Leadership Perspectives

Talking about what matters

Last night I had a peculiar dream. I was driving on a wide, two-lane commercial road near my home.  Suddenly, in front of me, there was an elephant.  I mean a real honest-to-goodness live elephant.  He was in my lane, staring straight at me, and he did not look happy. As I slowed down and […]

Do you want to be right or do you want to win?

Recently, I had a most singularly rewarding experience when a client told me that something I had asked her weeks before profoundly changed her relationship with the world. When she repeated my question, I had to smile.  Many years ago, a man that I coached – a man that worked for me in my corporate […]

To communicate better, rewrite your conversations

Have you ever had a conversation and then wished you could have a do-over?  Perhaps you struggled to succinctly express your point, observed that your words did not have the impact that you intended, or left a conversation feeling dissatisfied? This happens to leaders all the time.  Many leaders who are extroverts find out what […]

7 things extraverts and introverts can each do to be better leaders

In my last post, I asked you to make a list of all the ways that your preference for introversion or extraversion may help you in your leadership endeavors.  (To understand whether you prefer introversion or extraversion, read Do you prefer extraversion or introversion?  Your leadership style may depend upon it.)  Then I suggested that […]

Want to improve your relationships? Change your lens.

Sometimes in the drive to get things done, leaders inadvertently run roughshod over people.  Yet, these same leaders are horrified to find that others perceive them to be uncaring, not compassionate, or even downright abrasive.  They lament that they really do care about people and they hate that they are perceived as they are. Regardless, […]

The 7 Habits live on

Bestselling author Stephen R. Covey died this week of injuries that he sustained from a bicycle accident in April.  (Official Press Release.) We know the great personal loss of his passing to his family and those who knew him.  It is a great loss to the rest of us as well, who benefited from his […]

To make things happen, focus on the future, not the past

Most of the conversations that people have, especially when they are trying to get things done, seem to be about things that have happened in the past.  That’s ironic since nothing gets done in the past.  If you want to get things done, you have to talk about the future and the possibilities that exist […]

Explain yourself, please

Recently, in talking with a leader, I asked her whether she was currently fulfilling her full potential on her team.  She answered honestly that she probably was not.  She wanted to but sometimes felt that communication on her executive team was hit or miss and she sometimes lacked a clear view of the big picture.  […]