-Please, set aside whatever your political affiliations for a moment. I urge you to find the time and, just as challenging in today's world, the mental space, to look more closely at the life of Ronald Reagan. I did this on behalf of a client in my Creative Conversation service. The client's Personal River--past, present, and future--found powerful takeaways from our journey down Ronald Reagan … [Read more...]
The Life-Cause
July 1, 2014 by
A life-cause is something that seizes your interest, focuses your talents, and reinforces your spirit of living. I've come up with this phrase in the course of working with a client in my Creative Conversation service, my 1to1 work where I use a person's River from history to illuminate key points about a client's River. My term "life-cause" comes from the client and I having examined the life and … [Read more...]
Tuck Into Your Mind For October
July 1, 2014 by
I read the other day that the presidential debates will be in October. Three of them total. My mind went to a point from the 1980 presidential campaign that I'd like to share with you. It's not generally well known. You could find it handy as we get nearer to the debates in October. In the summer and early fall of 1980, President Jimmy Carter ran ahead of Republican presidential nominee Ronald … [Read more...]
A Natural Impulse
March 18, 2013 by
Leadership has natural impulses. That's something akin to an immutable law of physics--which used to be termed natural law--a physical reality not subject to alteration other than by an agent of equal immutability. Got it? Enough of that, let's move on to my point--I read something that struck me as a natural impulse of leadership. I'm on the final section of a book about Ronald Reagan and … [Read more...]
The Report From Yesterday
February 1, 2011 by
"Vintage Historical Solutions, as a leader you left with a lot more than you came with." That was the unsolicited feedback from one of the participants in yesterday's Leadership Now Workshop. As you may know, our topic was tragedy, leadership, and Ronald Reagan's Challenger Speech. We went for 3 hours, using my river metaphor for learning leadership from history. The group was excellent, a … [Read more...]
Today’s Leadership Now Seminar: Ronald Reagan, Challenger, and Tragedy
January 31, 2011 by
Today is a day I've been eagerly awaiting. I have a group of good people gathering to delve into the leadership experience of Ronald Reagan and the Challenger explosion of January 1986. And herein lies the two enormous reasons for my excitement--one, the opportunity to ride the river of a fascinating historical event and, two, the chance to spend time with good people. I'm the proverbial person … [Read more...]
The Five Parts of Reagan and Challenger: Leadership Now Seminar
January 24, 2011 by
In a week, I'll be offering my 2nd iteration of a Leadership Now Workshop. It is on Ronald Reagan, the Challenger Experience, and the Leadership of Tragedy. This morning I decided upon five key parts of the workshop. Here they are: 1. What Tragedy Is To You 2. Reagan and the Tragedy of December 1985 3. Reagan and the Challenger Experience 4. The Rest of His Week 5. Tragedy and … [Read more...]
Ceaselessly Amazed: Update on the Reagan Seminar
January 5, 2011 by
I never fail to be amazed by history. In doing the research for my upcoming public seminar on Ronald Reagan, the Challenger speech, and the leadership of tragedy, I've discovered several powerful elements to the story that are entirely ignored in either the retelling or the memory of the event. Here are a couple of examples of what I mean. First, Reagan's speech on January 28,1986 was the second … [Read more...]
Leadership Now: The Value and Contribution of You
December 22, 2010 by
In my upcoming leadership development session on Ronald Reagan, the Challenger disaster, and leadership in tragedy, you have two very important strengths to add to this experience. Because of these two strengths, this session will be especially useful to you and your fellow participants. First, as I've written elsewhere on this blog, you may have lived through this event. You can participate as a … [Read more...]
The Power of Living Through It
December 21, 2010 by
A participant in my upcoming Leadership Now seminar on Ronald Reagan's Challenger speech made an interesting comment to me yesterday. He said that the topic particularly intrigued him because he remembered exactly where he was when the Challenger exploded. The fact that he had lived through the event, remembered it clearly, and could reflect back on that moment had a special power in persuading … [Read more...]
Leadership Now: Ronald Reagan, The Challenger, and Leadership of Tragedy
December 9, 2010 by
On January 31, 2011, I will be holding my second Leadership Now Seminar. The topic will be the Challenger disaster of early 1986 and the way in which President Ronald Reagan dealt with the communication of this news to the American people. The theme of this Leadership Now Seminar will be the role of leadership in understanding tragedy. More information on this session will be forthcoming. It is … [Read more...]
