Battle of Antietam: September 17, 1862

By | September 17, 2013

[September 17, 2013]  Known as the Battle of Antietam (or alternatively as the Battle of Sharpsburg), this was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Union soil. It is the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with 22,717 dead, wounded, and missing on both sides combined. The Battle of Antietam ended the… Read More »

Characteristic #7: Selecting the Right People

By | September 17, 2013

[September 17, 2013]  One of the key attributes of senior executive leaders is their ability to select the right people for the right job.  Unfortunately, sometimes people are chosen even to be senior leaders who turn out to be stunning failures. Choosing leaders is not just a difficult task, but new senior executive leaders should quickly establish their… Read More »

Characteristic #6: On Being Honest

By | September 16, 2013

[September 16, 2013]  Honesty and integrity are absolutely essential for success in life – all areas of life.  The really good news is that anyone can develop both honesty and integrity.    – Zig Ziglar, author, motivational speaker, salesman. There is a short-list of values that are essential to all leaders.  One of the most important among them is… Read More »

Profile: General Douglas MacArthur

By | September 15, 2013

[September 15, 2013]  As part of this blog’s profiles in senior executive leadership, the first great leader will be an obvious choice: General Douglas MacArthur.  William Manchester writes of General MacArthur that:  He was a great thundering paradox of a man, noble, and ignoble, inspiring and outrageous, arrogant and shy, the best of men and the worst of… Read More »

Characteristic #4: Urgent and Important Matters

By | September 12, 2013

[September 12, 2013]  Henry Kissinger saw that one of the challenges of senior leaders on foreign policy was being able to discern between urgent and important matters, and then developing procedures to keep the urgent from overcoming the important. What the Honorable Kissinger was saying is that leaders are sometimes so busy coping with urgent issues, like the… Read More »

The Twelfth 9/11 Anniversary (Updated)

By | September 11, 2013

[September 11, 2013]  Today marks the 12th year since the multiple, horrific attacks that put the United States on a path to weeding out an enemy who had long been against all things western.    Today we honor those who were killed and wounded in this attack and to say thank-you to the men and women who have put their… Read More »

Characteristic #2: Building Trust and Confidence

By | September 9, 2013

[September 9, 2013]  A fundamental attribute of the senior executive leader is the ability to build trust and confidence in the people who work for us, supervisors, peers and associates, and clients. Building and management of that trust and confidence ranks as one of the top factors to achieve and sustain high levels of organizational strength.  It is… Read More »