Mastering the S-Curve of High-Powered Careers Being Brave: Lessons from Basketball
I have been at the European National Championship Basketball tournament this week, rooting for the Great Britain Under 20s Women’s team which last year, for the first time in history, was promoted from the B League to the A League. By beating last year’s bronze medal team in the first round, they have already “won” [...]
Being Outrageous (#2): Teens Speak Out
My daughter and her 8th grade classmates had the courage to be outrageous last week by respectfully and successfully challenging their administrators on a point of principle. As is the tradition, teachers and students were asked to vote on which three classmates should speak at graduation. The administrators confirmed that they would not override the [...]
It’s About The Team
At today’s Varsity Sports Award ceremony at my daughters’ high school, I was heartened to see the next generation of leaders and reassured that, at least in a small corner of England, affirmative life lessons are being taught and learned. This is a sports program that is about more than simply winning. It is a [...]
Why Like-Mindedness is Limiting for Leaders
We inherently like spending time with people who think like us, and maybe even act and look like us. It’s easy, comfortable and fun to be with people who understand where we are coming from and share our interests. As well, it builds our confidence to have others we respect tell us they think we [...]
Two Business Lessons from an Olympic Fencing Hopeful
Fencing is a lot like business, and perhaps even life in general. I learned this yesterday at the British Youth Championships, watching my friends’ 12-year old son compete and listening to his coach (who is an Olympic hopeful for 2012) advise him in between matches. The first great piece of advice the coach gave was [...]
3 Ways to Harness Your Fear
Fear /fɪər/ (noun) – a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; concern or anxiety. [1] Since prehistoric times, fear has proven useful to our survival, both individually and as a species. These days, however, fear more often can hold us back from enjoying the success [...]
How Great Leaders Inspire Action
I wasn’t sure what to expect from the YouTube video link that my daughter recently forwarded to me (“we watched this in class today and I thought you might like it”). Well, it turned out to be great. So great that it is worth sharing. It is Simon Sinek’s TEDTalk on why the most inspiring [...]
Who has got it right: those who fear China or those who embrace China?
Today I had the privilege of meeting with some very impressive scientists who are focused on improving the lives of people across the globe. They tell me that China, and not the US, is one of the few nations that truly “get it” as far as their field goes, and so there are important collaborations [...]
New Year “Swing Thoughts”
Instead of New Year’s resolutions, I have decided to go with the suggestion made by Chris Brogan in his end of year blog to identify three words to live by during the next year, or in his words, “my guiding pillars for what I will focus on in the coming year…a lighthouse for my actions [...]
Leadership in Adversity
Life is complicated. Things don’t always go the way we expect, much less the way we want. Yet, it is often adversity that brings out our best leadership qualities. For Steve, that moment came in early October when his wife Ann had a serious accident resulting in a brain injury. As she drifted into unconsciousness [...]
