Nostalgia isn’t strategy

The Canadian prime minister said it this week in Davos. Simple. Direct. True. We cling to what was. The contract that made sense three years ago. The employee who once delivered brilliance. The market position we held before everything shifted. That was then. We know...

The clarity we lack

Many leaders I work with struggle to see what makes them unique. They look at their markets and see crowded spaces with endless options. “It’s all been done,” they tell me. “How can we possibly stand out?” Here’s what I’ve...

Get a dog

We say we want advice. What we really want is someone to nod along. To affirm the path we’ve already chosen. To tell us we’re brilliant for thinking exactly what we’re already thinking. That’s not advice. That’s a mirror with a voice....

The tone you set

Two days of snow. A rare gift of stillness. Time to watch football and witness something profound about leadership. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. A day to reflect on how we choose to create change. Through conversation or command. Through influence or intimidation. And...

The thinking deficit

Most leaders are drowning in action but starving for thought. Here’s what the research tells us: Harvard Business Review found that CEOs spend less than 3% of their time on strategic thinking. McKinsey reports that executives spend 72% of their time in meetings,...