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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
The following is an excerpt from Dare To Serve: In developing dare to serve leaders, I have witnessed another stumbling block – the absence of personal responsibility. If one believes they have been a victim in this life or if they have a propensity to blame others for their problems,
The following is an excerpt from Dare To Serve: The stories of prisoners of war are both heart-breaking and inspiring. Our hearts break for the horrible things done to prisoners to defeat their dignity. And then we hear the story of the prisoner who was not defeated. Through intense focus,
Will having a personal purpose change your life? I believe so. But the bigger and more important question is – will your personal purpose change other people’s lives for the better? One of our Popeyes franchisees has a purpose “to make at least 10 restaurant leaders millionaires.” I realize this
A few years ago, I went to see the movie Hugo – the story of a young boy, who loses both parents at a young age, and ends up living with a drunken uncle in the clock tower of the Paris train station. The child, Hugo, is fascinated with the
When I was about nine years old, I begged my parents to let me take a gymnastics class. About halfway through the class, my parents came to observe my prowess as a gymnast. I gave it my best – but struggled through the somersault and couldn’t do a cartwheel. On
A couple of weeks ago my daughter was teaching me how to make a chocolate soufflé. She is amazing in the kitchen – and I am barely functional. As part of my soufflé training, she was explaining to me why you put cream of tartar in the mix instead of
Recently I was asked this question: when did you first know that you were a leader? My answer is too easy. I was the oldest of four children. Babysitting at the tender age of nine is my first memory of leadership responsibility. According to my siblings, I was a bit
Tuesday afternoon, I spent a couple of hours with fourteen emerging leaders at Popeyes. This is a group of young leaders who have organized themselves to connect with each other and grow their leadership capabilities. They are primarily Millennials who have been with Popeyes in office or field positions for
Wallenda does daring tight rope acts – over canyons and cities – while we stand and watch with awe. He is so bold and daring, we watch with terrified anticipation. There is a chance he will fall and die, and there is a chance he will safely make the crossing.
When you search the web for an image representing a big idea, you get a lot of pictures of light bulbs. Why is that? Was the light bulb the last big idea? Is it the only symbol of transformative technology? What is it about the light bulb that makes it
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