Managing Monsters in Meetings - Part 3, Drifting From the Topic

Although new ideas lead to creative solutions, they can be a challenge when they interrupt or distract the work on an issue.

Approach 1: Question the relationship to topic

When new ideas seem inappropriate, say:

"That's an interesting point (or question). And how does it relate to our topic?"

"Excuse me. We started talking about our budget and now we seem to be discussing payroll administration. Is this what we want to work on?"

"We seem to be working on a new issue. I'm sure this is important, and I wonder what you want to work on with the time we have left?"

These statements greet the ideas with compliments and requests for clarification. This recognizes that the other person could believe the idea relates to the topic, which it may.

Approach 2: Place in the Idea Bin

Use an Idea Bin to manage unrelated ideas. This powerful tool is a blank chart page posted on the wall with the title: Idea Bin. Some groups call it an Issue Bin or Parking Lot. The scribe writes new ideas on this chart page or the participants write their ideas on Post-it(?) Notes that they place on the page.

Direct new ideas to the Idea Bin by saying:

"That's a great idea. Could you put it in the Idea Bin?"

When you plan the agenda, leave time at the end of the meeting to check the Idea Bin. You will find that many of the new ideas were resolved during the meeting. If possible, deal with the remaining ideas that have merit or place them on future agendas.

Use these techniques to bring your meeting back to the issue on your agenda.

This is the third of a seven part article on Managing Monsters in Meetings.

- - - - - - - -

IAF Certified Professional Facilitator and author Steve Kaye works with leaders who want to hold effective meeting. His innovative workshops have informed and inspired people nationwide. His facilitation produces results that people will support. Sign up for his free newsletter at http://www.stevekaye.com. Call 714-528-1300 or visit his web site for over 100 pages of valuable ideas.

MORE RESOURCES:

New Detroit Hosts Leadership Summit on Race - MarketWatch

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-0fd=Rurl=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/new-detroit-hosts-leadership-summit/story.aspx%3Fguid%3D%257B7B8D3081-7E72-4DB1-A7C2-F4C94AC5E409%257D%26dist%3Dhpprcid=1256245848ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNGd9nLL_Ni7q73P-y6f3GI7KHeyogNew Detroit Hosts bLeadership/b Summit on Race/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fMarketWatchnbsp;-/font nobr1 hour ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1DETROIT, Oct 10, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- New Detroit begins a two-day bleadership/b summit on race Sunday evening featuring a distinguished line-up of b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-1fd=Rurl=http://www.ibtimes.com/prnews/20081010/mi-new-detroit-race.htmcid=1256245848ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNFVe4RUrDYZh1ejdZcays86iy4mTQNew Detroit Hosts bLeadership/b Summit on Race/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrInternational Business Times/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/0-2fd=Rurl=http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/teens-southeast-michigan-tackle-hidden/story.aspx%3Fguid%3D%257BA161216D-5E19-44A4-AC41-C4B6D88C3FEE%257D%26dist%3Dhpprcid=1256245848ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEnoB1qr6bg5x82tlEy1nAWr5U3PQTeens from Southeast Michigan to Tackle Hidden Racism/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrMarketWatch/nobr/font/fontbrfont class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1256245848hl=ennobrall 14 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Leawood, Kan., Public Officials Honored for Leadership in ... - MarketWatch

GoldenSource Expands Leadership Team - MarketWatch

Obama offers leadership on financial woes - InTheNews.co.uk

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3i-0fd=Rurl=http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/story%3Fid%3D5957466%26page%3D1cid=1254438696ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNH4oXf_8XY93dy4GbVBjSxrtLbeJwimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=pUMNCh_lIogJimgurl=a.abcnews.com/images/Politics/mccain_obama_080813_mn.jpg width=80 height=60 alt= border=1brfont size=-2ABC News/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-0fd=Rurl=http://www.inthenews.co.uk/news/world/autocodes/countries/united-states-america/obama-offers-leadership-on-financial-woes-%241244305.htmcid=1254438696ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNHFhoWTBGNXJQI6FA0dXQcjiAWp-QObama offers bleadership/b on financial woes/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fInTheNews.co.uk,nbsp;UKnbsp;-/font nobr11 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1Barack Obama has offered what he says is the quot;real bleadership/bquot; needed in Washington to guide the United States through its financial crisis. b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-1fd=Rurl=http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DMeBYMpup-1Ecid=1254438696ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNF0JvEvAl7jPGARY7T97JMcyXgiigVideo: AP Campaign Minute/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrAssociatedPress/nobr/fontobject width=448 height=356param name=movie value=http://www.youtube.com/v/MeBYMpup-1E/paramparam name=wmode value=transparent/paramembed src=http://www.youtube.com/v/MeBYMpup-1Etype=application/x-shockwave-flashwmode=transparentwidth=448height=356/embed/objectbr/fontfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-2fd=Rurl=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/10/09/the_lasting_consequences_of_ch.html%3Ftid%3Dinformboxcid=1254438696ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNFZU2Wd6zV6vqGTj6LOB93X5R52HgThe Lasting Consequences of Character Attacks/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrWashington Post/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-3fd=Rurl=http://voanews.com/english/2008-10-09-voa67.cfmcid=1254438696ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEBI4Q8fODBKM9KJ5G1kneFyuWSmwUS Presidential Campaign Tone Becomes Increasingly Negative/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrVoice of America/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-4fd=Rurl=http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/Davidow/47cid=1254438696ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNGIe8xegXesb891qUDR2gdYi4nHLAnobrBuzzFlash/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/3-5fd=Rurl=http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/10/05/obama-ad-calls-mccain-erratic-bailout-work/cid=1254438696ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNGg8gmIqZwXjfevoe6sKLvsf85oKAnobrFOXNews/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1254438696hl=ennobrall 5,095 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Class seeks to cultivate leadership among Latinos - Walla Walla Union-Bulletin

A failure of leadership - Houston Chronicle

Malaysian Trade Minister to Stand for Party#39;s Deputy Leadership - Bloomberg

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/malaysia/3159108/Malaysian-PM-Abdullah-Badawi-to-resign.htmlcid=1255286332ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEsbKF9IH5NtMh8VcxbOpE9DHt62wimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=1P1s23lJoJoJimgurl=www.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01005/abdullah-badawi_1005971c.jpg width=80 height=50 alt= border=1brfont size=-2Telegraph.co.uk/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-0fd=Rurl=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news%3Fpid%3D20601080%26sid%3DafJ0snfn1L1g%26refer%3Dasiacid=1255286332ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNHdpIX480OTWLyYzPqQXbkbTEUK6wMalaysian Trade Minister to Stand for Party#39;s Deputy bLeadership/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fBloombergnbsp;-/font nobr20 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1By Manirajan Ramasamy Oct. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Malaysian International Trade and Industry Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said he#39;ll stand for election as the b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-1fd=Rurl=http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/politics/son-in-law-says-he-did-not-cause-badawis-exit_100105528.htmlcid=1255286332ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEmIOlZOCIzJrmCv0zx48T6M9J3RwSon-in-law says he did not cause Badawi’s exit/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrThaindian.com/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-2fd=Rurl=http://mt.m2day.org/2008/content/view/13575/84/cid=1255286332ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNF0-WAJ5PYsdMjGcaYizA3QSkxc7AThorough bleadership/b change awaits for a defensive UMNO/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrMalaysia Today/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-3fd=Rurl=http://www.dailynews.lk/2008/10/08/wld02.aspcid=1255286332ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEvCn3URcIYqa2lYvrB8UtN92FHhAMalaysia’s Anwar says bleadership/b handover doomed/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrCeylon Daily News/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-4fd=Rurl=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/10/10/asia/AS-Malaysia-Politics.phpcid=1255286332ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNHSqV-gl3W0Fd8pOb_l77XlY42HmwnobrInternational Herald Tribune/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/6-5fd=Rurl=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news%3Fpid%3D20601080%26sid%3DaMyjjTKvplo8%26refer%3Dasiacid=1255286332ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEhjeUpv84eh_plk9D27zdwj6UjKQnobrBloomberg/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1255286332hl=ennobrall 466 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

NPS Director Mary Bomar earns Walter Cox Award for leadership - Clemson University

Looking for leadership - Newsday

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8i-0fd=Rurl=http://www.smh.com.au/news/us-election/ratings-hit/2008/10/04/1223013834247.htmlcid=1256260127ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNHbK_8JXdDCbqZww8gs4EQidb2U2Qimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=SEmPNYN3IyYJimgurl=www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2008/10/03/palinbiden_wideweb__470x219,0.jpg width=80 height=37 alt= border=1brfont size=-2Sydney Morning Herald/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-0fd=Rurl=http://www.newsday.com/news/opinion/ny-vpdeb095875049oct09,0,6079848.storycid=1256260127ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNHBS9y-XWuZIjjm2m_tQypLeJiyLALooking for bleadership/b/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fNewsday,nbsp;NYnbsp;-/font nobrOct 9, 2008/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1The presidential debate Tuesday should have been a bleadership/b moment. Sadly, it wasn#39;t. Not in the way that people crave. With global financial markets b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-1fd=Rurl=http://www.gjfreepress.com/article/20081009/LETTERS/810089975/1020%26title%3DLeadership%2520and%2520a%2520plan%2520vs.%2520empty%2520words%2520and%2520attackscid=1256260127ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEHXVlRrsWq2apzuQk1gQYyW6-UWgbLeadership/b and a plan vs. empty words and attacks/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrGrand Junction Free Press/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-2fd=Rurl=http://www.wkowtv.com/Global/story.asp%3FS%3D9138446%26nav%3Dmenu1362_2cid=1256260127ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNGVPAgBDbD0qIjIiG-NgPSfMKd7_QMcCain-Palin 2008 announces Wisconsin farm amp; ranch team bleadership/b/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrWKOW-TV.com/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-3fd=Rurl=http://readme.readmedia.com/news/show/McCain-Once-Again-Shows-Leadership-Vision/296445cid=1256260127ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEFGqvKoPzYCo7Mp9CqMQtpWwAQiwMcCain Once Again Shows bLeadership/b, Vision/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrReadMedia (press release)/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-4fd=Rurl=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/beth-arnold/winky-blingy-and-nod_b_133247.htmlcid=1256260127ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNGu-hTuLBW3EdsSFVcm1_QEKh6ZpQnobrHuffington Post/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/8-5fd=Rurl=http://www.boston.com/news/politics/politicalintelligence/2008/10/labor_warns_mcc.htmlcid=1256260127ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNHHLoPmcueXbVBxVWwcNT4bliTj5gnobrBoston Globe/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1256260127hl=ennobrall 1,150 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Looking for leadership in troubled times - The State

table border=0 width= valign=top cellpadding=2 cellspacing=7trtd width=80 align=center valign=topfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9i-0fd=Rurl=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7659371.stmcid=1256215640ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNF98QpH8ZDIV8JtllEBAJWJDxHK2wimg src=http://news.google.com/news?imgefp=_heq0hV-dAkJimgurl=newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/45090000/jpg/_45090030_mccainpalin226.jpg width=80 height=60 alt= border=1brfont size=-2BBC News/font/a/font/tdtd valign=top class=jfont style=font-size:85%;font-family:arial,sans-serifbrdiv style=padding-top:0.8em;img alt= height=1 width=1/divdiv class=lha href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-0fd=Rurl=http://www.thestate.com/local/story/550212.htmlcid=1256215640ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEoYFIW7i9XKC2sMO619tjMfT80WALooking for bleadership/b in troubled times/abrfont size=-1font color=#6f6f6fThe State,nbsp;SCnbsp;-/font nobr20 hours ago/nobr/fontbrfont size=-1bLeadership/b experience: Served in the US Navy as a fighter pilot. Has also served in the US Senate for more than two decades. Case for McCain: McCain comes b.../b/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-1fd=Rurl=http://www.fayobserver.com/article%3Fid%3D306949cid=1256215640ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEPIg4HxIjWOUHBOpniOiF0OqDpBAbLeadership/b can avert crises/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrFayObserver.com/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-2fd=Rurl=http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/10/obama-attacks-m.htmlcid=1256215640ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNFW7ixPE_kJUdfB9tWuAWY3qiCeiQObama Attacks McCain As #39;Risky,#39; #39;Erratic#39;/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrABC News/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-3fd=Rurl=http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.1374/pub_detail.aspcid=1256215640ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNEHNaVvQFx5ICV8hWVoQiJRefjWXgExclusive: Courage Under Fire – A Tale of Two Senators, Obama and b.../b/a font size=-1 color=#6f6f6fnobrFamily Security Matters/nobr/font/fontbrfont size=-1 class=pa href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-4fd=Rurl=http://www.journalinquirer.com/articles/2008/10/10/connecticut/doc48ef530fb9c0e563170959.txtcid=1256215640ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNE4HfocE4EtXZvt8jtV6SccAAykxgnobrJournal Inquirer/nobr/anbsp;- a href=http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=Tct=us/9-5fd=Rurl=http://www.dailylocal.com/site/news.cfm%3Fnewsid%3D20159287%26BRD%3D1671%26PAG%3D461%26dept_id%3D17785%26rfi%3D6cid=1256215640ei=ge_vSPjfIqDM8ATfiu3FBwusg=AFQjCNG6fKylLvLEdKRUgZvjY-KOX0rnFQnobrChester DailyLocal.com/nobr/a/fontbr/font class=p size=-1a class=p href=http://news.google.com/news?sourceid=navclientie=ISO-8859-1rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-22,GGLG:enncl=1256215640hl=ennobrall 1,342 news articles/nobr/a/font/div/font/td/tr/table

Leadership - Google News

RELATED ARTICLES

Leadership Training: The Bit They Didn't Tell You About Changing!
A willingness to change first is one of the major pre requisites for leaders!If the situation is deadlocked or blocked, they need to find the best opportunity, shift their personal perspective to accommodate it and take action from there. This is no matter how personally attached they are to their current position!Three sixty degree feedback is a great example.

Benefits of Leadership Skill Training
DESCRIPTIONCMOE's Leadership Skill Training addresses a wide range of leadership development topics, based on the needs of the audience and scope of delivery. Leadership Skill Training for new leaders might be targeted to help them make the transition from individual contributor to effective leader.

Value Driver Leadership
CHAPTER 1************VALUEThose qualities regarded by a person or group as important and desirable of standards and principlesWhat is value driven leadership? Have you ever considered having a value driven leadership team? Or even a team driven by values and not a team having to be driven by the leader? That thought alone made me consider looking into the way I ran my teams and how I could do things better; this is the driving force behind writing this book. When you think about it, in everything we do as individuals or a team we should always be 'values driven' not impulse or need driven! If we are driven by values then we will always have a "why" in everything we do, and then we will do what we do with everything that is in us, come hell or high water (test, trials, pressure, set back or circumstances).

Lead People...Manage Things
Master The Five Key Facets of High Performance LeadershipMany people in leadership positions struggle with understanding what makes a great leader. While billions of dollars are spent annually on leadership development, quality leadership is still in short supply.

Abraham Lincoln Is Still Alive
Abraham Lincoln Is Still Alive President Jimmy Carter tells in his memoirs that a trip to Gettysburg and a discussion about Abraham Lincoln helped achieve a breakthrough in the Camp David negotiations.� The Israelis and the Egyptians had reached a deadlock.

Ten Steps To Effective Leadership
Many people end up in a supervisory position or SOHO ownership almost by default. In today's workplace, if someone stays on their job long enough, they will probably be promoted as others, more senior to them or higher up the chain of responsibility, leave for other opportunities.

Leadership In The Zone!
"You do not merely want to be considered just the best of the best. You want to be considered the only one who does what you do.

Embracing Adversity for Achievement
"Show me someone who has done something worthwhile, and I'll show you someone who has overcome adversity." -- Lou HoltzSuccess in life depends upon being strong people with clear goals and indomitable spirits.

To be, or Not to be (Average)?
When is hate OK? When it's the feeling you have toward average. Let me make this point clearly and without reservation.

None of Us Arrived with an Owners Manual: A Fresh Perspective on the Drive to Lead (part 2)
Why didn't I get an Owner's ManualAfter a little while with life happening and no sign of the Manual we began to realize we would need to make the best of it. We began to look around to see who had one and studied what they knew, surely some of it must be generic! We began to study our parents, our siblings - if they looked competent enough, and our other care givers.

The Synergy Effect
Have you ever considered that everything you want in life comes from someone else? The greatest minds in any field are keenly aware of the value of working with and involving others in life plans, business, work and personal commitments.We often have the notion that we operate in a vacuum, and that we are solely responsible for everything that happens in our lives.

A Good Leader Knows The Teams Colours
Leadership can be a very challenging task. As leaders we don't always get to choose who is on our team.

Leadership Styles and What We Need For the Future:
By definition a leaders leads a team to take action in favor of the vision.The most well know methods for assessing leadership styles, such as DISC, have outlived their usefulness!� Are leadership styles really captured in a neat questionnaire like DISC that measures Dominance, Influence, Steadiness and Conscientiousness?� Can we predict the leaders from the profile that DISC generates?� Can we test great leaders and say people with the same profile will have similar success?It seems the answer is less obvious.

The Sink Or Swim Approach To Leadership
Looking around in most corporate environments today you'll find mission, vision and values statements proudly displayed on the walls, in print materials and even engraved in granite. Often, they've invested a great deal of time; effort and expense in crafting just the right message to best describe the foundational principles of the company.

Getting Things Done, Without the Sweat!
How do you get your people on your side? And once their on your side, how can you get them to do anything you want? It's a skill that we all want. Nothing's better than leaving the hard work for someone else! But how?Do You Have It In You?Getting what you want and deserving it are two totally different things! Do you think it's reasonable to order a task onto your subordinate? Do you think it's acceptable to call up a friend only when you want something? Or how about being nice to someone just to butter them up but ignore them otherwise?No way! No fair!What would you think if someone treated you like that? Well this happens all the time.

5 Tips to Help You Win Big & Become a Village Hero
A few years ago, I returned to my impoverished village in Haiti. Many in the village came to see me-the tiny and diseased child they didn't expect to make it.

Leadership Training and Character
The vast majority of leadership training available to managers focuses primarily on skill and behaviors: how to delegate, how to communicate, how to manage conflict. These skills are unquestionably important and necessary.

On Being A Born Leader
"Leaders are born, not made." Right? Let me ask you a question: do you believe that?I'll give you mine: I *don't* believe it.

The Greatest Leaders Are Often The Worst Leaders
It's a common occurrence, a CEO leads a company to record earnings, retires and in months, those once high-flying earnings are dropping like shot ducks.Observers blame the new leadership team.

Dont be Afraid to Lead!
In most aspects of human activity, the pendulum of fashion swings back and forth between extremes, passing briefly through the point of balance on every swing.For a while, we were told leadership was all about setting clear objectives and holding people accountable.