[January 14, 2015] We hear a lot about heroes in everyday life in the United States. “All our soldiers are heroes,” one lady told me yesterday when I asked her she thought about her son being in the U.S. Army. Our police officers and firemen are also called heroes. But common use of the term has us now… Read More »
[January 12, 2015] A minor theme here in this blog has been the biased reporting of the various news media. When it occurs, the bias often distorts reporting on our military and police forces and as such is deep rooted, contrary to cultural norms, and purposeful. It also reflects poorly on our nation’s senior leaders because they sometimes… Read More »
[January 11, 2015] A good friend that I will call “John”, an admiral retired from the U.S. Navy about a year, tells me that looking back gives him a healthier perspective. As many do, he keeps in touch with his active military comrades. He tells me that if there is one thing that angered him, it was that… Read More »
[January 10, 2015] Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi has stepped forward to become one of the world’s most important senior leaders. What he has been saying and doing is the epitome of real leadership at the highest level. El-Sisi is Muslim and yet works to unify both Christian and Muslims, and also to improve stability in the region. He… Read More »
[January 09, 2015] Those employed in private business are likely to know a military veteran in the workplace. Not surprisingly, that veteran is more likely to show good leader traits and is more likely to be trusted, relative to their peers. Why veterans take on leadership jobs and quickly do well in business leader roles is no accident.… Read More »
[January 08, 2015] In Part 1 of this why veterans fail series, I proposed that military veterans who fail more than their peers would likely have failed anyway. Many veterans will see this if they look closely at the issue, as surely as I have. I argue that there are two possible factors. First, the self-election of those… Read More »
[January 07, 2015] Anyone familiar with the debate over why veterans fail at a greater rate in college, business, and other measures of wellness, know that the most customary reason given is their inability to integrate back into society. I would like to propose a more fundamental view and that is U.S. military veterans fail more often because they… Read More »
[January 04, 2014] My grandmother told me to always do the right thing – and grandmothers are always giving the best of advice. As leaders we are obligated to do what we believe to be the right thing. For example, U.S President Obama has repeatedly invoked this to justify executive actions on immigration, health care, etc. Yet, if… Read More »
[January 03, 2014] Learning about leadership starts at a young age. As a little boy in the late 1950s, when visiting my grandparents, I was sent to the fields to pick cotton by hand. After my first day, my grandfather paid me my wage of 10 cents. That day I learned valuable lessons on leadership I didn’t realize… Read More »
[January 02, 2014] As the 2015 New Year begins, people across the globe will resolve to improve their lives and perhaps the lives of others. Leaders can also use this tradition to reinforce their determination to do better. Here is a list of 10 things that you might consider as part of your leader resolutions: Be a mentor:… Read More »