Chantal Bechervaise is one of those people who makes you think, “I want the opportunity to work with her sometime.” She is fun and thoughtful, professional and supportive. She has a good sense of humor as well as the wisdom to find deep truths. Chantal is exactly the person whose insights about joy and work I want to read. Thank you, Chantal, for trading guest posts with me. “When work is a pleasure, life is a joy! When work is... Read more
Some leaders are almost electric. You can feel the energy radiate from them. They are a source of power that ignites the hearts and minds of the people around them. They attract people like magnets. They can focus their energy on accomplishing their goals. The leaders who generate energy do not need an external connection to a power source. They need to take time to recharge. The source of their energy is within them. The leaders who generate energy do... Read more
I belong to a liturgical church, which divides the year into liturgical seasons. A new season, Lent, began this week on Ash Wednesday. People tend to either ignore Lent altogether or have a somewhat shallow appreciation of what Lent is all about. Lent is not a second chance to work on our New Year’s resolutions. Lent is not about becoming stronger people, or showing everyone what strong people we already are. Lent is not about earning more spiritual points. Lent... Read more
Letting go can be a challenge for me. On my good days I am persistent, focused, and tenacious. On other days I can be stubborn. Because it is such a challenge, I am learning powerful lessons about letting go. I tend to put off letting go until there is no other option. I want to do everything I can to solve every problem. Letting go feels like giving up, which feels like failing. If only I try a little harder,... Read more
Leaders take initiative to make things better. Leaders can see what needs to be done, and organize to accomplish it. Leaders have wisdom and insight, as well as the ability to make things happen. It is the balance of those qualities that inspires people to follow them. Leaders need to know what to do. Knowing themselves well and knowing the people around them give them deeper appreciation for the most effective approaches. No matter what situation they face, the path... Read more
We cling to what we think we know. One of the things that makes us willing to explore is how we trust what we believe we have already learned. Many of us spend our lives looking for solutions and right answers. When we accumulate a piece of the truth, we are certain we can depend on it. We treat physical possessions the same way. We spend our time working to make money so we can afford to buy things. We... Read more
Each day is a new link in a chain that stretches back before I can remember and out into unforeseen potential. Today is a day to celebrate the days that have gone before, and to anticipate the days that are coming. I was not always certain that today would actually arrive, that I would get this far. Now it seems like I have barely started. This is my 500th post on the StrategicMonk blog. There have been book reviews, interviews,... Read more
I know people in positions of leadership who expect others to open doors for them. There is always someone there to get them where they need to go. They are confident that someone will be there with an umbrella when it is raining. They know that someone else has made arrangements for them. They have people to take care of them. The leaders who inspire me open doors. Many of us live lives in a long corridor. Some of us... Read more
For longer than I can remember, I have been taught that we succeed through working hard. Hard work is in the basic fabric of our culture. We live in the land of opportunity, where everyone can work hard and succeed. Thomas Edison said that genius is one percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration. We believe that life is essentially fair. We receive what we earn. If we work hard enough, we will earn a living. We understand working as an... Read more
There are people who think that the most valuable skill a leader can have is thinking strategically. Leaders need to set goals, then plan the steps it will take to achieve those goals. Other people think that, more than anything else, leaders need to be able to communicate. A strong leader has a unique vision, and they draw other people into their efforts to make their vision reality. Some people think that leaders need to understand the numbers, some that... Read more
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