Unless you’re hiding under a rock, you’ve likely heard of servant leadership. In a nutshell, servant leaders focus primarily on the growth and wellbeing of people and the communities to which they belong. Traditional leadership often involves accumulating and exercising power by someone “at the top of the pyramid.” Servant leaders, on the other hand,…
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My friend Stephen R. Covey gave us a treasure trove of wisdom about human performance. One of his most enlightening aphorisms was “accountability breeds response-ability.” Stephen was a strong proponent of personal choice and the individual’s right to make behavioral decisions. After all, “be proactive” is number one on his famous list of Seven Habits.…
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Leadership development has always been and will continue to be a pressing need in the workplace. Trouble is, “people development” is often among the first budget items to take a hit in tough times. You may have noticed: We’re living in tough times. But rather than hunker down in a hidey-hole, smart leaders are upgrading…
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Doesn’t it make sense that women who arrive at the top in the workplace should be able to thrive at the top? Sure. But too often they’re regarded as lucky if they merely survive. Today, women hold fewer than 25% of middle management positions, and the percentage gets lower at each rung up the corporate…
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“A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader,” Eleanor Roosevelt said. “A great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves.” That simple statement underscores what’s needed in a world where many people feel overmanaged and underled. Stephen M.R. Covey has devoted his career to helping people make the very most of…
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In the aristocracy of leadership principles, trust is king. For some, trust sounds and feels like a spiritual issue. It is. And even for people who may not regard themselves as “religious,” trust is an all-important anchor. As Teilhard de Chardin wrote, “We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings…
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It’s an understatement to say that Rebecca Contreras had a rough start in life. Born into poverty to a drug-addicted mother, she was abandoned at the age of five. When you hear the whole story of her early years, you might even say that was the good part. Her youth was defined by betrayals, uncertainty,…
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Much has been said and written in recent years about the notion of “purpose.” It usually relates to how individuals identify the issues or causes they choose to champion. When people write personal mission statements, for example, they sometimes wax poetic about plans for using their “true north” values as decision-making guardrails for managing their…
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Jenna Kutcher is crystal clear on what she wants in life, and she’s figured out how to get it. This 30-something Minnesota mom treasures her at-home time with her husband and two little girls. She does the things other moms do—grocery shopping, struggling with nap time, keeping tabs on house repairs, cleaning up spilled Cheerios…
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