Leadership author and speaker
Leadership author and speaker
Rule #3: Don’t Let Perfect Be The Enemy of Good One of the hardest things a leader had to do sometimes is hold back enthusiastic employees or teammates who are so focused on perfection, they keep working on a project well past when they should’ve stopped. Sometimes “good enough” really is good enough. On one hand, […]
Last week, I reviewed The Lost Mandate of Heaven by Geoffrey D. T. Shaw (Ignatius Press), While Lost Mandate is not a leadership book, senior leaders can mine a number leadership lessons from it. The Most Senior Leader Must Remain Engaged Kennedy was involved in most of the decisions leading up to the coup, but the author […]
Rule #2. Don’t spook the herd. Emotional demonstrations are always counter-productive and stifle initiative. My second rule, “Don’t Spook the Herd” was born of several lessons I learned personally. Back in my cadet days at Texas A&M, I learned the importance keeping my emotions in check as a leader when I took over as an […]
Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions. Harold S. Geneen During the 1950-1953 Korean War, American fighter pilots dominated the skies, even though the Soviet-made MiG-15 jets were faster and more nimble than the American F-80 and F-86s. The difference wasn’t the technology—it was the battle-tested American veterans flying […]
Temperance is the practice of self-control, moderation and abstinence. Whenever we think of the word “Temperance,” many probably think of Carrie Nation and Prohibition. While moderation or even abstention from alcohol can be Temperance, it is actually a narrow view of it as a virtue. Temperance applies to keeping competing appetites in balance, similar to […]
Leaders are also readers, and when I travel I use the time to catch up on my reading and writing. Ignatius Press recently sent me The Lost Mandate of Heaven by Geoffery D. T. Shaw to review, and it was time well spent! Shaw tells the story of the rise and betrayal of President Ngo […]
I received so much positive feedback from my “Mickey’s Rules” series, I’ve assembled the entire list into an ebook! Developed over career spanning three decades, in this book I give leaders a “how to” rule book for leading at any level. The eleven rules in the book are excellent guidelines for relating to other people, correctly […]
Rule #1. Have a direction and know what it is. Go there. The first rule of leadership is for the leader to know where he or she is going. People look to leaders for inspiration and motivation, but above all, they look to leaders for direction. That’s why it’s so very important for leaders to […]
According to Aristotle, Justice is the proper moderation between self-interest, the rights and needs of others, and rendering to each person what is deserved. We most often think of “Justice” in the legal sense: the system of enforcement of laws, including punishment for committing crimes. But the virtue of Justice is much more than merely […]
Out of every one hundred men, ten shouldn’t even be there, eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters, and we are lucky to have them, for they make the battle. Ah, but the one, one is a warrior, and he will bring the others back. ― Heraclitus One of the most valuable lessons […]
For years I kept General Colin Powell’s “Rules” on a worn, type-written sheet of paper somewhere on my desk. His Rules had been published in a news magazine article, and I thought they were fabulous, so I typed them up and added a few of my own to the bottom. Over the years, I developed […]
I’ve been privileged to attend both Air Command & Staff College and the Eisenhower School where I heard dozens of very successful leaders from every walk of life speak to us: business executives, military leaders, politicians, and athletes. There were several common themes in all of their talks, and one of the most obvious to […]
Using the virtue of Prudence ensures you have the ability to make the right choices.
The top 5 posts from Leading Leaders during 2015. What was your favorite?
Monday Motivation: Duty and Loyalty, these are among the most prized of human virtues
