LEADERS CAN MAKE A POSITIVE DIFFERENCE EVEN AFTER TEAMMATES LEAVE |
22 July 2024 |
Tom Rath, a current consultant, author and presenter, once said “Life is not about you. It is about what you do for others.” And so it is with leadership. Part of the beauty of our leadership journeys is that we can continue to “do for others” even after they have stopped working with us.
LEADERS CAN MOVE FROM “ME” TO “WE” THINKING |
15 July 2024 |
When you read the title for this week’s newsletter, what did you think of? Did you think of former leaders who think “it’s all about me” and then “see the light” and realize leadership is really about building a team and focusing on their teammates?
LEADERS ACKNOWKEDGE THEIR NEGATIVE THOUGHTS, EXAMINE THEM AND MOVE THROUGH THEM |
08 July 2024 |
We are all human. As humans, we all have a tendency from time to time to be caught up in negative thoughts about ourselves. We can be chiding ourselves for an unkind word to a colleague, berating ourselves for a poor decision with unfortunate results or criticizing ourselves for procrastination that adversely impacted our team.
LEADERS SEEK CAN LEARN FROM COACHES – SPORTS COACHES |
01 July 2024 |
Last week I attended an event in downtown Washington, DC called “SU Sports Night.” As I have mentioned here previously, I attended Syracuse University before moving down to Maryland to attend Georgetown Law Center. While at Syracuse, I wrote sports for the student newspaper for two years and worked as an assistant to the Sports Information Director for two years. As you might expect, I am a huge Syracuse sports fan.
LEADERS MAKE TIME TO REFLECT ON THE RELATIONSHIPS THAT HELPED THEM ADVANCE ON THEIR JOURNEYS |
24 June 2024 |
Two things happened this week that prompted me to reflect on the people who helped me along my own leadership journey and to think about whether I had expressed my appreciation to them meaningfully and periodically. Did they realize how much I valued our relationship and how much they had taught me?
LEADERS CONVERT FEAR INTO LEARNING |
17 June 2024 |
Happy Father’s Day to all you dads out there!!! Enjoy your day and the blessing of being a father.
This past week I discussed my fears about assuming a new important volunteer position with a close friend. I expressed my concerns about my lack of knowledge concerning specific aspects of the organization’s finances and my uneasiness with technology.
LEADERS FACE IMPOSTER SYNDROME |
10 June 2024 |
During this past week, I attended a webinar addressing “Imposter Syndrome.” Then I read about the origins of “Imposter Phenomenon” in a leadership book I am completing. Finally when I asked a coaching client Thursday what she wished to talk about this week, she said “Imposter Syndrome.”
LEADERS FOCUS ON OTHERS – AND MODEL BILL WALTON |
03 June 2024 |
Have you ever been emotionally affected by the death of a celebrity in a manner that surprised you? I am talking about someone you had never met. You had seen him or her on a TV or movie screen, at a ball game, or at a concert. And when they died, you found yourself feeling truly sad.
LEADERS ASK QUESTIONS OF THEIR COLLEAGUES, TOO |
27 May 2024 |
Last week I wrote about how important it is for leaders to welcome questions from their team members. By building a culture in which people feel empowered to ask us meaningful questions, we can learn and grow as leaders.
The same growth can take place when questions flow in the other direction, from us as leaders to our teammates.
LEADERS AK AND WELCOME QUESTIONS |
20 May 2024 |
Lately I have been noticing a pattern among people with whom I speak about their jobs and people I coach. Managers talk a lot about issues with their leaders:
LEADERS EMBRACE UNCERTAINTY |
13 May 2024 |
Happy Mothers Day to all you mothers across the United States and Canada who receive this weekly newsletter. Thank you for all you do and have done for your families, for your friends, and for your community. I hope you enjoy a wonderful day.
LEADERS ADDRESS THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH ANGER |
06 May 2024 |
One of the best leadership blogs I read is “SmartBrief on Leadership.” Its staff pulls together what they consider the best stories on leadership from across the internet, then organize them into subject categories and offer summaries so readers can decide if a particular article resonates with them. This blog is daily and it is free.
LEADERS GIVE FREEDOM TO THEIR TEAMMATES |
29 April 2024 |
This week I and my family, as well as millions of people around the world, observe the holiday of Passover. The theme of this holiday, which celebrates the exodus from Egypt, is freedom.
LEADERS WELCOME NEW BEGINNINGS – FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR TEAMMATES |
22 April 2024 |
Two things came together for me last week in an oddly coincidental way.
For the fourth time in the past month, I heard about a friend or acquaintance losing a job. These were not junior or inexperienced employees. They were senior-level managers or directors with significant experience. In each instance, these smart and talented people were the victims of company reorganizations. I offered my assistance to each person, hoping that I could help them find a good fit at another firm that would appreciate their skills and ideas.
LEADERS BRING CURIOSITY TO THEIR JOBS |
15 April 2024 |
This week’s guest writer is my friend Lynne Brown. Lynne lives and works in Phoenix, Arizona. Like me, she is a Professional Certified Coach with the International Coaching Federation. Lynne is a wise and experienced coach whose clients are fortunate to be working with her. I thank her for contributing to this leadership newsletter.
LEADERS SHARE CUSTOMER SUCCESS STORIES |
08 April 2024 |
Years ago I worked closely with Weili Cheng, the General Counsel of Ritz Carlton Hotels. She co-chaired Georgetown Law CLE’s Hotel and Lodging Legal Summit, and did a wonderful job.
LEADERS KNOW THAT SMILING IS CONTAGIOUS |
01 April 2024 |
About eight years ago, my son, Jared was working in sales for Monumental Sports & Entertainment in Washington, DC, striving to keep current season ticket holders for the Washington Wizards, happy and to attract new season ticket holders.
LEADERS NEVER FAIL |
26 March 2024 |
You might look at the title of this week’s newsletter and say “What? Larry, how can you say that? Leaders often fail. You have written about failures you have experienced during your career in this very newsletter.”
LEADERSHIP AND CHARLIE BROWN |
18 March 2024 |
I am sure that if we all reviewed decades of “Peanuts” comic strips, we would learn a considerable amount about leadership and fostering strong relationships. However, that is not why I titled this week’s newsletter as I did.
LEADERS ADDRESS THEIR “IMMUNITY TO CHANGE” |
10 March 2024 |
One of the most well-read leadership books published during the past 15 years is “Immunity to Change” by Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey of Harvard University. The subtitle gives clues about the book’s content: “How to Overcome It and Unlock the Potential in Yourself and Your Organization.”
LEADERS DO NOT AVOID CONFLICT |
04 March 2024 |
I have written about conflict avoidance in the past because it is such a common subject in leadership literature. Last week I was reminded of this important subject when the editor of my favorite daily newsletter, “SmartBrief on Leadership,” Candace Chellew, raised the subject in a personal way.
LEADERS CREATE SPACE FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR TEAMMATES |
26 February 2024 |
Last week I participated in a webinar that resonated with me because it reminded me of many issues my coaching clients are encountering in 2024. The webinar was titled “Leaders Take the Time to Think at Work.”
LEADERS CAN REBOOT TO SEEK CLARITY |
19 February 2024 |
Sometimes our lives as leaders get so complicated or busy that we can lose sight of the big picture, taking our eyes off the ball and losing focus on what’s really most important.
LEADERS REPEAT THEMSELVES |
12 February 2024 |
I am guessing that the title of this week’s newsletter caused you to sit up and ask “What?” Why should leaders repeat themselves? Doesn’t repeating ourselves show confusion or lack of clarity?
WHAT KIND OF LEADER DO YOU WANT TO BE? |
5 February 2024 |
Note: This week’s newsletter is authored by a young leader I know well: my son Jared. Jared is a graduate of Georgetown University and a team leader at Snappy, a global tech company. I want to assure you that he is sharing his leadership tips voluntarily with no pressure being applied by his father.
DOYOU EVER GET ANGRY AT THE HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW? |
29 January 2024 |
This past week I got angry based on a short article from the Harvard Business Review. Each morning I receive an article from HBR that contains some usually relevant leadership wisdom. It is called “The Management Tip of the Day.” I highly recommend it to other leaders – it is short, it is free and it is thought-provoking.
LEADERS STAY AUTHENTIC AS THEY BUILD CONNECTIONS |
22 January 2024 |
One of the many ways we can learn about leadership is reading about the leadership experiences, advice and perspectives of admired leaders from a variety of professions. We can read biographies, magazine articles, leadership blogs, and leadership newsletters.
COACHINGHELPS LEADERS IN TWO WAYS |
16 January 2024 |
Leadership coaching has become very commonplace around the world during the past 10 years. An increasing number of corporations, non-profit organizations and government agencies have proactively budgeted funds for coaching to help executives and managers grow, improve and fulfill their potential.
LEADERS WIELD INFLUENCE WITHOUT AUTHORITY |
08 January 2024 |
As we conclude the first week of the new year, I have been thinking about the many ways in which leaders lead their teams, their colleagues, and in many instances, their managers.
When we are young, we often believe that leaders are those people higher up the chain than we are, those people who have important-sounding titles, and those people who supervise teams of fellow employees.
LEADERS REFLECT ON THE PAST YEAR AND LOOK AHEAD TO THE NEW YEAR |
01 January 2024 |
Happy New Year to all the subscribers of this weekly newsletter. I greatly appreciate your support, your ideas and your feedback. I hope you enjoy a purposeful, meaningful and rewarding year ahead as we transition from 2023 to 2024.
LEADERS CONFRONT AND DEAL WITH IMPOSTER SYNDROME |
25 December 2023 |
Last week, I was coaching a leader from a wonderful institution. She was talking about her desire to do everything perfectly and to not disappoint herself and other people. The more we conversed, the more it became apparent that this leader suffers from Imposter Syndrome.
LEADERS MAKE CLEAR REQUESTS |
18 December 2023 |
Several weeks ago I attended a webinar led by Rae Ringel of the Ringel Group in Washington, DC. Rae is a master coach and facilitator, one of the faculty leaders of the Georgetown University Institute for Transformational Leadership (ITL).
The subject of the webinar was “Making Clear Requests” and it was partially based upon a wisdom-filled book, “Language and the Pursuit of Happiness” by Chalmers Brothers. I highly recommend that book for all subscribers of this newsletter.
LEADERS ACKNOWLEDGE POLARITIES |
11 December 2023 |
This guest post has been submitted by Cole Pellicano from Andiron. I met Cole at the Institute for Transformational Leadership Network annual conference several weeks ago. I was impressed by his Andiron team’s focus on polarities and invited him to write a post for this newsletter. You can check out Andiron by clicking on this link: https://andiron.com/
LEADERS LEARN THAT ACCEPTING HELP IS A WIN-WIN |
04 December 2023 |
When I was a young leader, many years ago, I thought that part of leadership was showing your teammates that you could do everything required of anyone in your office. After all, you were the leader and people expected mastery from you.
LEADERS DON’T DO WHAT i DID THIS WEEK |
27 November 2023 |
I hope everyone reading this week’s newsletter enjoyed a peaceful and meaningful Thanksgiving holiday. As I do each year this week, I am focusing this newsletter on the Thanksgiving theme, but not in a way that necessarily reflects well on me.
HOW CAN LEADERS ADDRESS COLLEAGUES’ COMPLAINTS ABOUT OTHERS |
20 November 2023 |
Two Notes: I am coming to the end of several client coaching engagements. If you or someone you know might be interested in coaching, please reach out. I am glad to offer a free coaching session to determine if there is a fit.
Also, I want to wish all subscribers to this newsletter a very Happy Thanksgiving. Whether you are celebrating this upcoming holiday with family, friends, or others, please enjoy!
LEADERS LEAD WHEN THEY ARE IN THE OFFICE – AND WHEN THEY ARE OUT OF THE OFFICE |
16 November 2023 |
This past week I was speaking with a coaching client who is preparing for surgery and will be out of the office for an extended period of time. It reminded me of episodes in the past when I took extended medical leave for a detached retina or for a three-week vacation to Australia when our son was studying abroad during his junior year in college.
LEADERS READ VORACIOUSLY |
6 November 2023 |
One of my most meaningful tools during the past several decades for improving my leadership skills and knowledge has been reading. I have read fiction and non-fiction books. I have read newsletters and blogs. I have read newspapers and magazines. In many instances, I have used a yellow highlighter to emphasize points I wished to remember (not in library books!).
LEADERS ASK THEMSELVES SELF-REFLECTIVE QUESTIONS ON A REGULAR BASIS |
30 October 2023 |
We leadership coaches know that one of the most effective strategies for helping leaders help themselves is to encourage them to engage in self-reflection. Self-reflection can take place in many ways:
LEADERS MANAGE ANXIETY FOR THEMSELVES AND FOR THEIR TEAMS |
23 October 2023 |
This week I found myself thinking about my earlier career after participating in a webinar featuring Mora Aarons-Mele. The title of the webinar was “Helping Leaders and Teams Who Are Anxious Achievers.” I identified with both the adjective and the noun in that title.
LEADERS ROLE MODEL PRODUCTIVITY RATHER THAN BUSYNESS |
16 October 2023 |
Young managers often believe that it is important to show their leaders how much they can get accomplished in a work day. They want to make a very positive impression. So what do they do?
LEADERS GIVE MEANINGFUL FEEDBACK AT THE APPROPRIATE TIME |
9 October 2023 |
I have written about feedback previously during the three years of this leadership newsletter, but I am doing so again today because it is a very important subject for leaders at all experience levels and in all industries.
LEADERS TURN GUILT INTO LESSONS |
2 October 2023 |
This week I was talking with an esteemed leader who has earned the respect and admiration of everybody with whom he interacts – clients, vendors, colleagues, direct reports and peers from other organizations. He has revitalized his workplace and made it an acclaimed beacon within his profession, both locally and regionally.
LEADERS LET GO OF ANGER |
25 September 2023 |
Anger is a very common human emotion. We are emotional beings and, from time to time, we get angry at people or situations. Very few of us never experience anger. The key question is what do we do with our anger?
LEADERS CREATE STRATEGIES FOR REMOTE TEAMS TO BOND TOGETHER |
18 September 2023 |
This week’s guest newsletter post is written by Wendy McCormack. Wendy is the Executive Director of the National Institute for Trial Advocacy (NITA), one of the leading continuing legal education organizations in the world. You can reach Wendy at wmccormack@nita.org.
LEADERS REFLECT ON HIRING DECISIONS – AT ALL TIMES |
11 September 2023 |
One of the most important decisions leaders must make on a continuing basis is hiring the right people. How do we define “right” in this context?
Does that mean the smartest people? The hardest-working people? The most flexible people? The most inquisitive people?
LEADERS CONTROL THEIR EGOS |
4 September 2023 |
Several weeks ago a good friend co-facilitated a conference session at his company’s fiscal year kick-off event. Having organized and implemented conferences for 32 years at Georgetown Law, I am familiar with the responsibilities and potential nerves presenters face when facing audiences of professionals – especially colleagues with expectations – at large conferences.
LEADERS REFLECT UPON THE BIG PICTURE – PART II |
28 August 2023 |
Welcome back for our second part of leadership lessons derived from an Instagram post I received from my wife. Remember that last week we reviewed the first three lessons:
LEADERS REFLECT UPON THE BIG PICTURE – PART I |
21 August 2023 |
We never know where we will find our latest leadership lesson. In order to receive new – or relearn – leadership lessons, we need to be open to input from all sources and resources. Last week I gained a reinforced leadership lesson from that fountain of wisdom – Instagram!
LEADERS THINK ABOUT HOW THEY ARE USING THEIR TIME |
14 August 2023 |
Several weeks ago I wrote about the fact that “time management” is a misnomer because we can not manage time. Rather, we can only manage ourselves within time.
I was reminded of that fact this week during a leadership coaching session with a smart, accomplished and hard-working client who leads a very reputable non-profit organization. Controlling her schedule or – using that misnomer – “time management” – has been one of the recent major themes of our coaching sessions.
LEADERS SEEK MEANINFUL ALLIES |
7 August 2023 |
During the past several decades, I have observed many leaders striving to implement their visions. Some leaders were C-suite executives at major companies. Others were federal or state officials running government agencies. Still others were elected or appointed officials at not-for-profit associations or institutions.
LEADERS MODEL EMPOWERING BEHAVIOR AND ESCHEW ENABLING BEHAVIOR |
31 July 2023 |
Last week I was engaging in a phone conversation with a very experienced colleague, a senior lawyer with whom I have worked for decades. Yes – some people still use their phones for talking!
LEADERS CAN COACH THEMSELVES |
24 July 2023 |
This week I was coaching a new client and we were discussing challenges she was having with a colleague. We explored the particular issues and how she might approach them differently.
LEADERS BENEFIT FROM BOTH/AND THINKING – II |
17 July 2023 |
Did you ever write something that produced an unexpected response? And then that response produced unplanned action? That happened to me this week.
LEADERS BENEFIT FROM BOTH/AND THINKING |
10 July 2023 |
This past week I was coaching a new client and we were reviewing information given to me by five colleagues with whom this leader works on a regular basis. Many coaches conduct these stakeholder interviews before commencing a coaching engagement with new clients.
LEADERS INFLUENCE OTHERS – COLLEAGUES, DIRECT REPORTS AND MENTEES |
3 July 2023 |
My friend Mike Reuter writes a weekly leadership blog called “Three-Minute Leadership.” I highly recommend you subscribing to Mike’s blog. Today Mike wrote about a subject with which I am very familiar.
LEADERS TRACK WHAT THEY KNOW AND WHAT THEY DON’T KNOW |
26 June 2023 |
When I was a young leader, I made the mistake of thinking that I knew more than I really did. I was working on criminal justice issues for a DC non-profit organization. I had excelled at both criminal law and criminal procedure in law school. I had written for The American Criminal Law Review. I had worked at The Institute for Criminal Law and Procedure during my summers.
LEADERSHIP AND FATHERS DAY |
18 June 2023 |
Happy Father’s Day to all you dads out there reading this newsletter. I hope you are enjoying a wonderful day. And if you are not a father, I encourage you to keep reading because this newsletter edition can apply to you as well.
LEADERS PLAN AND IMPLEMENT TEAM RETREATS |
12 June 2023 |
Today I was fortunate to participate in a day-long retreat for one of the volunteer organization boards on which I am privileged to sit. We were aided by two exemplary facilitators.
This experience motivated me think back to the many team retreats I helped plan and implement during my time as a leader at Georgetown Law. We strived to hold these retreats on an annual basis.
GREAT LEADERS STRIVE TO AVOID “WORKAHOLISM” |
5 June 2023 |
Is workaholism a word? I’m not sure. However, several things transpired this week that prompted me to write about this important subject.
I coached a client from a major law firm about the tendency for professionals working at such firms to prioritize work among all activities, including family and friend time. We discussed strategies for avoiding such behavior whenever possible.
GOOD LEADERS REJECT THE CONCEPT OF TIME MANAGEMENT |
30 May 2023 |
I apologize for the one-day delay this week. We were in NYC to help our son and his girlfriend celebrate their engagement. Happy times!!!
More than 30 years ago when I started as the head of continuing legal education at Georgetown Law, there was a group of nationally recognized speakers who traveled across the country presenting half-day or full-day presentations on critical topics.
LEADERS LEARN FROM MOVIES AND TV SHOWS |
22 May 2023 |
This past week I was reminded about how so many movies and TV shows demonstrate excellent lessons in leadership. Most of us view movies and TV for entertainment. They are frequently a great escape from the stresses of work or challenging relationships outside of the workplace.
LEADERS PLAN FOR THE FUTURE |
17 May 2023 |
So often at work, leaders are encouraged to plan ahead. How many times have we heard the admonition to plan for anything that might go wrong, to plan for a year from now, and to plan for unanticipated consequences?
LEADERS AVOID EITHER/OR THINKING |
8 May 2023 |
This week I received an email from Dorie Clark. Dorie is an accomplished author, speaker, entrepreneur and coach. She writes regularly for the Harvard Business Review and for Fast Company magazine. I encourage you to check out her work.
LEADERS SEEK FEEDBACK AND DEMONSTRATE TRANSPARENCY |
1 May 2023 |
I announced in this newsletter several weeks ago that my wife and I would be taking a two-week trip to Israel. We just returned after an amazing adventure throughout that country, learning about history, philosophy, religion, and politics.
LEADERS USE THEIR NETWORK TO HELP OTHERS |
9 April 2023 |
In earlier editions of this weekly newsletter, I have written about the importance of helping our team members grow into their full personal and professional potential. That is part of our core responsibilities as leaders.
LEADERS WELCOME 360 REVIEWS – PART II |
3 April 2023 |
Last week I wrote about the value of 360 reviews and gave you a number of sample questions to use. Interestingly, during this past week my son Ben emailed me to let me know he had just participated in a 360 review for his own manager.
LEADERS WELCOME 360 REVIEWS |
26 March 2023 |
When I was younger and starting to study leadership, I read a story about a company leader who was looking forward to a 360 review. The coach who conducted the review advised the leader that he would need courage and perspective to face the unknown results because such reviews often produced surprising data.
LEADERS ROLE MODEL RESILIENCE FOR THEIR TEAMMATES AND THEMSELVES |
19 March 2023 |
Many years ago, a wise old leader explained to me that what hurts us most in life is not what happens to us, but how we react to what happens to us.
LEADERS LEARN TO TRUST THEIR GUT INSTINCTS |
13 March 2023 |
I had an interesting discussion with a close friend this weekend. My friend had just completed two rounds of leadership coaching with an experienced coach. Always curious about what clients derive from coaching, I asked my friend what his biggest take-away was from his ten coaching sessions.
LEADERS MAKE TIME TO ASSESS TRUST LEVELS WITHIN THEIR TEAMS |
06 March 2023 |
I am back from a two-week vacation to sunny Florida. It was good to see so many friends and relatives. And it is also good to be back home!
LEADERS FIGHT BACK AGAINST THEIR INNER CRITIC |
12 February 2023 |
Happy Super Bowl Sunday. I hope you enjoy the game, the party, the commercials, or, if you are not a fan, the last day of your weekend. I will be on vacation in Florida the next two weeks, so I will see you again three weeks from today.
LEADERS WELCOME PRODUCTIVE CONFLICT |
6 February 2023 |
When I was a young leader, I had a tendency to avoid conflict. I actually thought that conflict was bad for the workplace. I realize now where I learned that paradigm. I grew up in a house with significant verbal conflict.
LEADERS ARE OPEN TO BEING WRONG |
31 January 2023 |
I just returned from a trip to Austin over this weekend, so this one will be short and sweet. Thankfully, we left Austin right before it was hit with an ice storm. It was in the 20’s in Texas and when we returned, it was in the 50’s in Maryland. Go figure!
LEADERS DO NOT SUBMERGE THEIR VALUES TO POWER OR INFLUENCE – THEY RETAIN THEIR HUMILITY |
24 January 2023 |
I never know in advance where I will receive ideas for this weekly leadership newsletter. Sometimes subjects come from books or articles I read. Others are derived from coaching sessions with clients. Still other subjects arise based upon conversations with friends or family members.
LEADERS ASK THEIR TEAMMATES CHALLENGING QUESTIONS |
17 January 2023 |
This past week I watched a Zoom webinar aimed at coaches around the world. The title of the webinar was “Transforming Work: A Gift of Better Conversations at Work.” The presenter was Haesun Moon from Toronto, an esteemed professor, author and coach.
LEADERS STAY OPEN TO DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES |
09 January 2023 |
Today I want to tell you a story. It’s a very recent story. It happened just yesterday. In the past on this newsletter, I’ve written about the ladder of inference. What happens as we climb that ladder?
LEADERS MAKE RESOLUTIONS THAT MATTER – AND THREE ASKS |
03 January 2023 |
Happy New Year to all the readers of this weekly newsletter. I hope you all enjoy a meaningful, rewarding and growth-filled year ahead. Before I get to this week’s post, I have three requests for you.
LEADERS GIVE |
26 December 2022 |
I hope all who celebrate them enjoy a Happy Hannukah and a very Merry Christmas. I realize many of you are on vacation and will not read this edition of my weekly newsletter for a little while. Nevertheless, I wanted to send this newsletter because I have chosen to include a holiday theme – Leaders Give.
LEADERS USE HUMOR |
19 December 2022 |
Last week I was fortunate to spend three days with my two sons. They both are alumni of Georgetown University and I graduated from Syracuse. We agreed five years ago that we will strive to enjoy a father-sons weekend each basketball season when Georgetown plays Syracuse, regardless of the location. We succeeded for two years, then the pandemic intervened. Last week we were able to continue the tradition and spend three days together. This was our first game in three years.
LEADERS READ THEIR FORTUNE COOKIES |
12 December 2022 |
Last Saturday night we picked up food from a local Chinese restaurant and brought it over to our friends’ house. We enjoyed the food and long, delightful talks. Lots of laughs and meaningful conversation about politics, sports, TV and movies, food, and upcoming events. Of course at the conclusion of our meal we opened our four fortune cookies. Since my wife and I had not eaten Chinese food in a long time, we had not shared fortunes in quite awhile.
LEADERS MAKE TIME |
05 December 2022 |
During this pandemic, leaders have been finding themselves under increasing pressure to be productive. So many leaders I know complain about back-to-back meetings. At the end of the work day, they are often exhausted. That is not a smart way to use work time.
LEADERS KEEP GIVING |
28 November 2022 |
I hope that all readers of this newsletter enjoyed a happy and fulfilling Thanksgiving. At a minimum, I hope you benefited from some days off from work, and some introspection and reflection.
LEADERS GIVE THANKS |
20 November 2022 |
This coming Thursday will be Thanksgiving. People throughout the United States will be celebrating this special holiday with friends, family and special guests. In that spirit, I wish all of you a wonderful Thanksgiving and blessed time with the people about whom you care the most.
LEADERSHIP LESSONS LESSONS FROM VACATION |
14 November 2022 |
If you missed my leadership newsletter last Sunday, it’s because I was on vacation with my wife, our adult children and our granddaughter in Jamaica. A day after we returned to Maryland, I attended a two-day leadership conference sponsored by the Institute for Transformational Leadership Network(ITLN), for which I sit on the board.
LEADERS RETAIN LESSONS FROM THEIR EARLIEST MENTORS |
31 October 2022 |
Today I was thinking of all the mentors I’ve had the pleasure to learn from during my life. Typically, I think of my earliest career mentors: Ray Milkman at The Lazar Institute, Vicki Jaycox at the National Council of Senior Citizens and Richard Granat at the Center for Legal Studies and the Institute for Paralegal Training.
LEADERS DON’T HAVE TO EMBRACE HIERARCHY: THEY CAN CONSIDER HOLOCRACY |
24 October 2022 |
You may have read my subject line today and responded with “What the heck is a Holocracy?”
LEADERS DON’T TRY TO CHANGE PEOPLE |
18 October 2022 |
When I was younger and more naïve, I used to think that with adequate leadership and coaching from me, I could convince underperforming employees to change.
LEADERS CULTIVATE RELATIONSHIPS – EVERY DAY! |
10 October 2022 |
Yesterday, I was reading an article in The Athletic, a national sports newsletter. This article relayed the story of Draymond Green, a forward for the Golden State Warriors, and his teammate Jordan Poole.
LEADERS MAKE THEMSELVES VALUABLE, NOT IRREPLACEABLE |
02 October 2022 |
Years ago, when I was a young leader, I strived to hone my skills and my knowledge so that no Dean at Georgetown Law Center would dare replace me with someone else. At my retirement party, people spoke about how almost impossible it would be for someone to replace me. The younger me would have appreciated those kind words. The older and wiser me responded with a rueful smile
LEADERS INVOLVE THEIR TEAMMATES |
26 September 2022 |
Do you have any favorite quotations? Ones that you’ve used or referred to for most of your adult life? Do you use them repeatedly in conversation? Do you have them framed on the walls of your home or your office?
WE CAN ALL EMRACE INQUIRING LEADERSHIP |
20 September 2022 |
Several weeks ago I was coaching an experienced leader and we were discussing how she could be more effective in leading her teammates on a daily basis.
GOOD LEADERS FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE OF MOVIE DIRECTORS AND ACTORS |
10 September 2022 |
wo weeks ago, my wife and I attended the Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival in Vermont. This eight-year-old event features narrative and documentary work of first-time and second-time filmmakers from around the world. This was the first time we had attended in four years because of the pandemic.
LEADERS CULTIVATE THEIR ABILITY TO LIVE WITH ALL THEIR EMOTIONS |
04 September 2022 |
When we are children, we learn from our parents to focus on emotions like happiness, enthusiasm, joy, and other positive emotions. We are taught to stay away from uncomfortable or negative emotions.
LEADERS TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE SPACE BETWEEN STIMULUS AND RESPONSE ANDCONTROL THEIR OWN ATTITUDE |
22 August 2022 |
One of the most influential books written during the 20th century was “Man’s Search for Meaning” by Austrian psychiatrist Viktor Frankl. Frankl was imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II. During that time, he was repeatedly tortured by Nazi doctors who performed a variety of ghastly experiments on his body.
LEADERS ADOPT A LEARNING MINDSET |
15 August 2022 |
In his most recent monthly newsletter, “Granted,” Wharton professor and psychologist Adam Grant started with these definitions:
Imposter Syndrome: “I don’t know what I’m doing. It’s only a matter of time until everyone finds out.”