When it comes to leadership skills it can well be argued that some of the most despised and horrible people on the planet over the course of history also demonstrated some of the best leadership abilities. The folks that were ruthless dictators and tyrants, with names like Joseph Stalin, and Benito Mussolini. Leaders who literally [...]

Now I’m sure you’ve read Stephen Covey’s excellent book ‘The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’. But if you haven’t, you should. It’s an inspiring summary of the seven simple but motivational things you need to do to be an inspirational leader. And it can help you to build an inspirational leadership style. I mention [...]

Business executives don’t have to win votes to get appointed. But to be a successful leader, in the corporate world or the political world, you need to know who you are and what you stand for. Even if you’re not the next president of the USA, I urge you to spare five minutes to read [...]

We learn most from our mistakes. It’s true. But problems occur for us when we forget this. Or when we deliberately deny that we made a mistake. And – if we’re honest – most of us do this, from time to time. So in this article I want to share with you the IMPORTANCE of [...]

Put people first. It’s the great cliche, isn’t it? When a business school professor like me asks you ‘what’s the most productive leadership style?’, you know the answer don’t you? Put people first. But if everyone knows the answer, why aren’t more people doing it? Why aren’t executives focused on motivating and inspiring their people? [...]

Most people could perform at a much higher level than they do if their boss created a suitable environment for them to flourish in. In many instances, it’s the boss who is holding the team back by trying to control it too closely. So ask yourself, do you set unnecessary boundaries for your teams? If [...]

The question I am most often asked by managers is: ‘Why won’t they do what I want?’ This is usually followed by: ‘And why don’t they work harder?’ As leaders and managers, we often assume that, if our employees really wanted to perform better, their performance would just increase. We assume that people’s ability to [...]

The other day my nine-year old daughter and two sons (seven and five years old respectively) were playing with neighborhood friends. Out of the blue, my two sons came running home upset because the girls in the group told them they didn’t want to play with them. I was puzzled. Wasn’t my daughter also in [...]

It’s daunting for business leaders who aspire to improve their leadership to be told to follow the example of Gandhi or Martin Luther King. These people are certainly inspirational, but they’re a tough act to follow in the real world. I’ve therefore been looking at what we can learn from leaders who get it wrong. [...]

Imagine a bed of oysters, carpeting the bottom of the clear blue ocean, waiting for some adventurous diver to scythe through the dappled waters and bring to the surface the secret pearls trapped inside. OK it’s a bit fanciful, I admit, but in this article I’ll be highlighting a pearl of wisdom from the ivory [...]