ChangeThis RSS
"As a senior executive in fields as diverse as Aerospace, Entertainment and Intelligence, I've learned a hard lesson about people and organizations everywhere: they seldom learn from previous failures. To make matters worse, most people not only repeat past mistakes, but fail to learn that they've failed to learn from the past so they go on making the same mistakes over and over again."
Continue reading
"It's time to change the narrative of business. From a winner-take-all tale, no-holds-barred, no matter what the cost to individual firms, investors, the economy, and society, to doing business on the basis of what I call brand ideals, shared ideals of improving people's lives.
Wider adoption and leveraging of brand ideals would be the best medicine the economy could possibly get. Instead of inflating a bubble that would sooner or later burst with tragic consequences for everyone, it would trigger and sustain unprecedented growth in every sector it touched.
Make no mistake, however. The business case for brand ideals is not altruism. It's self-interest and mutual interest. In addition to its wider positive impact, a devotion to brand ideals will do more for your own business and career than any other factor.
Maximum business growth and high ideals are not incompatible. They're inseparable."
Continue reading
"What if your leadership role just felt, well... right: demanding, yes, but fun too; challenging but controllable; intense but invigorating? What if with every step on the ladder of leadership you felt more comfortable, more 'in the zone,' less stressed, less pressured?
What if each successive leadership role brought out more of what makes you you, rather than asking you to compromise your core values, bury your deepest wishes, hold ransom your dreams?
Having coached and advised hundreds of leaders, I know this isn't a pipe dream. From frequent observation, I know that it's not only possible to be relaxed, fulfilled and energized by leadership, it is in fact precisely how the most consistently successful leaders operate.
Continue reading
"I am angry. There are real problems facing the world, and we, as a society, are not doing enough to address them in the right ways, not the ways we know are possible. The old way isn't working, and we know it.
We continue to reward the same behaviors we have rewarded in the past while expecting different results. We profess interest in really doing things differently but settle into routines that are comfortable and safe, and we are fooling ourselves. There are lots of excuses for not making real, demonstrable changes in the way we live, work, and how we interact as individuals and engage in groups/communities. I have heard them all. I have used many of them myself. But they are bullshit. All excuses are. A person either truly, deeply, genuinely cares about changing things or he doesn't. You can step up and do what it takes, in whatever way you can, or you need to acknowledge your limits and accept the results.
What might be possible if we were really committed, as individuals and as a society? I've thought a lot about this, and instead of remaining angry, I choose to embrace the question and figure out how I can use the anger to make things happen."
Continue reading
"Millions of meetings and presentations occur daily. Each of these presentations is meant to drive 'someone' to do 'something.' And what do the vast majority of these presentations have in common? Unfortunately, they usually fail to get anyone to do anything.
There are so many noble causes led by charismatic, effective leaders, yet it is still difficult for many of these leaders to establish a clear message that resonates and connects with their audience, not due to the content or nobility of cause, but because we are all subject to information overload. But, masterful orators have succeeded in every generation, and one factor that has not changed over time is the ability of a master orator to captivate and move audiences, to attain levels of success that many thought were unachievable at the time. And each of them mastered the ABC's of communication."
Continue reading
