In today’s globalized marketplace, business leaders are challenged to bridge gaps across generations, across time zones, and across cultures. One cross-cultural difference that recently made headlines was the decision many Japanese CEOs made to spend two full weeks responding quietly to the catastrophic 3/11/11 earthquake without making a public statement to investors. According to one investment [...]

A local author recently told me that she’d sent her diabetic sister a copy of her new book about diabetes management, and her sister never even acknowledged receipt of the book. Similarly, Mika Brzezinski’s father casually announced to his daughter (on national TV) that he hadn’t read her bestselling book. And British singer Adele’s father has [...]

The book Outliers noted one quality shared by successful people in all industries, from all backgrounds: they work “much, much harder” than their peers.

That seems to be a general theme whenever someone accomplishes an extraordinary feat. Compared to their peers, successful athletes and famous musicians practice “much, much harder” and according to The Millionaire Next Door, wealthy people often [...]

Today is Presidents’ Day in the United States. What lessons have past American Presidents offered to today’s leaders?

“We should not look back unless it is to derive useful lessons from past errors, and for the purpose of profiting by dearly bought experience.” - George Washington

“Delay is preferable to error.” – Thomas Jefferson 

“If your actions inspire others [...]

A friend of mine works for a nonprofit organization that scheduled a four-day conference in another city starting today, Valentine’s Day. It didn’t need to be this week and, in fact, usually takes place several months from now.

As all of the organization’s employees spend Valentine’s Day separated from their spouses/partners for no legitimate business reason, [...]

Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to participate in The Legally Steal Show on Blog Talk Radio, and the topic was helping entrepreneurs start their own business when jobs are still pretty scarce in this economy. One great question that arose was, “What are the benefits of becoming a business owner?” In other words, there are [...]

Sometimes it seems as if leaders are reaching for the latest bestseller, the slickest new technique, or the hottest sounding buzzwords to drive their business forward more successfully. In China, however, many leaders are finding success by applying ancient lessons to modern challenges.

According to a recent issue of Forbes, many Chinese leaders have developed serenity in [...]

Q: Statistics show that most entrepreneurs eventually give up on their business. Why do so many of them throw in the towel, and what can be done to improve their rate of success?

A: Many businesses fail because of a poor business plan, often leading to the business running out of cash — the #1 reason [...]

Can we build each other up in corporate environments that often breed insecurity and suspicion? Is it possible to keep showing up to work with an uplifting, encouraging attitude for our teammates even after experiencing some frustration or pain as part of that team? Can we approach meetings with genuine concern for each other as [...]

On a Human Resources website, an author named Charlie wrote about his former boss’ memorable decision to work in a cubicle with everyone else, instead of a posh corner office that might have been considered more appropriate for an executive’s status. That one surprising decision made a lasting impression on Charlie and many of his teammates.

George [...]