In leadership positions, we all find ourselves in situations where we have to take a difficult position and enforce it. The problem is when we enforce decisions with a dictator-esque style of leadership. A leaders creates a creative atmosphere and develops future leaders, if you have every uttered the line “not everyone is going to agree with or like my style of leadership”, … [Read more...]
What small business can learn from Obamacare
I’m not going to jump on the bandwagon and shout about the evils of Obamacare, in fact I actually think that it’s a good thing. Having seen how other national health systems run, I see the value of preventive care from a business perspective. Healthier people cost less money, but to get to that value you have to implement the structure and that’s where we’re struggling. As a … [Read more...]
Small Business Lessons from Black Friday
For years now Black Friday has been the best sales day of the year for a lot of small businesses. This Thanksgiving however, what I noticed were not the great deals or the savvy shoppers. I noticed the grumpiness and discontent of the people that had to work, the increased security in the malls and the general cynicism of the average shopper. So what can small business learn … [Read more...]
How Leadership Misses the Mark
Today I had an occasion to really explore something about myself that I already knew. I knew it, but I didn’t know what to do about it. You see I am nothing if not up front about what I like and don’t like, but I often skip conversations that are not productive. The end result is that the irritation builds and then you have a blow up. I learned that this is really passive … [Read more...]
The Big Dream of a Small Company
I had an interesting conversation today about strategy and growth. What was different about this conversation was that the tone of it just made sense. As my firm has grown and matured, things have changed. The stakes have become bigger, the rewards better and the disappointments more bitter. As I wondered aloud ‘am I dreaming too large’ these are the nuggets the conversation … [Read more...]