As we started this look at building a framework for relational leadership, I mentioned the depth of the networks Cindy and I had established within the organizations we were each with for nearly two decades and I shared how lacking we realized our professional networks were as we stepped outside tho...

Early on, I emphasized how valuable it’s been for me to have close to a dozen people in my life at this point who I can count on for something called “Alliance Feedback,” helping me harness the power of candid conversations. In addition to detailing how I’ve benefited from receiving that alliance fe...

I’ve woven the importance of trust, in one way or another, into every aspect we’ve worked through for leveraging leadership growth. That said, I’m still not sure I’ve done enough to stress how crucial it really is. We’ve all heard the saying, “We do business with people we know, like, and trust.” As...

From the beginning of this look at leveraging leadership growth, we’ve worked through simple things we can each take action on to become more effective through the great professional relationships we likely already have in place. I’ll stress once more: there’s no such thing as a self-made leader. I’...

I’ve been blessed beyond measure by the mentors in my life who have made themselves available. Had each of them not been genuinely focused on seeing people’s worth, there’s no way I would have had so many of the opportunities I’ve experienced. Following those amazing examples, I’ve worked to pay it ...

When we see others’ worth and we’re humbly willing to make ourselves available to them, the time we invest supports their growth in ways we may never fully comprehend. We can easily count the seeds in an apple, but we can’t count the number of apples that come from one seed. By valuing others and be...

Seeing value in and being available for the people around us is critical; not just in a leadership role, but in every aspect of our lives. But just clearing time on our calendar may not be enough to earn trust and get the most possible value from diverse contributions, especially if we don’t display...

We wrap up the first half day session of our Recruitment, Retention, & Culture course with a lesson called “An Ethical Culture with Real Diversity & Inclusion.” The terms diversity, equity, & inclusion have been smeared through the headlines over the last several years, with both praise and condemna...

Near the beginning of chapter six of When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, titled “Time Hacker’s Handbook,” Daniel Pink challenges readers to “Reply quickly email” and shares this:

“Email response time is the single best predictor of whether employees are satisfied with their boss, acco...

I’ve stressed over and over through this process that I’ve never felt like I was overly talented in any given area. Before I move on, I need to stress that I’m not sharing that - yet again - to diminish the value I know I’m capable of adding today; I need you to understand that every step we’ve work...

Over the last twenty-five years, Cindy and I have been extremely focused on building a knowledge network that would help us compensate for our leadership limits. Recognizing who knew what we didn’t know was the first step. Being willing to invest whatever we could, even if that was only our time, in...

I’ve mentioned barely graduating high school several times to this point. I also shared that neither Cindy or I had graduated college when we started our leadership journey (and still haven’t). While my less than stellar performance in high school was more a factor of me being bored, our lack of col...