[December 18, 2014] Americans like their leaders and their heroes to be bold, tough, and brave. We all loved John Wayne in those action war movies, especially when he led a desperate group of men to attack the enemy bad guys. My personal favorite is The Green Berets starring John Wayne, David Janssen, and Jim Hutton. But playing… Read More »
[December 17, 2014] Many years ago as a military unit commander, I was involved in a training exercise that went poorly. My company was to participate in an attack on a simulated enemy position. We failed miserably. We failed so badly that the enemy hardly knew we were there. I felt lower than a snake’s belly. When I… Read More »
[December 15, 2014] A major concern in the military and business world is the decline in the professionalism of their leaders. While this depends on how we define the concept of professionalism, there is no doubt that professionalism and leadership are inextricably linked. The concern is so great that many organizations search for professionalism in the most unlikely… Read More »
[December 11, 2014] As a child I was told that if I believed hard enough, wishing on a falling star would make my wish come true. As mature adults we know that wishing something to be true is not sufficient to make it so. As leaders we must be aware of slipping into that the trap that wishing… Read More »
[December 10, 2014] Jacob Comstock is an unassuming kind of guy; the type you would find at the local bar having a beer with friends. Yet, he is a champion of the manly sport known as “demolition derby.” Participants in the sport have to have a bit of courage mixed with a lot of aggressive driving skills and… Read More »
[December 08, 2014] A few years ago I was with a group of senior officers discussing the challenges of insurgent warfare with U.S. General Stanley McChrystal. We talked about “reverse mentoring.” That’s when our younger soldiers – who were more informed of recent developments – instructed us more senior leaders. This is the reverse of how mentoring is… Read More »
[December 07, 2014] Today is a day to pay our respect to U.S. service members and civilians who were killed or wounded on December 7, 1941 when the Japanese Imperial Navy attacked the U.S. Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. I have been fortunate to have spoken to several military survivors of the attack and hear their amazing… Read More »
[December 06, 2014] New readers of theLeaderMaker.com have asked me (via my email account) to summarize the major themes of my blog. Of course, I’m only too happy to help. Hence this post today that lays down some of my personal beliefs on leadership. My blog themes are sometimes eclectic and oft times unusual but never without a… Read More »
[December 05, 2014] They think it’s pretty darn important. Well, that’s no surprise … but there’s much more to this story, of course. While most senior leaders know a great deal about leadership, there remains neither a clarifying definition nor consensus on the key traits of what makes a great leader (thus my blog). There are, however, components… Read More »
[December 04, 2014] Ever witness your boss express his anger at someone by screaming or cussing? If you have, you are one of the majorities of people that have had the experience. This type of anger expression is relatively mild but can be worse and its study can provide us with an opportunity to learn a leadership lesson.… Read More »