sentences can be wildly … Read more
“A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” – Winston Churchill We’ve spent a lot of time in this space talking about characteristics of great leaders – almost thirteen years, to be exact. And while all leaders are unique, those same characteristics seem to show up over and … Read more
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