Category: Inspire

The Best Change Management Lessons From an Unlikely Source

Becky Rom, National Campaign Chair for the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters, would not call what she does courage. That was my original intent in contacting her regarding her years-long quest to create a permanent ban on sulfide-ore copper mining in the watershed of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. With the campaign’s 18 million followers ...

Go Light Your World, Part II — What Inspires You?

In my last post, I asked you to spend a few minutes capturing what were Peak Moments from your past. This exercise gets to the heart of when you were at the top of your game. Each week in this series builds on the next, so a theme starts to emerge. The very tangible result ...

Take Your Candle, And Go Light Your World: Part 1

In my last post, “Find Your Inner Japan Grab,” I promised to kick off a series of posts that ask simple questions of you, so that you find that spark of inspiration that sets you apart from everyone else. To follow the metaphor theme, my hope is that through this series of self-exploration you’ll find ...

T

The Slow Death of Idle

There isn’t a lot more you can say about the New Year holiday that hasn’t already been said. However, one concept is worth repeating, every year. It’s because our bodies and minds are in a constant state of contradiction. There is a part of our brain that strives for homeostasis, to have things stay the ...

T

The Time Has Come to Manufacture a Crisis

I have a favorite quote, “Nothing breeds motivation like necessity.” It sums up the challenge that plagues any person or entity in a position to try to change others: despite earnest attempts the last two decades in the fields of change management and engagement, the fact remains, people don’t like to change unless they absolutely ...

5 Steps to Breaking Through Complacency

A reader of my last post, “A Foolproof Process for Acting Courageously,” made a humbling comment: “Good article. One thing I’ve found is that sometimes you can follow the rules in the article and no one cares to listen. I struggle not with the courage part, but with the ability to influence leadership with entrenched ...

A

A Foolproof Process For Acting Courageously

Over the years I have found and seen in others that courage is easy to talk about: put into corporate “core values,” notice when someone does a courageous act, proclaim it as key to leadership. We inherently know that even the smallest acts of courage cause an enormous, positive ripple effect to ourselves, others, places ...

B

Be an Inspired Leader, One Monday at a Time

In the spirit of reconnecting with your inspiration — the key to making great things happen — presented a couple of weeks ago in, “What Do Writer’s Block and Leadership Have in Common,” I figured it would be a good idea to follow my advice. So, please join me on this trip down memory lane ...

M

McDonald’s Jan Fields Proves Leadership is for Everyone

I attended a Women’s Leadership Forum at a large corporation recently featuring Jan Fields, President of McDonald’s USA. She is #88 on Forbes “The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women,” sharing the stage with the likes of Hilary Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Meg Whitman and Marisa Mayer. I had just published a “best leadership advice” blog post, so ...

W

What Do Writer’s Block and Leadership Have in Common?

Bear with me for a short story. A former colleague and I are working on a book. Something initially inspired my former colleague, and as we began to work together, further content planning was inspiring. Writing the outline was say, “exciting” — a sense of accomplishment that we were getting closer to the goal. But, ...