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There have been a lot of challenging circumstances lately. World pandemic. Economic crisis. Culture crisis of racial injustice. People are struggling. Overwhelmed by the layers of anxiety. My mother could get COVID-19. My husband lost his job. My neighborhood is protesting. My friend is hurting. My country is divided. And
In the early days of the COVID-19 crisis, leaders had a full plate just dealing with the immediate implications of closed operations, employee safety, rapid cash flow decline, and more. By now, most have created a new plan for 2020 that reflects this unprecedented challenge. In light of this progress,
What have you learned in the last 30 days? Will you remember it 30 days from now? Just a few weeks ago our worlds turned upside down and many of us found ourselves unable to do the things we normally do. Go to our job site. Go to the gym.
“Courage is rightly esteemed the first of human qualities, because, as has been said, it is the quality which guarantees all others.” – Winston Churchill Nothing like a global pandemic to reveal the courage and character of our leaders. If you aspire to be the top leader of a business
In the last week, most of us have experienced a dramatic change in our schedules and environments. Many are now working from their homes or are without a job. It all happened so suddenly, leaving us reeling from the degree of change in our lives. So, since the changes in
I heard this story some years ago that has stuck in my mind. It was about a village that depended on a mountain stream for their water. For years, at the top of that stream, there was an old man who made it his work to keep the stream clear
Throughout my career, I’ve been involved in lots of discussions about compensation for business leaders. Perhaps the most common thesis for motivating executives is “make them feel like owners.” That typically leads to a discussion of bonuses and stock awards — that are paid when goals are met. No doubt,
At a business lunch last week, my colleague said, “You can’t ask someone if they have integrity.” Isn’t that the truth? You cannot evaluate a person’s integrity by asking them about it. In fact, in my experience, asking them almost guarantees an inaccurate answer. The word integrity means “a firm
If you know me well, you know how much I love big ideas – those inspired daring destinations. I love innovation in every aspect of the business – new products, new advertising, new technology, new designs, new distribution systems. The bolder, the more innovative, the better. You also know my
Whew. The election is over. The campaign advertising has stopped. Back to work we go… Don’t get me wrong. I am very grateful to live in the United States – a republic where the people elect their leaders. I have never seen a better system of government in my travels
Reading a newsfeed on my iPad last month, a headline captured my attention. “The World Took a Negative Turn in 2017.” The news story? The Gallup organization measures the emotional state of most countries in the world each year. The 2017 survey results show a sharp increase in negative emotions – stress,
There is a book titled Culture Eats Strategy for Lunch, by Curt W. Coffman and Kathie Sorensen, Ph.D. The title makes corporate culture sound important, strong, high-impact. Yet in far too many places, building corporate culture is considered a “soft skill.” Squishy, hard to pin down, outright marshmallow material. So
Saturday afternoon, I went out for tacos with my daughter and her family. The restaurant was a fun local place—and the dining area was decorated with a whole host of bumper stickers. On the wall next to our table, the bumper stickers had a theme. Life is good. Work is
I am excited to be back in the blogosphere talking to you about leadership. The second edition of Dare to Serve hits the market in just a couple of weeks, and I can’t wait for you to see the new chapters. You can jump on Amazon today and pre-order your
Excerpt from Dare to Serve: How to Drive Superior Results by Serving Others I was once being interviewed for a leadership job in a restaurant company. The interviewer, a senior executive at the company, asked me about my approach to leadership. I said that I developed teams of highly competent
Last week I was getting ready to board a flight at Newark airport. The arriving plane was late and the gate crew was rushing around to quickly get that plane ready to go. The gate agent called the first group of passengers to board, but as they got down the
Excerpt from Dare to Serve: How to Drive Superior Results by Serving Others About ten years ago, I developed a bit of an obsession. Of everyone I met, I started asking this question: “Why do you work?” You could see them trying to figure out what answer I was looking
Excerpt from Dare to Serve: How to Drive Superior Results by Serving Others I have a weird personality. I only want to work on big, huge, hard things. Maybe it is my wiring of being an idea person. Maybe it is my love of turnaround opportunities. Maybe it reflects my
Excerpt from Dare to Serve: How to Drive Superior Results by Serving Others I began studying different approaches to leadership several years ago and that’s when I first encountered the idea of servant leadership. Robert Greenleaf introduced the concept of the servant leader in the late seventies – one who
Excerpt from Dare to Serve: How to Drive Superior Results by Serving Others It’s no secret people matter to me. I consider the most important aspect of my career the opportunity to coach and develop people. Coaching and developing people is a signature trait of a servant leader and servant
While touring restaurants in Chicago a few years ago, I met a restaurant manager who was doing a great job and doing it with great joy. It was obvious in everything she did that she was in this job for a reason. I asked her what she enjoyed most about her job
When I think of you, I wish that every employee in our company had your traits. I can only imagine what our business results would be if they did. To celebrate the way that you contribute to each day, I have brought together this list of the Top 10 Things
It’s January, and everyone is working on our New Year’s resolutions. We’re goal setting. We’re working out. We’re dieting. We’re planning new projects. We’re organizing our calendars. In our work life, many of us have a goal this year to get promoted, change jobs, and perhaps join a bigger company.
I want to take this opportunity to thank you for following my blog The Purpose of Leadership in 2013. I am grateful for your insights and comments — you are enriching my own leadership journey each week. Because it is hard to keep up with weekly blog posts, this week I
In America it is the season of Christmas. The familiar holiday carols are playing on the radio. The Christmas trees are decorated. The malls are full of shoppers hunting for gifts. And the calendar is full of holiday parties. The season is both a festive celebration and on the other
A Popeyes employee sent me an email recently. He said he had been working on a school project with his daughter on the Maslow theory of human needs. He wondered if I had considered how this theory applies to the workplace and to servant leadership. My response – if leaders
Over 30-years ago, a friend told me a story. I’ve never found a source. A rabbi asked his congregation to go to the worry tree and place every difficulty and worry they had on the branches of the tree. He then asked the people to walk around the worry tree
This weekend I had the honor of teaching leadership at The Gloucester Institute Emerging Leaders Program entitled. A Brand Called You. This program assembles approximately thirty highly motivated African-American undergraduate students with excellent leadership potential. Over the course of the year, they are trained in leadership, writing, speaking, and critical
Servant leadership is so important, so aspirational, so ambitious, we must take time to rest. This week the purpose of my blog is simply to remind you that great leaders rest. “Everything needs a break.” ~ Toba Beta “It is the joy of work well done that enables us to enjoy
One of the blessings of my role at Popeyes is the opportunity I have to meet and learn from amazing leaders. This week was exceptional, meeting 10 leaders in four very different businesses: CEO of General Electric, Jeff Immelt; former U.S. President, George W. Bush; CEO, Jim Haudan of Root
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