Leadership

This is the leadership version of the Strengths Finder 2.0 that I read a few months ago. I'll be taking the leadership version soon. Strengths Finder 2.0 - Tom Rath - Hardcover

"There are many things in life that will catch your eye, but only a few that will catch your heart.  Pursue those." -- Anonymous Truth be told, we humans are easily distracted by the shiny things in life.  We drift towards those things that catch our eye.  We spend the better part of our days, the best of our energy, in pursuit of more ... money or stuff or gadgets. What if you spent the better part of your day, the best of your energy, pursuing the one or two things that have captivated your heart? Imagine how your day, your family, your job, and your community would be different.

John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States, once defined leadership in these terms: "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." That's a great definition.  You've probably heard that leadership is influence (thanks to John Maxwell).  That's true.  If you're not influencing someone, you're not leading them.  Take Maxwell's definition and through it in the blender with President Adam's definition -- and you have a really good definition of leadership. Ask yourself the following questions ... Do the people I lead dream bigger dreams than before? Do the people I lead show a desire to learn more than before? Do the people I lead do more on their own initiative, without my prompting? Do the people I lead become better leaders? Here's why many leaders will struggle with these questions: for them, leadership isn't about those they…

"If you give in to "just this once," based on a marginal-cost analysis, you'll regret where you end up. That's the lesson I learned: it's easier to hold to your principles 100 percent of the time than it is to hold to them 98 percent of the time. The boundary—your personal moral line—is powerful because you don't cross it; if you have justified doing it once, there's nothing to stop you doing it again." -- Clayton Christensen, Harvard Business School

A black hole is a "region of space-time where gravity is so strong that nothing that enters the region, not even light, can escape" (Wikipedia). Black holes are the enemies of good ideas. A father can become a black hole if he puts down every suggestion.  Children want to be affirmed, to feel valued.  No one wants to be constantly put-down.  The easiest way to avoid a put-down?  Offer no suggestions. A boss can become a black hole if he or she believes every good idea must originate with them.  Employees who offer ideas only to see them dry up or go unused will eventually stop offering ideas. A friend can become a black hole if they treat opinions with sarcasm.  Not every opinion is equal.  Not every opinion is correct.  But every opinion is personal, even the most hair-brained idea.  Sarcasm communicates a lack of appreciation -- not just for the…