“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable man persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”

George Bernard Shaw

“Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it.”

Mahatma Gandhi

“Trust those who are seeking the truth; doubt those who find it.”

André Gide

Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

THINK AHEAD: Opportunities appear when we step outside the current moment and think ahead.

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” Albert Einstein

You can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you. John Wooden

MIND FILLING: When you fill your mind with only the positive, there’s no room left for the negative.

“Always make a total effort, even when the odds are against you.” - Arnold Palmer

A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit. - Richard Bach

“I’ve always tried to go one step past wherever people expected me to end up.” ~ Beverly Sills

Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.

The best & most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.-Helen Keller

“Friendship isn’t a big thing; it’s a million little things.”~Unknown

“There is no one giant step that does it. It’s a lot of little steps.” ~ Peter A. Cohen

“Ask yourself a question: Is my attitude worth catching?” - Zig Ziglar

“Motivation is simple. You eliminate those who are not motivated.” - Lou Holtz

Even a mosquito doesn’t get a slap on the back until he starts to work.”"

“The only way to have a life is to commit to it like crazy.” ~ Angelina Jolie

“You cannot always control what goes on outside. But you can always control what goes on inside.” - Wayne Dyer

“Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.” - Paul Boese

“He that would live in peace and at ease must not speak all he knows or all he sees.” — Benjamin Franklin

“The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do” - unknown

“He that would live in peace and at ease must not speak all heknows or all he sees.” — Benjamin Franklin

“People who are addicted to making excuses are usually blind to how badly they’re limiting themselves.” — unknonw

“99% of the failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.” — unknown

“Happiness is a choice that requires effort at times.” - Anonymous

“He who has health has hope; and he who has hope has everything.” ~Arabic Proverb

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” - John Wooden

“To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities” -Bruce Lee

http://twitter.com/LeadershipFX

Follow me on Twitter.  I make about 5 posts a week.

Each post will be a quote about ‘Leadership’.

I promise to not bore you with anything about my wanting to work out, or getting tired, or drinking my daily cup of coffee or any of the other drivel that people think is interesting about themselves.

Just quotes… just value… sans crap.

General leadership is always a task that moves an organization forward. But creating and leading a high performance team may increase retention, efficiency, and even profit. In an age when buzz words sometimes get more notice, let’s look at high performance teams and determine how to make that team a reality instead of simply a popular term.

First, leaders must define what high performance really is. There are general leadership attributes that can be reached and exceeded by leaders at all levels and in all types of organizations. But the true definition of high performance leadership is going to center on the organization, its needs, and the way it will become a leader in its field. For example, simply providing customer service is not a high performance attribute. But providing 100% customer satisfaction in every customer interaction is a high performance standard, especially when that standard is measured and is part of accountability. So to begin creating a high performance team, determine what attributes create high performance at the individual, group, and organizational level. Continue reading this post…

Adaptive leadership is a step up from other leadership skills. Typically the term is applied to leadership situations that involve neither technical nor operational issues. Issues that require a form of adaptive leadership are normally problems that do not have the clarity of an operational issue, as well as a lack of clear solutions. How you, as a leader, react to adaptive issues will set the tone for problem solving going forward. Let’s first look at specific qualities of adaptive issues, and then discuss some ways you can lead adaptively.

With adaptive issues, you may notice a difference between what the organization would like to see happen and the reality of the situation. This could come about when the organization tries to create its vision, knowing that quite a bit of work is needed to make the vision a reality. Adaptive issues are those that require responses that are outside the norm or outside of the box. If you cannot respond to an issue with the normal “tool box”, then the issue may require an adaptive stance. An adaptive issue may also require leadership to make tough decisions or decisions that are not so popular. Continue reading this post…

Leaders can inspire, champion change, and engage followers who will stop at nothing to watch the vision become a reality. Being in a leadership position enhances your own personal and professional image, as well. But there are risks involved in leadership. Let’s discuss five common leadership risks and how you can avoid them.

History will tell you that leaders can become isolated. In an organizational environment, this is sometimes caused by growth. For example, leaders who start out in a small organization that grows in leaps and bounds can suddenly find themselves alone, without a proper support system and sounding boards. Perhaps the other leaders he or she relied on have their own groups to lead. There is also the possibility that the leader got lost in the shuffle - inspiration can cause people to charge ahead without stopping until the vision is complete. How can you avoid becoming isolated? One of the key ways is to maintain constant communication with other leaders and with the organization as a whole. Leaders who conduct “town hall” style meetings, even in bad times, will be able to keep in touch with the organization’s “pulse”. Leaders who continually communicate will always hear and be heard. In addition, leaders should not give in to the temptation to surround themselves with people who say only what they want to hear. As a leader, you must be constantly challenged, and one of the best ways to do that is to surround yourself with people who will tell say that you might be wrong. Continue reading this post…

Maintaining the leadership pool is a challenging task for an organization and its top leaders. There are a number of activities, as well as developmental exercises, that can be undertaken to grow leadership at every level within the organization. But how can organizational leaders measure leadership? And, more importantly, what analytics can be used to ensure that leadership talent is used efficiently and appropriately? Let’s look at some broad categories of leadership analytics.

First, behavioral profiling is an excellent analytical tool. There are two ways to approach behavioral analytics for leaders. First, you can identify behavioral characteristics of well-known leaders, either in the world at large or within the organization itself. These general characteristics can be used as a “yardstick” for leadership development and leadership measurement. There are many sources of popular leadership profiles, but how can you profile within the organization? Myers-Briggs type indicators are one example. A certified Myers-Briggs consultant can assess leaders, name their “types”, and help the organization build profiles, communication plans, and job-specific characteristics - and use these items as leadership analytics.
Continue reading this post…