In 2009, in the depth of the worldwide recession, I began looking into the factors that separate high-performing companies from all the rest. I knew from my work with successful …

Words—whether read by the eye or heard by the ear—are tools leaders use to create impressions that console, educate, influence and inspire. Gifted leaders have overcome speech impediments (Moses, King …

Think about your team’s response to achieving a long-sought and hard-won objective. Do you take time to celebrate or get right back to business? Does your team’s success inspire vigilance …

Last week I was in Ohio delivering my accountability workshop, so I visited the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton. Displays of pro football’s early years were interesting. The …

Amazon turns 20 tomorrow. This anniversary means Amazon is one step closer to being your newest competitor. Leaders of business-to-business companies: Pay attention. Fortune magazine calls Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos …

There’s no Blue Bell ice cream this summer. Blue Bell issued a general recall in April after products tested positive for Listeria. The recall forced the company – the nation’s …

For Americans, the month of July is synonymous with celebrating our freedom. Our greatest freedom is the freedom of speech. This freedom-preserved as the First Amendment in our Bill of …

Last week I delivered my accountability workshop to owners, CEOs and key executives over a three-day period in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada. Kelowna is western Canada’s wine region and Tony …

Those born after 1980 may be surprised that blockbuster movies were not always part of our summers. It was 40 years ago in the summer of 1975 that “Jaws” warned …

Texas has been so dry for so long, most of us forgot what rainbows looked like. So we were grateful when the rains came. But by the end of May, …

June in Antarctica is winter. By June 1915, British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton and his crew of 27 men were trapped in their ship Endurance, frozen solid in the ice. …

Memorial Day signals the beginning of summer. The holiday’s original purpose was to honor the men and women of our armed forces. Tomorrow marks the 75th anniversary of the Dunkirk …

David Letterman says goodbye to late-night TV tomorrow. During his 22 years at CBS, Letterman developed several quirky features, including “Stupid Pet Tricks,” Monkey-Cam and “Small Town News.” One of …

Are you paying attention to the world around you? It’s easy to get caught up in the here-and-now. But as a leader, it’s your job to look around, connect the …

Hiring is on the uptick. At a career fair last month where I was speaking, about 50 companies were looking to fill approximately 3,000 positions. These companies had assigned key …

In his poem, “Mending Wall” four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Robert Frost paints a word picture of two neighbors who meet during “spring mending-time” to restack rocks on the stone wall …

With Spring in full bloom nearly one-third of the year completed, it’s an opportune time for you to tend the garden you call your business and consider taking this action: …

At a private workshop I was conducting, I asked this question: “When something doesn’t get done that’s supposed to get done, who owns that?” “We all do,” came the reply. …

Two days from now marks the 150th anniversary of the end of North America’s bloodiest war that pitted countryman against countryman and, occasionally, brother against brother. On April 9, 1865, …

The Final Four is approaching and even though UCLA was defeated in the Sweet 16 round, it’s appropriate to recall former UCLA coach John Wooden’s thoughts on leadership. The school’s …