Another day, another poll telling us that managers are miserable and their teams are just as cranky. Shocking, right? I’ve been coaching executives and blogging about leadership for over 20 years. So have thousands of others—some with podcasts, TED Talks, and Instagram-worthy hair. And yet… nothing changes. Companies still hire managers based on résumés, vibes, […]
I’ve worked with young executives—yes, even CEOs—who are undeniably smart but utterly unmoored in how they lead and manage. What’s missing? A personal operating system. Not some productivity app with a quirky name, but a real internal framework that guides their decisions and behavior. This is where bright, energetic founders—with little or no management seasoning—start […]
As our current administration continues its whiplash-inducing habit of making knee-jerk decisions, many businesses are being upended—or made irrelevant. Some probably deserve it. Many don’t. If you’re leading a company caught in the crossfire of regulatory, financial, or political chaos, it’s time to ask a hard question: Is your business model still the best way to […]
Being a CEO has always been hard—but never harder than the stretch that started with COVID, slogged through the “WFH or not” chaos (still unresolved), and got sucker-punched by the 17-times-rebooted tariff debacle. It’s been a perfect storm of instability—like a tornado in a trailer park. As one seasoned (and successful) CEO told me, “The […]
I’ve been thinking about anecdotal evidence lately—mostly because it’s fueling some baffling policy decisions at the federal level. You know, those moments when someone confidently ignores actual data and declares, “Well, my cousin tried it and it worked great!” Unfortunately, this kind of logic isn’t limited to politics. It’s alive and well in the business […]
I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about AI and our future, and I’m still left with more questions than answers. In fact, I have almost nothing but questions—but at least they keep evolving, so I count that as progress! Some of my questions are big-picture, like: How does an economy function in a world that may […]
When you were a kid, did your parents ever look at you—maybe after some “creative” decision—and say, “That was good judgement!” or “You did not use good judgement!”? Be honest: at that point in your life, did you actually know what they meant? Or were you just guessing, chalking it up to luck or their […]
Yesterday, as I looked out my home office window, I spotted a young, energetic black Labrador zigzagging across my neighbor’s yard. Nose to the ground, she was clearly on a mission. Ten minutes later, my wife came upstairs and asked me to check out a different window. There, perched 15 feet in the air, was […]
“Random activity hoping for an above-average return on assets.” You’ve likely never read that in a finance or business class, yet it describes the so-called “strategy” employed by too many leaders. Successful organizations thrive when guided by well-thought-out ideas. The two key reasons for having these ideas embedded throughout your organization are alignment and resource allocation (both financial and […]
I need a two-week vacation with frozen libations And flip-flops propped up and a view Of a wide-open ocean where the world’s in slow motion An umbrella, two blue chairs, and you —Zac Brown Band, Two Blue Chairs and You Many of my clients over the years have sucked at vacations. Some didn’t take them […]