Tag Archives: story

What Makes Leaders Popular? How Followers Create Imaginary Leaders, with the Power of Story and Selective Attention to Details
The Harvard Business Review this week reveals some fascinating — and somewhat disturbing — insights into the ways followers create and respond to leaders as if they were what they imagined them to be. It’s a powerful effect, one that can bolster a leader’s power and influence, at least until the imaginary bubble pops, and […]
So you want to be an #authentic leader? Know your own story, and live it flexibly!!
So many of us talk about being authentic, as if it is the most important quality of a leader. But what does it mean to be authentic in the challenging roles and relationships we have to navigate as leaders? This short video answers that question by showing you how to master your leadership story, and […]
Leadership Coaching Breakthrough! Be the change…
Are you ready to spring forward??? This Spring, I’m offering three breakthrough leadership coaching sessions at a discounted price. Are you ready to make your leadership story work for you? Are you ready to move forward with that dream, that vision? Are you ready to change? I’ll help you take the first steps, get into […]
Empowering Girls to Build the Future: Goldieblox Mission + Viral Branding = Leadership
Toys for Future Engineers — that’s the tagline for GoldieBlox, which has developed a set of interactive books and games to “disrupt the pink aisle and inspire the future generation of female engineers.” According to Slate Magazine, “The CEO, Debbie Sterling, studied engineering at Stanford, where she was dismayed by the lack of women in […]
Passings: Lou Reed, American Innovator, Leading from the Wild Side
This week, we mourn the passing of a great American musical philosopher, Lou Reed. He showed up, spoke up, sang up, transformed rock n’ roll and modeled a kind of crass, independent, principled artistic leadership that deserves to be recognized. He died at 71, from liver failure. His inspiring role as an artist on the […]
Leadership Tensions: Paradoxes That Keep Us Dancing with our Leadership Story
“Leadership Freak” blogger Dan Rockwell offered an intriguing list of leadership tensions this week: The Ten Tensions of Leadership: Tenacity and kindness. Vision and openness. Kindness and candor. Passion and quietness. Analysis and initiative. Planning and people. Solitude and relationships. High expectations and helpfulness. Decisiveness and listening. Focus and flexibility. In the lively discussion afterwards, […]
Senior Leadership Should Be Shaken, Not Stirred…
James Bond used to want his martini’s “shaken, not stirred,” and that was sexy. It’s less so when you are the one being shaken, which is the uncomfortable, optimal performance standard for effective senior leaders in top positions. Whether CEO, General, or Mayor, people of power need to be willing to be shaken up on […]