Many people writing in the online literature seem to advocate that, in marketing and in negotiation, it is ok to lie in order to get the sale, or get the project or get the contract. They might not say it so explicitly, but things like “over-promising” so as to “get the sale” and then “worry […]
There was an occasion more than ten years ago when I was red-faced at work. Literally. My colleagues noticed that my face seemed redder than usual. In fact, they said that my face was unusually red, and asked if I were having a fever or some other ailment. I didn’t feel sick at all. In […]
There seems to be a trend towards people gaining from “the wisdom of crowds” at the moment. While I certainly appreciate the advice and inputs of people who really care about me and about what I do and stand for, I am not too concerned about what the majority of people think or say. Many […]
Do you believe in surrounding yourself with people who are smarter or better than you at least in some way? Good for you! That shows that you are secure, mature and probably smart in your own ways as well! Intuitively, we all know that surrounding ourselves with people better than ourselves in some aspect or other […]
The Simple Truths clip on “212. The extra degree” came to my mind, but in a different way. I had actually written to them some time ago to say that I didn’t quite agree with the whole concept, since the clip neglected to take the latent heat of vapourization into consideration, but I was okay […]
I really miss when spades were called spades. Circumvention is, unfortunately, a skill which I think all of us wish secretly we could disinvent. If you’re a leader worth your salt, you’d know what I mean. If we paid each of our people what they are truly worth, the income of the rainmaker would not […]
You might be familiar with the saying “We don’t see things as they are. We see things as we are.” As leaders, we need to remember this for ourselves as well as for those around us, and lead accordingly. That saying is true, of course. Our mental and emotional states tend to dictate how we […]
The online etymology dictionary says that “enthusiasm” comes from the Greek enthousiasmos, or “divine inspiration”. Just as “encourage” has the meaning of “to put courage into”, so “enthusiasm” has the connotation of “to put God into”. Enthusiasm in certainly infectious, as anyone who has been around another person caught up in something he or she happens to be enthusiastic […]
If you happen to be from the Band of Brothers I used to work with, or if you happen to be in HR or equivalent, you might be familiar with the term “Currently Estimated Potential.” It is meant to be an assessment of how far an individual is likely to advance given his performance so […]
Have you heard that successful people take action? Yes, they certainly do! As I was pondering on this yesterday, the letters “SPCA” flashed across my mind. “Successful People CHOOSE Action”! Am I just playing with publicity? Absolutely not! So, what’s the difference? None. It’s not about whether there is a difference, it’s about going a […]
Being a thermal leader isn’t all about hot air. It’s actually a great thing if you’re leading a team of eagles. Or perhaps any type of bird that knows how to use thermals in order to stay aloft for very long periods of time without getting burnout. Thermals are what many land-based birds, particularly raptors, […]
Before you throw that stone at me, answer this question: Would you like to keep cancer tissue in your body? Right, I didn’t think so either! Did you experience righteous indignation welling up inside of you when you saw the title of this post? Why? Do you subscribe to “Get the right people on the […]
Whether you’re at the helm of a large enterprise or running a relatively small business, you’re probably enjoying being in the thick of things, making decisions, calling the shots, encouraging your people to greater heights and exploring ways you can add value to all your stakeholders. Well, you might not be the boss, so to […]
We are all humans, and we all think that we deserve this, that and the other. We guard what we think are our rights jealously. We laud those who affirm our rights, and look with a jaundiced eye at those who emphasize the fact that we really should be happily busy with our responsibilities. Convenience […]
“I’m serious”. “No, I’m not”. “Yes, I am”. “What ARE you really saying?” “Well, research has shown that people who exercise three times a week are twice as likely to die suddenly as people who exercise five times a week”. “Egg white has nutrients you don’t know about yet”. Welcome to the strategic art of […]
Most, if not all, businesses want to have growth. If you don’t have growth, you won’t be in business for very long. How is it that some business have grown, or at least, seem to have grown, but have gone bust in the end? The answer, my friend, isn’t blowing in the wind. It’s right […]
That includes the female version of hunk, too, whatever they’re called. Are you good at having your say? Or do you fear saying what you really want to say for whatever reason? Do you speak well in public, or do you suffer from that fear of public speaking known as “glossophobia“? Would you like to […]
Anxiety. Stress. Eustress. Distress. Do any of those happen to you? Of course, you’re human, right? The literature is full of articles and posts about anxiety and performance. There are arguments about whether there is a balance for optimal performance, meaning how much anxiety is too much, how much is too little, and how much […]
Lego? Why not? Your equipment happens to be blocks of different sizes, shapes and colours. Using just a few different types of building blocks, you could construct almost anything you fancy. This is mind-boggling when you remember that Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) controls everything about how we are made, and is made up of chains of […]
You might just get it, of course. What is your strategy over the next few years? Decades? Centuries? Am I crazy, you ask. No, I don’t think so. Strategy is always forward-looking, and is not so much an expression of long-term goals as a manifestation of WHO you are, WHO your organization IS. In other […]
Douglas O’Loughlin shared this on Facebook, and I thought I’d pen some of my thoughts about this, since effective, practical leadership development is central to the topic. The McKinsey article may be found here: http://bit.ly/JqlnGE The article lists four principles for a better public sector: Better evidence for decision making. Greater engagement and empowerment of citizens. […]
For many people, it is either fail to plan or plan to fail. Don’t believe the tripe that most people can plan well, they just have trouble executing it. Nothing can be further from the truth! Now, I have said very often that most companies can plan well, but just can’t seem to be able […]
Unity isn’t about same-as-you same-as-you. Unity can be likened to all the different instruments in an orchestra playing the same piece, just that each instrument plays its own special part in it.
Knowledge. Understanding. Wisdom. Sagacity. Sophistication. Do those words describe you? Are there people upon whom you would pin those terms without hesitation? Practical leadership effectiveness is really all about, as the title says, “Understanding Wise Applications Of Knowledge.” It is what enables your strategy to be operationalized. It is what keeps your enterprise running profitably. […]
I came across this video recently while searching for something else, and I thought it made pretty good sense. Two main takeaways for me were that Good Strategists have it in them to choose Bad Strategies, because they think those strategies are Good Strategies. I go a step further and say that it is because […]
I am always amazed at the capacity people have for taking one aspect of what someone is saying and treating it as the entire message. I see this so often on social media that I actually dread participating in certain discussions! We have been told so often to speak up and make ourselves heard that […]
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