One of the reasons I’m excited about my new book, The Heart of Leadership, is my belief it can help a lot of leaders whose careers are stalled. Granted, the reasons leaders struggle can be multi-faceted. In some cases, a leader’s challenges are out of his or her control – I get that. However, most often, I believe leaders make their own future.
For almost a year, I’ve been devoting one post a week to answer a question from a reader. Today, the question is about a challenge virtually every organization faces – How do you measure leadership development?
Last week, I started a post on the critical importance of infrastructure for organizations that want to grow. To pick up where we left off, I define infrastructure as…
The critical, behind the scenes elements and activities required for the sustained growth and vitality of the organization.
Leaders are learners. To learn we must stretch. To be stretched, we must be uncomfortable. Are you uncomfortable? Is something in your world causing you to learn new skills, establish new habits or strengthen your character? I hope so!
During a recent session with my trainer, I had a new thought… Before I share it, let me tell you a little about Vince. He’s the one on the right in the photo below. Vince is not just a trainer – he’s a philosopher, a life coach, an accountability partner and a friend. A great combination if you can find all these attributes in one individual! I’m extremely thankful for his influence in my life – well beyond my physical fitness. Back to my revelation…
Hans Finzel is the first person I heard say, “There is no success without a successor.” I’ve heard of leaders “trapped” in their current role because they didn’t have anyone prepared to move into their position. I’ve also talked to my share of leaders who’ve been caught short when someone left unexpectedly. These scenarios all reflect Today’s Challenge: How do we ensure an adequate supply of leaders for the future?
I’ve been a student and practitioner of leadership for many years. I’ve seen literally thousands of leaders up close over a 35-year career. It’s been fun to look for patterns and themes. One of the questions, I’ve tried to answer is this, “Why do some leaders stall while others, in very similar circumstances, soar?”