Today there is an uproar among the political, punditry, and politics-geek classes. It's about Republican Presidential Nominee Mitt Romney's remarks about the 47% of Americans who don't pay federal income taxes. As I understand it, Romney spoke off-handedly at a fundraiser some weeks ago about this slice of the American public as being overly dependent on the federal government and largely devoted … [Read more...]
September 17, 2012 by
A leader can be effective in handling a project and yet act very differently in the face of a crisis. I'll explain. A project--completing something that starts here and ends there--requires a leader who can oversee the execution of a plan, show flexibility in dealing with details that don't work out as expected, garner resources for use by the project team, and maintain a high or relatively level … [Read more...]
September 11, 2012 by
What If: United Flight 93’s Passengers Hadn’t Crashed The Airplane On The Morning Of September 11, 2001? Islamic radical terrorists had already hijacked three other passenger airplanes on September 11, 2001 and flown them into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The fourth plane—United Flight 93—was also seized as planned by the terrorists. The difference here, though, is rather than the … [Read more...]
August 31, 2012 by
The Walkshops have exploded in growth and appeal. Three sections, two in September and one in October, have filled up. Requests are coming in for additional Walkshops in October and into November. I think I've found something that works rather well. Up there, Benjamin Harrison is smiling. I promise, Mr. President, that I'll do everything I can to uphold my responsibility as the portal between … [Read more...]
August 30, 2012 by
They say history is dull. They say history is dry. They say history is dreary. I say they’re nuts. And I point to this book as proof of my point. Dramatic, lively, and gripping—these are the words that describe Swanson’s book on chasing Lincoln’s killer, one of the best historical works I’ve read in recent years. The most outstanding feature of Manhunt is the writing, the author’s result. … [Read more...]
August 29, 2012 by
A recent report by U.S. Army officials indicated that an Army officer made a flawed judgment that led to dangerous outcomes. Back a few months ago, there was a series of violent protests across Afghanistan. The protestors were upset that copies of the Qur'an (Koran) had been burned by American soldiers. The soldiers had committed these acts at installations where captured Taliban soldiers and … [Read more...]
August 28, 2012 by
The last time you embraced a new idea was----when? Let’s delve into this for just a minute or two. In other words, let’s craft the story of it. We’ll probably bump into a point or two that grabs your attention. Before you go further, permit me a quick couple of parameters to help guide you. For starters, the new idea can pertain to anything. It doesn’t have to be especially big or important or … [Read more...]
August 27, 2012 by
In 1950 a passenger train trip from Chicago to Minneapolis required a little more than four hours to complete. Today, the same trip takes more than eight hours. For a variety of reasons--poor track conditions, lower speeds, more stops, and mismanaged scheduling--the time has lengthened. We've taken a step backwards. This points to something I've seen elsewhere. When you go back and look at books … [Read more...]
August 24, 2012 by
I'm offering a new service on a growing basis. I call it the "Leadership Now Walkshop." I take 3-5 people on a walk--an actual walk--to a specific set of places tied to a historical person or event and a defined aspect of leadership. We walk, I tell real stories about the person and event in that historical moment, and my participants listen, look, smell, see, and more. After the walk, we end up … [Read more...]
