In this post we want to continue our discussion around tenacity–specifically as it relates to defining clear core values. In part 2, we talked about the need to refine our values down to a very few values that resonate most deeply with you. But that isn’t the end. Your values must be refined even further! Each value needs to include …
Most people don’t have clearly defined personal core values. This doesn’t surprise me because a surprisingly small number of people I encounter across the company are actually clear on what they value. As we talked about before, the research done by Jim Collins and his team for Good to Great proved that virtually all of the most successful companies have gotten clear on …
The first component of Extraordinary Success is Tenacity. Tenacity can be defined simply as persistent determination. It is summed up perfectly in this quote from Calvin Coolidge: Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is …
As promised, this post begins a brand new topic–Extraordinary Success. Extraordinary Success is unique among our four main topics because it is the only topic for which we do not offer a definition. This is intentional of course. We don’t provide a specific definition for extraordinary success because it will look different for each of you. You should define what extraordinary success looks like for your …
With this post (Equipping, part 4) we have reached the end of our series on Extreme Leadership. In light of this, I’d like to close with a topic that fully embodies the extreme Leadership definition. In this post, we want to look at Equipping by Replacing Yourself. For our purposes, Replacing Yourself simply means that you equip and train someone else to fully operate in your …
Over the past 10 weeks we have been talking about Extreme Leadership, which we’ve defined as: selfless, courageous influence that inspires lasting greatness in others. We have looked in depth at the elements that make up Extreme Leadership, including Self-Leadership, Influence, and now, Equipping. Last week we looked at Equipping through story. This week I want to talk about equipping through questions. Questions? Yes. John C. …
In the last chapter of our Extreme Leadership journey, we kicked off the topic of Equipping with a look at Self-Equipping. In part 2 we want to look one of the most powerful equipping tools: our own stories. You’ve probably heard the phrase “facts tell, but stories sell”. Most people think of that in a sales context, but the larger principle is that …
Even in the earliest days of my career as the owner of a paving company, I had no trouble identifying problems. It doesn’t take a lot of leadership ability to realize that employee engagement and attitudes–positive or negative–have a major impact on a company’s success. I even had the slogan, “attitude is everything” on my business cards. Unfortunately for me–and for …
In our series on Extreme Leadership, this is the last installment on the topic of Influence. We’ve looked at empathetic problem-solving, body-language and positive energy. Now we want to turn our attention to perhaps the most powerful influencing behavior of all: encouraging others. You may think I’ve gone totally “puppies & rainbows” with this one but trust me, the human need for …
This week we continue our look at Influence and its role in Extreme Leadership. Before we go any further though, I think it’s important to revisit the definition of Extreme Leadership: Extreme Leadership: Selfless, courageous influence that inspires lasting greatness in others. I want to draw your attention to the specific type of influence that inspires the lasting greatness–it is selfless, and it is courageous. That …