This month I would like to make a few suggestions on how to effectively coach and how to effectively be coached. If you are in a leadership role, one of your primary responsibilities is to coach your direct reports. It will make you a better leader and it will add value to those you lead…

This time of year is designed to be about giving and the power of gifts. It usually does not work out as designed as the giving sometimes turns into a frantic focus on urgency and the anxiety that goes with choosing the right gift. I want to encourage you to be mindful during this time…

Continuing Onward Under Rigorous And Grinding Experiences Judy House, the best boss I ever reported to, used to say to me, “Mike, the higher you move in an organization the less freedom you have.” In any endeavor where you have people looking to you for leadership, they are watching you and waiting to see how…

Great leadership doesn’t require lofty positions. Leadership is the degree to which you are willing to influence those around you. The key to great influence is your values. What do you value most? To what extent do you exercise your influence in places and in ways that make a difference and are aligned with your…

Relax! I’m not calling you a coward…yet. I am simply asking you to take a moment to evaluate the extent to which courage and fear each influence the way you live and work. I am not here to judge, just to ask tough questions: “What are you afraid of?” “What is the most courageous thing…

Never make a life or business altering decision in a moment of high emotional intensity, especially when that emotion is fear or anxiety. There have been more regrettable decisions made because of what we are afraid of than probably any other emotional state. Fear manifests when you think about what will happen or what won’t…