Category Archives: Blog

Leadership: Purposes, Perils & Possibilities

Volume 7: September 2023 Greetings! Here in New Hampshire, the morning air is crisp and cool as summer wanes and we anticipate the glorious riot of fall colors. I’ve always enjoyed these seasonal variations – and yet, this year, I’m struck by the contrast between these predictable changes and the unpredictable, sometimes exciting, sometimes frightening … Continue reading 

All Ears: The Gift of the Introvert

Volume 6: December 2022 Greetings! In New England we’re enjoying the inevitable shift of seasons. Only a few weeks ago, we were delighting in miraculous bursts of colorful fall leaves. Now, the days are getting shorter and cooler, and, as I write this, I can see the first dusting of snow. Yet despite the appearance … Continue reading 

Lessons from Frederick

That Damn Mouse I kept thinking about Frederick. To be honest, I tried to write another article, but it was boring. And that damn mouse kept creeping into my head and clamoring for attention – insisting he had something to say to the house-bound about leadership and beauty and poetry. Frederick is a classic children’s … Continue reading 

Today’s Corporate Mystic

A Quirky 90s Notion Years ago I read a book called The Corporate Mystic: A Guidebook for Visionaries with Their Feet on the Ground (Hendricks & Ludeman, 1996). Written at a time when narratives about hard-driving CEOs, like Ford’s Lee Iacocca and GE’s Jack Welch, were popular, this book was never destined to be a … Continue reading 

Ambassadors of Trust

The Illusory Ideal of Collaboration Years ago I worked with a CEO who would bemoan the inability of his staff to see beyond their own function, project, or individual need. Exasperated, he’d say, “I’d give anything to have people who could work together for the greater good of the company.” And yet, despite his best … Continue reading 

The Case for Compassion

Too Tired to Care? Compassion fatigue. We’ve known for years that overexposure to trauma can produce hopelessness and cynicism in caregivers, educators, and first responders. In 2012, journalist Nicholas Kristof extended this notion to the broader public, saying that relentless images of suffering and tragedy can be overwhelming, shutting down our ability to care. Kristof’s … Continue reading 

Brains and Buddha

The Reptile Rules! Brain research is all the rage these days. Everywhere I look, I see articles and books about neuropsychology and other branches of neuroscience that are unlocking the mysteries of the human brain. For example, in my field, brain researchers are offering new insights on behaviors that help or hinder interpersonal relationships within … Continue reading 

Three Myths of Change

Author and mythologist Betty Sue Flowers (2007) says that a myth is a belief or story that we’ve stopped questioning. Although myths are neither inherently good nor bad, when we accept a myth as truth, we develop a blind spot — a learned cluelessness —  about that topic. In this issue, I examine a few … Continue reading 

Three Myths of Leadership

My husband likes to poke fun at my profession. He insists that if you put the word leadership into the title of any publication, it will immediately go to the top of the best-seller list. “Leadership for Losers,” he says, “it’s a slam dunk! Write it, and we can retire on the profits!” Like any … Continue reading 

Fear

Many years ago, I had an experience that changed my relationship with fear. At the time I was a new trainer in a corporate university, learning how to facilitate one of the company’s flagship leadership programs. I had just completed the second of three days of teaching and it was going pretty well, but it … Continue reading 

Blessed Unrest…And the Corporation

“It has been said that we cannot save our planet unless humankind undergoes a widespread spiritual and religious awakening…What if there already is in place a large-scale spiritual awakening and we are simply not recognizing it?”  Paul Hawken, Blessed Unrest, p. 184  In his 2007 book, activist and entrepreneur Paul Hawken considers the question posed … Continue reading