No one ever said that being a leader was going to be easy. In fact, I believe that being an effective leader is one of the greatest challenges one can face in their lifetime. Why? Because it requires a fundamental shift in how you perceive your work and how you go about getting things done. As…
“Be a living expression of your values, wear them, speak them, make decisions aligned with them.” ~Anonymous Living Your Values or Are They Just Words? Knowing what you stand for and living your values is not always an easy thing to do. This is true for organizations as well as individuals. In fact, it seems…
“Creating choices empowers me…giving choices empowers others” ~ Joe Contrera A friend of mine once asked me a question when I was going through a pretty tough time in my life. They asked, “Do you want to be right or do you want to be happy?” Believe it or not, my initial response was, “I…
“Never tolerate poor performance in yourself or others.” ~Larry Winget We’ve all been there. You have a poor performer on your team, yes, the one you refer to as your problem child. The one who takes up an inordinate amount of time, energy, and resources, and who consistently under-performs. Below is a list of…
“I’m not upset that you lied to me, I’m upset that from now on, I can’t believe you.” ~ Friedrich Nietzsche “The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off.” ~ Joe Klaas Recently, I expanded my reading to include books and articles whose premise or concepts are outside of my normal…
“Your ability to comprehend what is not being spoken, is even more important than your ability to comprehend what is being spoken!” ~ Joe Contrera Emotional Intelligence, also known as EQ is now a highly sought after skill amongst Leaders. It was initially introduced in the 1930’s by psychologist Edward Thorndike as “social intelligence, and…
Over the course of my life I have read and been influenced by a great many books. It always seemed like the perfect book appeared when I needed to read it the most. A few weeks ago I was asked to share some thoughts on my latest book, Extraordinary Results for Life, and to recommend 5…
“I could deny it if I liked. I could deny anything if I liked.” ~ Oscar Wilde I recently read a 60 Minutes story about appliance repair people who were ripping people off. They stated they replaced parts, but didn’t, and then charged exorbitant fees to replace those parts that weren’t broken. The reporters, went…
Having a purpose bigger than you is where it all begins… In business I believe that the key to motivating employee’s requires two things: Help them identify their unique contribution to the organization and consistently recognize them for it. Show them how they are a part of something bigger than themselves. Imagine what would happen…
“Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” ~Socrates Spiritual growth, personal growth, professional growth, business growth, relational growth, emotional growth, and on and on it goes! For those who feel like they are on a continuous, 120 mph, path of growth and busy-ness, I have a question for you: Are you happy? More Doesn’t Always…