By now you’ve likely heard about the evidence against the Illinois Governor.  He is accused of, among other things, trying to sell of trade President-Elect Obama’s open Senate seat for personal gain. It’s sad. But it is a reminder for us as leaders. In my book, Remarkable Leadership, I talk about 13 competencies that lead to

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That’s exactly what a friend/colleague of mine said: “I’ve never made a bad decision.” I have to admit, I was a bit taken aback. “C’mon, never?” That’s a long time…and a lot of decisions. Then she let me off the hook (I’m paraphrasing): I make decisions based on the information I have at the time.

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There is tremendous power in self understanding – to make you a better person, and make you a better leader.  We can journal, reflect and gain feedback to better understand ourselves,or we can engage in executive coaching, where someone helps us create that understanding. Regardless of how we do it, it is vitally important practice for

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I just wrote a post on my Remarkable Learning Blog with that title. It was written from a personal perspective. But I believe it has a powerful leadership message (and opportunity) for as as well. It references an important coaching and mentoring concept:  in order for people (including ourselves) to move forward we must believe

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I’ve always loved Ford Mustangs – specifically ’65 Mustang convertibles. “My Mustang” is candy apple red with white interior. It has a white soft top, white wall tires, sparkling chrome and a great stereo. To be honest, I haven’t thought about Mustangs in a while, but this clip made me fall in love with them all over again: Ford

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In the most recent edition of Wired Daniel Roth wrote this great piece: Back to the Garage: How Economic Turmoil Breeds Innovation. In one of my favorite parts, he says: “With the world’s economies apparently snowballing into a deep recession, it feels uncomfortably Pollyannish to see signs of hope. But for the bravest inventors and

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And Sam Baker, age 9 proves it.  Sam had an idea, shared it, and took the steps (even though I am sure some were scary) to make his vision reality. You see Sam thought his small town in Indiana should have a Christmas tree lighting ceremony. He took his idea to the Ellettsville, IN City

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Wayne Turmel, of Cranky Middle Manager fame, sent me a question the other day and asked me if I would answer it for his newsletter.  (Make sure to subscribe). The question: “I just took over a team I’ve worked with for years. How do I show leadership without looking like I’m “’taking over’?” My (short) answer:

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I just wrote about an important lesson on my Remarkable Learning Blog. While I hope you will go read it in full, the abridged version is this: You can define a simple, but powerful success formula in three steps: 1.  Decide2.  Do3.  Keep Doing While this is important for us as individuals, as leaders the

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It is November 26.  There are 34 days left in 2008 – that is 9.3% of the year.  But once Thanksgiving arrives, some people act as if the year is over. You know, there is the shopping, the parties, the events. There are the vacation days that remain, and those days off – Black Friday, Christmas

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