Leadership author and speaker
Leadership author and speaker
In a world where everyone can broadcast to the planet, many of us believe we have to exaggerate to be heard. I’m here to tell you that’s a false premise. If you feel like no one is listening to you, I’ll tell you why I think that’s the case.
Successful leaders are curious about their business and the people who work for/with them. This sort of curiosity is an imperative for a leader because he/she has to both accomplish the task at hand and the “care/feeding” of the team. To put it more succinctly, the leader needs to know what’s going on. There’s a […]
az·i·muth [az-uh-muhth] noun 1. Astronomy, Navigation . the arc of the horizon measured clockwise from the south point, in astronomy, or from the north point, in navigation, to the point where a vertical circle through a given heavenly body intersects the horizon. 2. Surveying, Gunnery. the angle of horizontal deviation, measured clockwise, of a bearing […]
When my son was very young, he would give me the same advice as I left for work every day: “Goodbye, Daddy, have a good day at work. Be sure to drink your water, eat your lunch, and make new friends.” I always thought his farewell each day was far more insightful than just a […]
There’s a great scene in the 1949 John Ford film She Wore a Yellow Ribbon that contains a lesson in leadership. You guessed it: they were walking their horses. What does “walking horses” have to do with leadership? Just this: leaders can and must try to get the best out of their people, but no one can […]
Note: As we’re in the throws of a bitterly fought election year, Rule #7 takes on greater urgency. Try not to look at somone who thinks or believes differently than you as the “enemy.” Rather, begin by assuming your neighbor is a person of good will trying their best to do what they believe is […]
Asking the right questions is usually better than knowing the right answers.There’s an old saying in the Air Force that colonels rarely ask questions to which they don’t already know the answer. I never really understood that saying until I became a colonel, then the light came on. Everyone wants to show the colonel how […]
5. The first report is usually wrong. Be patient and ask questions. In my military career I’ve had the unique opportunity to watch news bring made, both in Washington and in the field, then watch it being reported on TV. I’ve also meet many reporters, and in my experience they’re trying their best to tell […]
My Dad taught me a number of really great sayings, but among the best he ever taught me was “’Can’t’” never gets anything done. Keep it out of your vocabulary.” Actually, the exact words he used were, “Can’t” never could do anything. You see, Dad always believed that if you try hard enough, work hard […]
I received so much positive feedback from my “Mickey’s Rules” series, I’ve assembled the entire list into an ebook! Developed over career spanning three decades, in this book I give leaders a “how to” rule book for leading at any level. The eleven rules in the book are excellent guidelines for relating to other people, correctly […]
Rule #1. Have a direction and know what it is. Go there. The first rule of leadership is for the leader to know where he or she is going. People look to leaders for inspiration and motivation, but above all, they look to leaders for direction. That’s why it’s so very important for leaders to […]
For years I kept General Colin Powell’s “Rules” on a worn, type-written sheet of paper somewhere on my desk. His Rules had been published in a news magazine article, and I thought they were fabulous, so I typed them up and added a few of my own to the bottom. Over the years, I developed […]
In the first part, I discussed leaders’ role in guiding an organization through tragedy. But what if it’s you that suffers the tragedy? How do you continue to lead when a personal disaster depletes your attention and energy? The first thing to remember is if it’s a big deal to you, it probably a big […]
Tragedy is a part of the human experience: we can’t escape it and as leaders we get one chance to get that right. Whether that tragedy is the loss of a co-worker to an untimely death, a teammate with a life threatening disease, or the loss of an employee’s family member, leaders have to be […]
az·i·muth [az-uh-muhth] noun 1. Astronomy, Navigation . the arc of the horizon measured clockwise from the south point, in astronomy, or from the north point, in navigation, to the point where a vertical circle through a given heavenly body intersects the horizon. 2. Surveying, Gunnery. the angle of horizontal deviation, measured clockwise, of a bearing […]
When my son was very young, he would give me the same advice as I left for work every day: “Goodbye, Daddy, have a good day at work. Be sure to drink your water, eat your lunch, and make new friends.” I always thought his farewell each day was far more insightful than just a […]
Rule #9: Walk The Horses There’s a great scene in the 1949 John Ford film She Wore a Yellow Ribbon that contains a lesson in leadership. You guessed it: they were walking their horses. What does “walking horses” have to do with leadership? Just this: leaders can and must try to get the best out of […]
Successful leaders are curious about their business and the people who work for/with them. This sort of curiosity is an imperative for a leader because he/she has to both accomplish the task at hand and the “care/feeding” of the team. To put it more succinctly, the leader needs to know what’s going on. There’s a […]
Rule # 7: The other team is not the enemy. The enemy is the enemy; don’t confuse the two. Rule #7 may seem like it only applies to war or possibly sports, but it applies to business and life as well. Conflict can arise when goals or methods between people or organizations differ. People being […]
6. Asking the right questions is usually better than knowing the right answers. There’s an old saying in the Air Force that colonels rarely ask questions to which they don’t already know the answer. I never really understood that saying until I became a colonel, then the light came on. Everyone wants to show the […]