How to Define Leadership

How to define leadership. Based upon the number of articles I have read on this topic of late, it appears to be an increasingly complex challenge.

Why all the recent emphasis on leadership?

If you have read my book, Globalization: America’s Leadership Challenge Ahead, you know the answer. The greatest challenge that we face today is not the economy, it’s not the environment or global warming; nor is it poverty, homelessness and world hunger, population growth, scarcity of resources, or world peace and stability – it is leadership.

Leadership Image

Quite frankly, the thing that is sorely lacking in our country and elsewhere is leadership. There is just not enough of it to go around today to solve all the problems we face as a global society. Continue reading…

Life is a Matter of Inches

Life is a matter of inches. Here in America, we saw this tragically displayed this past week in the streets of Boston, the small town of West, Texas, and remotely in the Sichuan province of China where a deadly earthquake claimed the lives of 180 people and injured more than 5,700 others.

Al Pacino’s famous line from his half-time speech in the movie Any Given Sunday repeated over and over in my head as I sat glued to the news reports as last week’s events unfolded in real-time. “The inches we need are everywhere around us” was being played out on every news channel around the globe and in the lives of those affected by these tragic events.

Boston Marathon Bombing

Each day we see examples of how the inches around us can impact lives. A 4.82 second time in the 40 yard dash versus a 4.71 time at the NFL Combine can mean the difference between being selected #32 or #17 in the upcoming NFL draft. A few inches (or seconds) in your finish time in the Boston Marathon or travel time around West, Texas could make the difference between being in the blast zone or not – between life or death. Just ask Joe Berti.

Continue reading…

Who Dresses You For Success?

“If at first you do succeed … try to hide your astonishment.” – Author Unknown

A funny thing happened to me the other day on the way to the Post Office. I was walking across the parking lot when I made eye contact with a woman. She literally stopped dead in her tracks, looked me over, smiled and said, “You are looking rather dapper today, did you dress yourself or did your wife help you?”

Now I am one of the “older guys”, so I rarely receive comments about my appearance these days from members of the opposite sex, other than my wife, so I enjoyed my brief moment in the sun. Responding to her question I just smiled back and replied, “My wife always helps dress me.” Although this isn’t true in the clothing department, it does raise a more interesting topic for discussion.

Dress for Success Image

Who dresses you for success?

In this context, I am not talking about your wardrobe or John T. Malloy’s famous book titled Dress for Success. What I’m referring to is to whom do you contribute your success? Continue reading…

Help Others Through His Example

Earlier this week we said farewell to one of the great motivational speakers and inspirational leaders of all time, when Zig Ziglar passed away. Through his books, cassettes, CD’s, public speaking and personal development programs, Mr. Ziglar has been an inspiration to millions of people around the world.

I first had the opportunity to hear him speak at a one-day business conference in Kansas City over 35 years ago. Mr. Zig Ziglar, along with Art Linkletter and Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, were all electrifying that day. The sold out crowd of several thousand people who attended the conference, like me, were spellbound by the presentations of these great inspirational leaders and came away from the event “on fire”.

Zig Ziglar Image

Although I did not meet him in person at the event, Zig Ziglar’s books, cassettes and The Performance Planner have helped shape my personal and professional life through the years. What has also stayed with me through most of my adult life was his most inspirational quote … Continue reading…

Stand FOR Something or Take a Seat

The past several weeks have been a busy time for Americans. We have provided aid and support to those affected by super storm Sandy, re-elected our President and Vice-President and honored our veterans this past Monday on Veterans Day.

Now with the holidays looming on the horizon, our schedules should get even crazier with holiday parties, shopping and family gatherings. It should be a time for celebration, a time for renewal, and a time for thanks giving, joy and hope. However, I just don’t sense the traditional holiday spirit this year.

Maybe it is the hangover from the presidential campaign, or the growing unrest with the direction of the country that may have taken the air out of the holiday balloon. Speaking of the election, there were more than 207 million U.S. citizens eligible to vote in the 2012 presidential election. However, only 150 million were registered to vote, and roughly 118 million people actually voted. Continue reading…

Do First Impressions Still Matter?

We have all heard the old adage many times over that, “You only get one chance to make a good first impression”. But does this really apply in business today?

This past Saturday I had the opportunity to speak to members of a national association at their annual conference on the topic of “How to Improve Your 30-Second Elevator Pitch”. One of the questions I asked the participants’ was “in a networking group setting today, do first impressions still matter?” Continue reading…

Play Your Square Yard

Some of my fondest memories are of my children playing sports. When my youngest son, Daniel, first began to play Select soccer, I remember how much we enjoyed watching the boys compete and grow together as teammates.

Several of the most competitive matches my son’s club faced in both league play and in tournaments were against a club from Mundelein, Illinois. The Mundelein soccer team was coached by a gentleman originally from Scotland. His players were very disciplined, particularly for their age group, and the transitions on the field and their overall teamwork were amazing to watch.

Recalling the memories of how well these U-9 and U-10 soccer players worked together made me think, “Why can’t business, education and government in the U.S function this cohesively?” If these 9- and 10-year-old boys can do it, why can’t we figure out how to come together to unify America? Continue reading…

Business Survival Checklist

All business owners are looking for ways to improve top-line revenues, reduce expenses and increase profits in order to grow their respective businesses. However, the troubling economy and other factors have forced many of these same business owners to replace the word “grow” with the word “survive”.

The majority of business owner’s I have met with in the past all responded with the same answer when I have asked them, “what is the one thing that is critical to your business success”. The simple answer is “more customers”. More profitable customers are the life-blood for any viable business.

Every successful business has or should have a universal checklist of the things that are central to acquiring new customers, growth and yes, survival.

Here is the list of ten things that I believe should be included in your Business Survival Checklist:

  1. Business/Marketing/Financial Roadmap. What are your existing plans to deliver maximum ROI performance in the next 12-24 months, 3-5 years, 5-10 years and 10+ years? The roadmap for your business, at a minimum, should address the next two fiscal years. Don’t be too optimistic – it is much better to over-deliver on your projections than to fall short. Continue reading…

How Should We Respond to Change?

The only constant in life is change. Heraclitus of Ephesus was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, known for his doctrine of change. He believed that change was central to the universe, and fundamental to the natural order of the cosmos. Well, if change is central to the natural order of the universe, then why do we still continue to struggle with change in our lives today?

One of mankind’s greatest contradictions is that the majority of us seeks change in our lives daily, both professionally and personally. Yet, we fiercely resist change when it does occur. President Obama won the presidential election largely because the electorate felt he embodied the change most voters needed in our country. Now, the two political parties are tearing themselves and the country apart as a result of the changes made during Obama’s presidency. Is this an appropriate response to change? Hardly. Continue reading…

Faith, Free-Will and Leadership: Our Dilemma?

As business leaders and private citizens, most of us struggle with a dilemma when it comes to faith, free-will and leadership. Proportionally, where should the emphasis be placed with respect to each of these three areas when making life-changing decisions? Do we make these life choices guided by faith, based solely on our own instincts and experiences, or do we seek out the advice and counsel of others. And how much control of the outcome are we willing to give up in the process?

In reality though, the decision-making process is really not that complicated, is it? Far too often we’ve heard people say “it is in God’s hands now” when they are faced with life-altering challenges or major decisions in their lives. I’m not saying that we should not seek God’s guidance and favor through prayer. Quite the opposite. However, are we not denying our own free-will and right to choose by placing the burden for decisions within our control solely upon our Heavenly Father? Continue reading…