Recently I have been coaching a few leaders and executives who feel the best years of their life have passed them by. They lament to me that they are not where they thought they would be or where they want to be at this stage in their lives. We know intellectually that nothing is stagnate, and yet often we get stuck. We get riddled in our own stories of where we think we ‘should be’ or where we think others think we ‘should be’.
This past week I had a very scary and potentially life-threatening situation in my car. The service I experienced was nothing short of exemplary from one of the best service organizations I have ever known. This particular scenario is one deserving of recognition and from which we can all learn.
Recently I stumbled across an article in the New York Times which I loved as much for its brevity as I did for its wisdom. Adam Bryant, of The New York Times, recently wrote a book which analyzes the broader lessons that emerge from his interviews with more than 70 leaders. So, from his perspective and research, what does it take to lead an organization — whether it’s a sports team, a nonprofit, a start-up or a multinational corporation? What are the X factors of strong leaders?
Recently I ran across an article touting Marc Benioff’s top leadership secrets in Forbes, which offered incredibly insightful perspectives. I have tried to highlight a few bullets, in my words, from the article referenced above. I have actually watched Marc, his team, and his culture in admiration for years. Their holistic approach to their work and the way in which they contribute has been studied with equal measures of skepticism, reverance, and disdain.
This past weekend we watched the acclaimed performance of Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady, the movie depicting Margaret Thatcher’s life. As most of you probably know, the movie is a series of flashbacks from the Prime Minister’ life and her impact on history. Her life story is remarkable on many levels. I took away four quotations from the movie, which I believe to be applicable to each of our lives today, and wanted to share with my readers.
A few years ago I wrote a piece entitled: ‘Truth, Trust and Transparency – where is the line for you?” This post was extremely popular amongst my clients. Not surprisingly, the topic of transparency in leadership continues to be in the forefront of business leaders’ minds. What are we talking about?
With all the everyday pressures of our careers, some wonder why even hire a leadership coach? It may appear to be ‘just more thing’ on a long list of ‘to do’s. In fact, not too long ago, executives who hired an executive or leadership coach were looked down upon as ones that were on their way out.
That was, and still is, obsolete thinking.
There are many reasons that have helped raise the profile of the leadership development industry. Yet, what can a person really hope to gain from work with a leadership consultant or coach?
Are you finding yourself calling high and working with executives in the C-Suite? There are a few key basic observations which may benefit many who follow “A Fine Line”. In addition, those of you in the C-Suite who read my blogs will appreciate these tips to your employees and others, as well. Those with experience – weigh in!
To be in greatest service to our clients, we must listen and heed to their needs and wants. Thus, we want to thank our clients who participated in our annual Alignment, Inc. client satisfaction feedback survey. Your feedback is valued and will factor into our approach and ongoing services this year. In the spirit of transparency, we want to share the high-level results with each of you. We welcome additional feedback by simply commenting to this post.
A few years ago a magnificent and transformative book was published, called “The Dragonfly Effect,” which is a model that taps concepts from social media, marketing strategy, and consumer psychology to help people achieve a single, concrete goal. They ingeniously named it after the only insect that can move swiftly in any direction – and even hover – when its four wings are moving in harmony.
The four “wings” of their model really struck me as actions we could all strive to take in 2012.