How often do you hear people speak with envy about companies with “real heart”? Companies like Starbucks, Ben and Jerry’s, Southwest Airlines, Harley-Davidson, Google and FedEx to name a few. Outsiders are constantly looking for their “secrets” to success. The secret lies in the hearts of their employees… working together. Nothing we achieve in this world is…
To capture the hearts of our team and ignite their passion, we must meet one of their most basic psychological needs – to contribute to something bigger than a job, to find true meaning in their work. Picture this scenario: Three people were crushing rocks side by side on a construction job. When they were…
Your team looks to you for their model of leading and learning. Does it look like you have arrived, like you know it all, like you have all the answers or like you are just cruising? The key to being a great coach is being a good student. It all starts with you! Excellent leadership is not just…
We all know that asking questions it a powerful leadership tool, but most leaders are ill-equipped to apply this knowledge with their team. Bob Tiede has studied and written about asking questions for years and offers really practical questions in his new, free e-book, Great Leaders Ask Questions: A Fortune 100 List. Here is an…
College fraternities and sororities understand the power of rituals. They use rituals to make members feel connected to one another through unique yet common experiences (mostly legal experiences, hopefully). Their rituals include secret passwords and handshakes, special chants and songs, required activities, pre-game tailgate parties, goofy antics for pledges and time-honored initiation ceremonies. Their special…
Have you ever tried to pull some aluminum foil out of the box and the entire roll just jumps right out of the box as you pull? Then you have to put the roll back in the box and start over. The stubborn roll always comes out at the wrong time! Well, whoever looks at…
Engaging the heart tends to be more challenging for leaders than engaging the mind. It's the softer side of leadership, and it's harder to get your head around. Traditional leadership development programs don't emphasize the skills necessary to engage employees' hearts. As a result, most leaders tend to be less comfortable with this side of…
Leading a business through the inevitable roller coaster of change has plenty of challenges. Organizational change is just a concept. Organizations do not change - individuals change. If enough individuals change then you start to reap the benefits of organizational change. Here are two common vs. effective responses to tough times. Control vs. Involvement The…
My late father grew up in southern Italy. I remember him singing Italian songs, particularly this one, O Sole Mio (My Sun). He loved the Three Tenors, but now there is a new generation or young talent with their own twist on this classic. Three Italian teen boys called Il Volo are enthralling a new…
Think of the times you've gone shopping or to a restaurant and dealt with people who were visibly happy to be in their jobs-and to have the opportunity to serve you. Their words were straight from their hearts, rather than a script. They probably surprised you with the extra effort and thoughtfulness in satisfying your needs, answering your questions…
