Welcome to the second part of my two-part series on the importance of responsibility and accountability for all leaders. As we discussed...

Many supervisors are in leadership positions because they were high performers in their previous roles. However, to be brutally honest,...

The best boss I ever had gave me excellent advice on how to be a successful leader. She said, "Jot down everything your worst boss ever did to tick you off, now do the exact opposite. I bet it does not cost any money to do, and it falls under a leader's job description." When I conduct focus group discussions on an effective leader's qualities, I often think about that boss. Below is a summary of my most recent virtual focus group discussion on the four worst types of bosse

Last week, I presented to a professional association in North Dakota. I had previously presented to this group, so the president of the association was familiar with me and my realistic speaking style. During my introduction, he told the group to prepare themselves for a bunch of uncommon common-sense ideas. He then handed me the microphone and said, "Folks, you wait till John talks about the 'the Yellow Pad.' It's worth the price of admission alone." Over the years, many pe

Not too long ago, a student approached me after an on-site leadership session and asked me what I thought were the most important characteristics of becoming an effective leader. I thanked her for the question, then reeled off several attributes in a row, such as persistence, hard work, intelligence, analytic ability, tough-mindedness, courage, patience, anticipation, and goodwill. The last characteristic seemed to surprise her. She asked me to elaborate, so I said that, in m

Earlier this year, I was enjoying dinner at a local fast-food restaurant. As it was peak time, the lines quickly grew long, and people...

From an early age, everyone develops a need to know how we are doing. It begins with looking to our parents for approval, continues into...

At some point, most parents will hear their kids say, usually to a sibling, "You are not the boss of me!" For a split second, you might...