I met Barbara Bush on a private parking lot of a large convention hotel in Orlando, Florida. I was the lead executive for a large annual national healthcare meeting and we had booked her as a keynote speaker. Secret Service agents had brought her to the hotel after we flew her on a private jet …
I don’t know about you, but most days (weeks/months/years…) I have more things I want to accomplish than I can possibly do. I like to set goals and make plans and aim high, but very often I find myself frustrated by not being as productive or as successful as I’d hoped when I started my …
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about relationships. Maybe it’s because of my recent focus on mentoring—which is all about relationship. Or maybe it’s just the normal musings of an older man who is in a season of more reflection. Whatever the reason, this has been on my mind, especially one thought I’d like to …
Last week I wrote about what I feel is the #1 thing it takes to be a good mentor. Basically, if you have learned anything during your life and career, then you have insights to share with others! But what are some key traits or qualities of great mentors? Here are 3 that immediately come …
For the past few weeks I’ve been posting about mentoring and how critical it is to learn from world-class mentors—those great leaders who’ve gone before us, as well as ordinary colleagues and peers who may just be a few steps ahead of us. But what does it mean to be a world-class mentor? How do …
Last week we took a look at 5 Benefits of Mentoring, discussing the incredible power and importance of having healthy mentoring relationships throughout your life and career. Today we’re going to look at some of the benefits of coaching and also identify the key differences between mentoring and coaching. What is coaching? An effective coaching …
I have long believed in the importance and powerful impact of mentoring. Throughout my life and career mentoring has played an important role, and as I’ve interviewed other highly-successful leaders over the years, the topic of mentoring has come up many times. Joel Allison, who recently retired as CEO of Baylor Scott & White Health, …
Habit formation is a process, not a one-time event. Changing old habits or establishing new ones requires intentional focus and repetition over an extended period of time. The truth is, every person is unique, as are the habits they form and goals they pursue. So while there are basic principles found within the habit …
In my first book, Presidential Leadership, which focuses on learning from the strengths of U.S. Presidents and identifying, improving, and leveraging your own strengths, I closed with a Call to Action that includes the following story: “In the mid-1700s Benjamin Franklin developed a personal system for cultivating his character by focusing on improving in …
As I’ve mentioned in recent articles, intentional, positive habits are the most powerful tools at our disposal for achieving greater success personally, professionally, and organizationally. If you desire greater success in any area of your life, cultivating the right habits is key. In my book, Be An Inspirational Leader: Engage, Inspire, Empower, I spend …
This time of year many of us are thinking about the habits in our lives that we want to change—or new habits we want to establish. Some habits are very easy to identify as “bad.” For example, we all know smoking is bad for us, we shouldn’t look at text messages while driving, and staying …
Habits. We all have them. We’re aware of many of our habits, but there are likely many more to which we haven’t really given much thought. It’s easy to take habits for granted and to just keep doing things the way we’ve always done them. But in doing so we miss out on the huge …
Whether it’s as simple as your daily routine or how you shake hands, or as significant as what words appear most in your vocabulary or how you respond to pressure in the workplace, habits control a very large portion of your daily life. In fact, habits likely dictated when and how you went about …
These last few weeks we’ve been talking about the importance of giving authority, refraining from micromanaging, and encouraging appropriate independence and autonomy. These are all things that require trust. Without trust, leaders are hesitant to delegate tasks, and try to retain as much control as possible—which not only causes them unnecessary work and stress, but …
When given the freedom to do it in their own way, employees feel a greater sense of ownership for their work, which in turn boosts morale and engagement. In contrast, when given responsibility but not corresponding authority, employees quickly become frustrated, discouraged, and disengaged. As leaders, we should strive to give those we lead authority …
Micromanaging is one of those terms you most often hear in association with disliked bosses and disgruntled employees, and you hope it doesn’t apply to you as a leader! So let’s do a quick self-check. Micromanaging Leaders The definition of micromanage is “to manage or control with excessive attention to minor details.” To put it …
Lately we’ve been discussing how to empower those you lead. One of the most important keys to empowering those you lead is to give them appropriate authority. This is the area most people think of when they hear the word empower, and it is a vital component of inspirational leadership. Author and management consultant Mac …
Investing in the life, wellbeing, and growth of those you lead is one of the greatest elements of inspirational leadership. However, some leaders are hesitant to really invest in their employees. Why? Because they’re afraid they will lose their investment if that person chooses to leave their organization and pursue other opportunities. While that is …
It should go without saying that inspirational leaders are encouraging leaders. Inspiration and encouragement go hand in hand, and nothing is more opposite inspiration than discouragement. It is virtually impossible for a person to feel both discouraged and inspired at the same time. So to inspire, a leader must also encourage. Encouragement boosts morale, motivation, …
Giving and receiving feedback is one of those things that we all know is important, but in practice, can be daunting and uncomfortable—for both the giver and receiver. So how do you deliver feedback, especially corrective feedback, in a positive and constructive way? Here are 9 best practices: Be timely. “Timeliness is critical in order …