Category: Leadership

  • The Tree, the Soil, and the Fruit

    I love looking for connections between the books I read. When I see common themes in otherwise unrelated books, my ears perk up. To see unconnected authors’ paths cross seems to validate what both are saying. As I look back on the books I read over the past year — which varied in theme from…

  • Raising the Connection Machine

    We often speak of the Internet and new technologies as something happening to us, taking over every industry, consuming our attention. One of my struggles with media and new technology is our infatuation with the new, without questioning whether some technologies really make our lives significantly better. The connection machine (thanks Seth Godin for the term)…

  • If Everyone Was a Leader…

    …then who would follow? The common myth is that only the person at the top of the pecking order gets to lead. If that’s the case, then the rest of us are conveniently absolved of responsibility, and get to wait till we’re in charge to do the difficult, vulnerable work of leading. The truth, though,…

  • Here to Serve

    A friend shared this quote from Andy Stanley with me today: “The question isn’t, what am I here for? The question is, who am I here for?” It seems that for many people, getting older means a shift from focus on me to focus on others. Children are consumed with their own needs and wants,…

  • The Basie Way

    When most of us think of a leader we think of the trailblazer, the person at the front of the pack, leading the way. That’s how I’ve usually thought about leadership as well. The leader needs to stay out in front, do most of the talking, and shoulder the weight of the team. The problem…

  • Hide or Seek

    If you want to do work that matters, you need to choose: Will you hide, or will you seek? You can choose to hide from discomfort, skirt around chances to lead, avoid the risk of failure. There are lots of great hiding places out there. Or you can learn to seek. To stand up, to…

  • Motivate by Looking Back

    Progress is important. Whether it’s in your work, fitness, or leading a team, huge motivation can be found in the feeling of moving forward. When we can see our growth or improvement, we’re energized to keeping going. This is why we love before/after photos and checklists. This is also why we get depressed when it…

  • Complexity

    If you’ve found a difficult problem, you can skip it and move on to an easier one, one that you know you’ll get right. One that you can check off the list. That’s what most of us are taught to do. Or, you can dig in and stick with the difficult one. While everyone else…

  • Staying Up All Night and Getting Lucky

    Are you trying to get lucky? No, not that kind of lucky, I mean, are you trying to get a lucky break? Trying to get on the fast track to success, become an overnight sensation? In The Dip (a short book that’s worth reading twice), Seth Godin shows that there’s no shortcut to success. In…

  • Leading from Second Fiddle

    When the orchestra conductor, Leonard Bernstein, was asked what the most difficult instrument to play was, he answered without hesitation: “The second fiddle. I can get plenty of first violinists, but to find someone who can play the second fiddle with enthusiasm.” Few of us aspire to take a supporting role, to work in the…