This is not about winning a lottery, though the main truth about that is if you’re not in it you can’t win it. This is about how, in work and general life, you can influence luck to help you. I should know, even though I’ve never won a lottery, sort of. On reflection, I think […]
I was a nineteen-year-old when asked that question during my army officer selection board interview. My answer was simple and naïve. I want to serve my country doing something I believe I’d enjoy. I will receive training and experience that I couldn’t obtain elsewhere. My family history is one of military service as commissioned officers. […]
Just because most leaders also have management functions, and similarly most managers also have leadership functions, doesn’t mean that leadership and management are the same thing. Speaking of management when you mean leadership and vice versa is a part of why we have a leadership deficit. When I hear someone say “I’m a people manager” […]
After five years as CFO Gary was promoted to CEO of the logistics company, whose long term competitive edge was document and parcel delivery within 24 hours nationwide to capital cities and within two days to regional cities. They were being challenged now by growing electronic document transmission and democratised parcel delivery. Gary’s charter was […]
With my background in leading covert law enforcement, I have received training and experience with the criminal psychopath. The difference between the criminal psychopath or sociopath (there is constant interchangeability of usage between the two labels – to me they are so similar as to be the same) and the workplace psychopath, is that the […]
I humbly assert that the holy grail of commerce is sustainable growth and profit. That does not mean continuous growth and continuous profit. There is a distinction between ‘sustainable’ and ‘continuous’ that most people in commerce don’t seem to get. ‘Sustainable’ in this context means the ability to have longevity of growth and profit. ‘Continuous’ […]
“I have been here for 7 years and I deserve to promoted to this (leadership/management) position” said the indignant team member. The problem was she had never worked harder or longer to complete difficult or urgent tasks, always saying it was 5pm and she had been there since exactly 8am. She had meticulously taken all […]
All human endeavour, whether individual or collective, has a hierarchy of success that, if sustainability is sought, is constant. It begins with the ideal – our values, what really matter to us. We then select a vision that expresses those values. We acquire effective leadership of self and others to live the values and achieve […]
One of the most useful and humble questions I’ve been asked is ‘how do we find our courage?’ I can only answer from what I’ve witnessed and experienced myself, so I don’t know if I have the right or correct or best answer. What I’ve witnessed in others’ display of their courage, and on reflection, […]
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull last week declared Kevin Rudd unsuitable for the role of UN Secretary-General, despite that Rudd had the support of foreign minister Julie Bishop and attorney-general George Brandis. I’d previously heard politician Bob Katter describe Rudd as a good pick because he’d been a successful diplomat. Being a successful diplomat is […]
