It can be a challenge to remember work does not have to make us miserable. The times we struggle, the times we are frustrated, tend to stay with us longer than other experiences. We remember when we thought someone got in our way. When people encourage us or inspire us, it tends to wear off us more easily. We may remember our fears more often than we remember the lessons we have learned. Our experiences can seem to pile up... Read more
We know people who believe leadership emerges when we need it. They see crisis points in history when key world leaders were in place to make a difference. We may know other people who believe we build leadership through our own efforts. They talk about best practices or disciplines to develop leaders. They see us working our way into leadership. We can see what they mean, but they are not answering the essential question. While leadership is worked out in history... Read more
It is challenging to plan falling in love. Love, like any relationship, does not follow measurable steps toward a clear outcome. Our efforts to organize, analyze, and control falling in love rarely turn out the way we hope. Love does not follow the rules. Love is more poetry and music than prose. We may try to plan falling in love ourselves, or getting someone else to fall in love with us. It is difficult to measure and assess love. Love tends to... Read more
We believe in the positive power of pressure. When the pressure is on, people do their best work. Our heroes come through against all odds on the last page or at the end of the movie. Our attention is riveted to an athletic contest coming down to the last play at the very end. We admire the people who thrive on pressure. We enjoy the person who puts everything off until it is almost too late. We tend to roll... Read more
There are people who are afraid to become leaders, to take on the work of leadership. There are also people who want to be leaders because they are afraid. They work to compensate for their fear by controlling every aspect of what they do. They believe in planning and anticipation, being ready for anything. For them, leadership is a way to make everything work out the way they want it to be. They are trying to lead from their own fear. It is very... Read more
There are people who are afraid to become leaders, to take on the work of leadership. There are also people who want to be leaders because they are afraid. They work to compensate for their fear by controlling every aspect of what they do. They believe in planning and anticipation, being ready for anything. For them, leadership is a way to make everything work out the way they want it to be. They are trying to lead from their own fear. It is very... Read more
I know people who give up the Internet for Lent. People disappear from social media, take a “Facebook fast,” or limit their online presence. They see social media, websites, and email as distractions from their deeper lives. Things are different for me. Life online is a network of connections and relationships that would not exist without Internet access. Social media give us opportunities to have meaningful conversations with people we have not met in person. I meet people online who decide to work with me... Read more
I am a recovering attorney. I decided to become a lawyer while I was in elementary school. My experience with lawyers came entirely from watching television and reading books. Learning about lawyers showed me how our society understands truth and justice. We believe we learn the truth through conflict. We display our differences, cross examine each other, and let our arguments speak. We believe that the most articulate person with the most powerful ideas deserves to win. As I practiced law, I realized we... Read more
I know people in positions of responsibility who think leadership is kind of a pain. We look at people who move up the organizational ladder and think, “There is no way I am doing that.” We see leaders putting in long hours of hard work. Leaders appear to sacrifice their time with their own families, time to reflect, time to relax. So many leaders work on addressing conflict in their organizations, but conflict never ends. We see leaders making decisions that seem to... Read more
We are told we need to push ourselves to become our best. Making a difference in the world means pushing in the right direction. It feels like there are times when we need to be a little pushy to get any attention at all. Important things happen when push comes to shove. We are told we should not let anyone push us around, not be a pushover. We get used to being the kind of people who push back. We put a lot of effort into... Read more
Strategic Monk
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