As the school year wraps up, I reflect on the intersection of learning a new skill and encouragement. My daughter is nearing the end of her first year of playing the trumpet for her middle school band. From my perspective, she’s done remarkably well. To hear her tell it though, you’d form a different conclusion….
Communication
Leadership Communication is Vital During a Crisis
Even though it happened over 20 years ago, the memory is vivid: While working in corporate America, I was waiting for a fax for one of my projects. Upon hearing the sound of an incoming fax, I grabbed the paper off the machine, read it, and then lost all thought of the task on which…
Tips for Maintaining Your Focus as a Leader
In the new book The Disciplined Leader, John Manning writes about the importance of focus—and how it drives leadership success. After reading the book, I had the opportunity to ask John some follow up questions. What follows is an edited version of our conversation. Jen: In the book’s introduction, you write that leaders must learn…
16 Discussion Questions to Help You Lead Better Meetings
Does leading meetings frustrate you? Maybe you have someone in your meeting who has ideas— lots of them—who can’t seem to shut up. Or perhaps it’s the opposite issue: meeting participants are shutting down good discussion in the interest of “keeping things moving.” If either of the scenarios sounds familiar, then you will want to…
52 Messages for Becoming a Disciplined Leader
As a leader, are you committed to “relentless self-control and positive work habits?” In the book The Disciplined Leader, author John Manning makes the case for discipline, writing that effective leaders employ “consistent application of certain mindsets and actions that are vital for [their] success.” Yet, as Manning found when he began conducting research for…