My alma mater TCU got crushed in the CFB National Championship game. It was disappointing to watch our team get dismantled by a very good Georgia team. Georgia would have won the Super Bowl that night! As much as I was proud of the team and our accomplishments, I was struck by what TCU Head […]
Read More #bouncebackfromfailure, #resiliency, #SonnyDykes, #TCU, Leadership
I just finished Greg McKeown’s book Essentialism. It is a must read. I am blessed to work with exceptional leaders who are successful but struggle with doing too much; being all things to all people. They struggle to say no to requests in order to avoid conflict and not hurt other’s feelings. They feel they […]
Read More Essentialism, Greg McKeown, Leadership, Priority Management
We all have one. When was the last time you shared your story with someone you trust? Like many of you it has been a very long time, or you never have done it. It is important to understand how our experiences, and our story shape who we are and how we think and behave. […]
Read More ConsciousLeadership, Leadership
A very dear friend of mine (Jim) unexpectedly lost his 67-year-old brother (Mark) to heart failure a few weeks ago. I was fortunate to have known Mark and to have the pleasure of spending a week with him and others playing golf in Scotland last May. On the first day of the trip as we […]
Read More LeadershipI am reading an excellent book called The Soul of Shame by Curt Thompson. A friend recommended it to me as we were discussing how this strong emotion shows up in our daily lives. Over half of the executives I work with deal with shame. Shame activates a whole host of feelings that include embarrassment, […]
Read More emotion, Leadership, shameI just returned from a two-week holiday in South Africa and Zimbabwe. It was an amazing, thrilling and reflective time for me. I purposefully unplugged from my iPhone and iPad. This trip has been on my bucket list for a long time. I wanted to ensure that I was present so that I could immerse […]
Read More Culture, Leadership, self-awareness
When was the last time you gave yourself a break from the day to day activities that consume you at work? I work with a lot of busy executives and many of them find it difficult to stop, pause and take a break from the action. One of the reasons it is so difficult is […]
Read More Leadership, self-awarenessJoe Maddon, the manager of the Chicago Cubs, has 13 principles he uses to manage and lead himself and his team. Maddon’s first three principles build on each other. Without personal relationships, you cannot have trust. If trust does not exist, it is hard to respect others. Without trust and respect it is impossible to […]
Read More Chicago Cubs, Leadership, MaddonI met with a leader this past week who was very frustrated with his team and their hesitation or resistance to provide meaningful perspectives and insights about an important issue facing the organization. We talked about the meeting and what he was observing about his behaviors and actions. With some probing, he was able […]
Read More LeadershipMy beloved Cubs won the National League Pennant for the first time in 71 years. The goat is history and it is on to the World Series. As a leader, what can you learn from the Chicago Cubs and how they built a winning team? Here are 2 important leadership lessons: It starts at the […]
Read More Chicago Cubs, Leadership, Strategy, Theo Epstein, Tom Ricketts