By guest blogger Richard Nolan [see Biography] [August 13, 2017] Why are team building activities unpopular amongst most employees? Well, these are events that organizers think employees would enjoy but instead, they end up being stressful and tiresome. Despite this, the importance of team building exercises is rather crucial to the growth of any small or large sized… Read More »
[August 12, 2017] In 1776 General George Washington feared the superior British Navy might blockade New York City, isolating it from communications with other territory of the American Colonies. Yet when British General William Howe attacked and destroyed the Americans at Gowanus Pass in Brooklyn Heights, he failed to follow-up by storming the Patriot redoubts. This allowed the… Read More »
[August 10, 2017] Legends are powerful stories about the past that are circulated, traditionally, by word of mouth. Having lived in Brooklyn, New York one legend that always fascinated me was about the Newsies strike of 1899 in which newspaper-hawkers, nearly all young boys, refused to sell newspapers because of a hike in the price they were forced… Read More »
[August 9, 2017] A good friend of mine (I’ll call her Jane) lied about her minor criminal background on her application to be a U.S. Army officer; this happened many decades ago. Jane was commissioned a lieutenant, received a secret clearance, performed well, and years later was considered for the rank of Brigadier General. When leaders lie bad… Read More »
[August 6, 2017] It was instantly recognizable for its meaning to the soldiers waiting their turn to interview for Ranger School; the elite of U.S. Army schools and the one most respected. Good is the enemy of great, carved in wood and hung above the desk of the most senior enlisted man at the school, was meant to… Read More »
[August 5, 2017] The ability to get into the mind of great leaders – thus to understand both their decision-making and their motivations – is the perfect way toward the wisdom of leadership. The problem, of course, is doing this is impossible but we can discover hints about them.1 Today, I’ll explore Egyptian King Narmar, a man we… Read More »
[August 4, 2017] The evening was pleasant, not just with the weather, but to see so many of those who help make our community better at our local National Night Out here in southern New Jersey. One prominent group participating was Last Salute – those who provide a last salute to our fallen brothers (and sisters too). I… Read More »
[July 30, 2017] On a recent Friday morning I had the honor and privilege to attend a U.S. Navy Boot Camp graduation, located about an hour north of Chicago, Illinois. It was a proud day for everyone involved and it made all of us happy for those who made the decision to join the military. But this is… Read More »
[July 28, 2017] The United States Marines Corps’ leaders are fond of saying that the foundation for leadership is character, intellect, and integrity. They also make it clear that character is higher (meaning of greater value) than intelligence as a foundation for leaders.1 In doing so they have based their understanding on many of the world’s greatest philosophers… Read More »
[July 27, 2017] Leadership failure has been around since humans began to walk on this Earth but it has also been big in the news recently; anytime one listens to the media, failure is there glaring us in the face. Lately, the focus has been on political leadership failures but for our purposes here we should not ignore… Read More »