George Washington. Here's a surprising fact from his life as a leader. The point of the story is about how much you get to do what you want to do as a leader. Take a look below. Washington was the primary commander of American military forces during the War of the American Revolution. That was 1775 to 1783. As overall commander—the army he led was seen as the key American force—Washington … [Read more...]
March 24, 2015 by
March 24, 2015 by
Summertime. A lazy Saturday afternoon. Lunch is done, you're feeling a bit sleepy. A nap? Excellent idea. Let's go upstairs to our bedroom and stretch out for a bit. The wife lays down next to the husband. For a while, they're together on the bed. He tells her he can sleep better by himself in another upstairs room. Half-drowsy, she agrees and then starts the long glide back to sleep. He leaves … [Read more...]
March 24, 2015 by
Turning an ordinary day into an extraordinary day. Dealing with crisis. Leading a team. Living out a career of personal identity. Overcoming short-term disgruntlement to achieve long-term success. Understanding how an experience—an event—can have different stages and phases and how your leadership will be part of each one. In ways you won't imagine now, these are the lessons we explore from the … [Read more...]
March 24, 2015 by
Take a walk to 5 places in downtown Indianapolis that tell the powerful story of a 28-year old leader who is about to make a decision that changes life and leadership as he knows it. What’s The Goal? To prepare you as a leader for the next big, shocking change What’s The Method? You are one of a 3-5 person group that walks to 5 places vital to the story of our 28-year old leader on July 9, … [Read more...]
March 13, 2015 by
What do Mitch Daniels, Dwight Eisenhower, and Robert E. Lee have in common? Higher education leadership that looks surprisingly similar across 150 years. Purdue University President Mitch Daniels, former Governor of Indiana, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, and CEO of Eli Lilly & Company, has garnered lots of attention. Daniels's achievements at Purdue reflect his … [Read more...]
March 13, 2015 by
Do you know what a precedent is? Likely you do. For those a little foggy on the term, permit me to describe. But after I do, I want to warn you about the danger of precedent as the basis of how you understand—and much more importantly—use history in your life and leadership. But first things first. What's a precedent? A precedent is, according to my quick search, "an earlier action or event … [Read more...]
January 14, 2015 by
A leader sets a goal and has to work with a divided team to achieve it. A leader hires an extremely talented subordinate; with this subordinate comes divisiveness, separation, and confusion. A leader struggling to find his own identity has to tackle a major challenge on a fixed timeline. Welcome to the world of President Harry Truman and the story of the start of the nation of Israel. Truman … [Read more...]
January 14, 2015 by
Finding your purpose. Starting-up an organization. Creating a niche where none existed. Balancing the competing needs of various stakeholders and allies. Facing a change you believe is vital and adapting your purpose to meet it. Dealing with the reality of that change. A woman whom you've likely never heard of—Lilian Wald—can show you some very important truths about these and other … [Read more...]
January 14, 2015 by
Leading a project. Collaboration and communication as a leader. Leading a team whose members are new to one another. Linking on-the-ground action to a sweeping vision and mission. A reality of diversity. Any one of these or all of these leadership issues can be found in the fascinating expeience of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and their Corps of Discovery, 1802-1807. Lewis and Clark and … [Read more...]
January 14, 2015 by
A leader deals with personal despair and a gnawing feeling of defeat. A leader seeks to rally a team and hold it together despite constant setbacks. A leader tries to find resources where there are very few available. A leader uses creativity to find new options, new choices, and new methods. And through it all, this leader must point to the way forward to a vision and to a victory, all the while … [Read more...]
