Are you the CWO* of your company?
Many CEO’s that I work with as a Vistage Chair have a different reality from the title they show on their business cards. I call it the CWO- Chief “Whack-a-Mole” Officer.
Plan tight, process loose
On Wednesday evening, Paul asked me what we are doing this weekend. Like many couples there is a planner and a spontaneous one, and you can guess who is who in our dynamic. I replied that I was planning to be sick this weekend. What???? I was getting the COVID booster Friday afternoon, so, yes, […]
Leadership advice from Colin Powell
General Colin Powell, former Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff spoke to my 3 Vistage groups this week and the take-aways were fantastic. Well actually, it was a pre-recorded interview with Vistage CEO Sam Reese that we watched at home and discussed at the meetings. But still, the take-aways were […]
“Servant” Leadership
I am a big fan of servant leadership, so I was quite interested in reading “The Motive” by Patrick Lencioni. This is his new book and it is about Leadership. According to Lencioni, all great leadership is servant leadership so it is time to drop the adjective: servant.
Depends on how you look at it…
Living in an area with mature trees is a real pleasure, especially during the hot days of summer. Look at the palm trees in the picture. They are over 60 feet tall. Notice the ivy climbing all the way to the top? That is pretty unusual. Is it a good thing, or a bad thing? […]
“Leadership is a performing art”. – Lee Thayer
Since I first read this quote last January, I’ve been rolling this concept around in my mind, the way you might roll a squeeze ball around in your hand. Or the way you try to pick a piece of kale out from between your molars….a performing art….hmmm
Bossy girl or natural leader?
When I think of 10 year old Nora with long stringy brown hair and glasses, I remember being bored, physically and mentally restless and often speaking up with ideas for how things could be more interesting or more fun. Was I a bossy girl or a natural leader?
Do what only you can do
My new Vistage Member looked uncomfortable, well maybe downright unhappy. I was a brand new Vistage Chair and a little uncertain. I put down my notebook and just looked her in the eye and asked, “What’s wrong? You look pretty unhappy.” She sighed deeply.
Covid based budgeting
Is it a lack of imagination? I got my second covid vaccine on Friday and I’m wondering: what changes?
Recovery
A new year, turn over a new leaf, leave the pandemic behind….as we began January, hope was in the air. I was feeling motivated, focused, grateful.