Three Shifts in Leadership

Yesterday, I spoke for a group of association leaders on the topic of snow globe leadership, and I want to share with you the core of this message. The most common question I get is why snow globes, and the answer is simple: snow globes are one of the most […]

In Search of Wisdom

Do you ever think about wisdom? The idea recently leapt into my consciousness, and I realized that it’s not a concept that I (or anyone else) seem to think much about. What struck me is that wisdom is such an essential part of leadership, yet we rarely think of it […]

The Nature of Impactful Teams

I regularly read a handful of blogs and daily newsletters, including the following: Seth Godin, Notes from the Universe, Ransomed Heart and Richard Rohr. I also have a spiritual practice that involves reading various daily devotionals on my YouVersion app. While I typically look to my YouVersion devotionals to fill […]

The Target Is Not Optional

Over the past six months, I’ve been sharing a leadership truth with my audiences – an arrow of truth that is not easy to hear, but it IS a leadership reality. Whenever you choose to lead, whether in taking on a leadership role, accepting a leadership assignment or taking action […]

Lead Like Patton – NOT

General George Patton was in many ways an incredible leader and one who certainly had a significant impact on the outcome of World War II in Europe. While General Patton definitely utilized some leadership approaches worthy of modeling, some of his other tactics are not well suited for leadership today. […]

How Do You Measure a Year?

If you’re a Broadway fan, you likely recognize this question from the opening song (“Seasons of Love”) in the musical Rent (listen in to hear the entire song). Rent is one of my favorite Broadway musicals for two primary reasons – it’s a love story, and it invites us to […]

Born Leaders or Not?

There are so many topics upon which we debate, including the following: Chocolate vs. Vanilla Pepsi vs. Coke Tastes great vs. Less Filling (Miller Lite) Batman vs. Superman Star Wars vs. Star Trek Seinfeld vs. Friends Creation vs. Evolution The list goes on and on, but what about the “big” […]

Business Development Magic

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” –Seneca (5 B.C. – 65 A.D.) Despite literally thousands of years of recognition that “luck” is something that we create, it’s easy to instead depend upon or hope for fortuitous luck when it comes to developing relationships and business opportunities. As for […]

What’s Your Single Standard of Conduct?

Today’s reality is that people want to believe that they can maintain and even promote two different personas – most often, one for personal life and one for professional. I’ve always maintained that there is no such thing – that there’s one you and that the core of you shows […]

Zeal the Deal!

Zeal the deal? What are you talking about, Jeff? I’m actually borrowing from the old business / sales saying: “seal the deal.” Typically, seal the deal means doing something to close or confirm an agreement or arrangement. While sealing the deal is important, I’ve learned that it’s much more important […]