Graduation season is upon us as the newly minted graduates are throwing their caps in the air and moving on to their next adventure. This month I attended my nephew’s...
What do the best employers want in a new hire? There are seven qualities to look for in the recruiting and interview process and to expect from your team. Effective...
Employee engagement is the extent to which employees commit to their organization, how hard they work, and how long they stay as a result of that commitment. Engaged employees are...
Years ago when I was a young consultant, I facilitated a strategic planning and visionary retreat for Mr. Jones and his twenty-person leadership team. This was part of a long-term,...
As a CEO, keynote speaker, and board leader, I attend many events throughout the year as a presenter, guest, or sponsor. One of my favorite annual events is the Easter...
You can project leadership in everything from how you dress and carry yourself to how you behave. When a leader embodies an image of everything an organization aspires to, she...
Recently everyone at my company read The Google Way by Bernard Girard as one of the picks for our company book club. It proved to be an interesting read for...
I was invited to give the keynote address at the Women in Government Contracting Conference, which was held last Friday. The conference theme was “Grow your business, grow yourself,” and...
Recently I was the winning bidder at a CEO charity auction where one of the executives on the auction block was Steve Forbes, publishing executive, chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes...
Four behaviors help us engage people: Acting in ways motivated by what’s best for others. (Idealized Influence) Encouraging people to achieve more than what’s thought possible. (Inspirational Motivation) Inspiring folks to think for...
Year-in and year-out, NASA employees report high levels of job satisfaction and commitment. For the fourth year in a row, NASA was the highest-ranked employer for large government agencies according...
Experts agree that there are a few fundamental characteristics of successful leaders. They notice in the workplace what academic research points out: These qualities are desirable in all employees and...
Have you ever seen personal and/or interpersonal mastery contribute to success? People who advance to the leading edge of performance have personal and interpersonal mastery. They continuously work to expand and...
Our relationship with time is very important. Here lies an opportunity to examine and adjust our effectiveness. Sometimes we procrastinate, which undermines our ability to be effective. At the other...
View your behaviors and see how they play out. Continuously hold up the mirror to see your reflection. Then, make appropriate adjustments. This leadership rule is your reminder to continuously...
Remain open to, contribute to, and build upon new ideas. No matter what is said, keep open to the one-percent possibility that all ideas have value and that you can...
Say what you think and feel to the people you believe will benefit from your message. For example, I once tried to tell a younger colleague that our clients were...
Your cumulative record of adherence to your commitments forms the essence of how others view you. So get clear on your commitments, make fewer of them, and keep the ones...
Define and understand what it means to be on purpose and how to remain there. It’s easy to get distracted and discouraged by the million things in your life. But...
Weigh carefully the potential consequences of quoting other people and spreading gossip. This means guarding against attribution and retribution. First, attributing statements to others out of context can be misleading....
With the proper sentiment, mindset, knowledge, and tools, leaders can empower multitudes of talented people to collectively bring about required change or to maintain needed stability. Over the past twenty-plus...
Research examining the characteristics of innovative federal leaders to determine their common leadership traits reveals that they demonstrate “great resilience and vision” and are “all able to network and collaborate...
Effective leadership lies at the core of an energized enterprise. As outlined in my last post, Signs of Effective Leadership, the evidence is in the energy when you walk in...
People who advance to the leading edge of performance have organizational mastery. They are driven to be total systems thinkers, and they integrate people, products, and processes. Individuals with organizational...