My Un-Resume: My Agenda vs. Their Needs

I powered through my agenda for the meeting.  The meeting addressed everything I felt was important to cover from my vantage point.  I walked out satisfied and fulfilled. The problem was I was the only one feeling that way.  From the team’s perspective, the meeting left too many issues unaddressed.  They left more frustrated than […]

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Business Myths About Military Leaders – Myth #1

I blame the movie Patton.  In today’s business world, people assume autocratic, top down leadership prevails in our military and that military leaders are not prepared for the less rigid world of business leadership.  This is a myth! Just like all civilian business leaders are not like Michael Douglas in Wall Street, all military officers […]

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I Should Have Hired Jeff!

He sat across from me for 90 minutes.  He demonstrated drive, humility, sales skills, and the character I love to hire.  The problem was his background.  I was hiring for a high-end medical sales position.  But, he was selling dumpster pick-up service to restaurants.  I really liked Jeff.  But I hired someone else because Jeff […]

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Buzzword Defined (Part 2): Integrity

There is a lot of discussion of the word integrity in business books, in politics, in universities…in every walk of life.  I read about it all the time.  But, my father, General Jim Anderson, the former Master of the Sword at West Point, taught me more about integrity than any other source.  He says: INTEGRITY […]

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Execution? I’m for it!

“What do you think of your team’s execution?” Coach John McKay was asked.  “I’m for it!”  McKay replied.  The expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished that season winless and McKay captured the hearts of coaches everywhere with that comment. Whether it is in sports or in business, leaders often spend endless hours preparing strategies to insure […]

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Choosing Fear or Convenience Over Candor

I agreed to talk to the boss.  Three of my peers approached me about a sales campaign that they thought missed the mark.  It was our boss’s idea, but it wasn’t a good one. Over time, I became the person my peers came to when someone needed to confront our boss.  I accepted that role […]

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A Great Masseuse Is Like A Great Leader

I took a week long vacation recently in Puerto Rico.  I got a massage while I was there.  As I was lying on the table during my session, I realized the therapist was really not doing a good job. I longed for the person who I use close to home.  She does a great job.  […]

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My Un-Resume: I Took It Personally

When everything began to unravel for Pete, I knew I was going to have fire him.  I took it personally.  Like most leaders, I rarely lose sleep over the technical issues of my job.  It is the people who give me insomnia.  In this case it was Pete. I hired Pete.  He had all the […]

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#Prouddad, #Service, #Simplicity

This is a copy of the last blog written by a student from the Brook Hill School who went to Uganda over spring break.  It also happens to be my 16 year old son, Jake. I may be biased, but this is better than anything I have ever written. See what K.I.S.S.  means to a […]

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Buzzword Defined (Part 3): Courage

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at its testing point.”  –C.S. Lewis Wow.  Opening this post with this quote from C. S. Lewis just heightened my level of attention to a subject that has been watered down through over use and misunderstanding through the years.  How do […]

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