Only 60 days until Christmas – only 67 days until the New Year. Are you ready? If you’re like me, you aren’t ready for either, but we can be! Ready or not, we all have a fresh start waiting for us as we begin 2016. What are you doing NOW to ensure next year will be the best year of your life as a leader?
Engaging and developing others is one of our primary roles as a leader. For some of us this comes very naturally and for others it is a discipline that must be cultivated. Regardless of the ease or rigor required, the leaders we admire the most figure this out.
Over the last year, I’ve had the privilege to speak to thousands of leaders. In virtually every setting, I asked them to send me their leadership questions. I am grateful hundreds have responded. Each week, I try to address at least one question I believe will have broad interest. Today, a question I’ve been asked repeatedly: How do I sell my ideas?
As a follow-up to my recent posts on the importance of thinking for leaders, I promised to share some of my favorite questions to stimulate the process. The truth is, there are countless questions with the power to unlock endless possibilities. What follows are some of the ones I return to over and over again.
IBM founder, Thomas Watson Sr., was famous for his admonition for his people to THINK. He worked diligently to build an organization in which thinking could become a competitive advantage. My goal is more ambitious: I want to help leaders around the world think better!
A few weeks ago, I shared a couple of posts on preparation with the promise of more to come. It’s taken me a few weeks to get back to it, but I wanted to honor that promise. Today, let’s think about how you prepare for a big meeting.
Each Friday, I respond to a question submitted by a leader. The series is called Today’s Challenge. This week’s question comes from a recent event in Birmingham: How do you tell someone they are not a leader – without crushing them?
I went to a funeral today. When’s the last time you went to one? How did it affect you? Do you ever leave a funeral service with questions? I do. One of my recurring questions is… Did the people who spoke say what the deceased would have wanted them to say?
This is the final installment in this short series on big questions leaders ask. The truth is I could write a hundred posts on questions leaders ask. But, rather than write about the many, I’ve chosen to focus on the big three – Where are we going? Where are we today? And, today’s question: How will we get there?
One of the most valuable activities I’ve done in recent years has been unannounced market visits. On more than one occasion, our leadership team has visited 20+ restaurants in 48 hours – about a third of the stops were at our restaurants and the balance were visits to our competitors. Never in my 35-year career have I been more grounded in reality.