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Andy Stanley and I had a great conversation on his Leadership podcast. I hope you enjoyed Part 1 where we discussed setting daring destinations for ourselves and our organizations. Today, in Part 2 of our conversation, we’re going to take a deeper dive into the power of bold decisions to
When I was about 11 years old, the oldest of four children, I wrote a letter to my parents telling them all the things that I would do when I became a parent. I would make the younger children behave. I would not let them have privileges until they did
Guest Post by Mark Deterding. Servant leadership is many things, but one thing it is not is “soft”. Servant leaders have high expectations, both for themselves, as well as for their team. There’s only one way I know to make things better in your organization. Create and share clear, reasonable,
It’s up to leaders to set the daring destinations for their teams and organizations. Daring destinations create the dynamic tension between daring and serving that leads to outstanding results and we all want results, right? I was honored to be a recent guest on Andy Stanley’s Leadership Podcast. Andy is
Apparently our human minds can only remember three or four things at once. Psychologists at the University of Missouri published a paper in 2008 entitled “An assessment of fixed-capacity models of visual working memory.”* Up until this study, most researchers thought we could remember seven things at once – like the
Week 2 video from the Leadership Discussion Guide – What is the Daring Destination? Why are we reluctant to pursue a daring destination for the benefit of those we lead? Is it fear of failure? Absence of ideas? Lack of courage? I’m not sure. But this I do know: A
Seems like the whole month of January is one big football game. I’m not complaining. It’s a great sport. This time of year, the stakes are high, as we approach the game of all games, the Super Bowl. The playoff teams are giving the games their best, with hopes of
As we end 2015, I want to thank you for following and commenting on my blog posts each week. I am grateful for the dialog we are having about leaders who dare to serve. This year, my favorite blog post came from a pizza lunch shared with a landscaping team
This week we contemplate the last of forty reflection questions from the book I authored, Dare to Serve. I hope this journey has led you to new thinking about how you lead. I hope you are encouraged to act on these new ideas so that your followers will be well-served.
The following is an excerpt from Dare to Serve: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself; it is thinking of yourself less.” Rick Warren, The Purpose Driven Life I was once being interviewed for a leadership job in a restaurant company. The interviewer, a senior executive at the company, asked
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
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
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