Napoleon Bonaparte rose to prominence during the confusion and disorder

of the French Revolution.  At the time, France was being attacked by foreign armies on all sides, and plagued by internal power struggles.  The populace was deeply divided.  Many people were driven by revolutionary fervor while a large number of French citizens from all social...

managing both sidesBarry Johnson, author of Polarity Management  identified

11 polarities that great leaders manage well. If you are a leader at any level—or just want to take the lead in your own your life—the following will prove invaluable.  A polarity is a set of poles or positions that appear to be opposites, creating an either/or situation...

Market analysis, branding, strategy formation, planning, managing cash

From the moment of birth, humans have an insatiable appetite for recognition.  As herding creatures, we are programmed to support and be supported by one another.  The primal instinct to belong and be valued is so powerful that fear of rejection can cause mental and physical trauma.  Our evolution into a productive group member began with mother...

After working their way up the corporate ladder, they find themselves

at the top and are not quite sure how they got there.  Their biggest fear is “being found out”.  What will happen when people discover that they’re just a regular person dealing with the same fears and doubt as everyone else?  Once they make it to the top they realize, “...

 “I think leadership is more important than strategy—and I say

What he means is that the autocratic Philip Purcell, the meglomaniac Jeffrey Eisner, and the “queen of keynote” Carly Fiona are on the out in terms of management style.  CEO’s like Terry Semel of Yahoo and Ed Zander of Motorola are “in,” according to James—whose search firm placed both CEO’s.  “Strategy is...

Winston Churchill had illustrious career as a journalist, author, statesman

and politician.  He held a variety of cabinet positions in the British government from 1906 to 1929.  When he was out of office for the ten years that followed, he had time to write and think deeply.  This sabbatical, in his own opinion, prepared him for his role as an allied...

unsung but amoung the very bestExecutives who are not extroverts by nature

can learn much from Omar Bradley’s leadership style.  Unlike Generals Eisenhower and Patton, this leader has been relegated to  sidebar status in the annals of WWII. Jim DeFelice in his new book,  Omar Bradley: General at War  labels Bradley “the man who won WWII”.  ...

Entering a market when everybody else is cutting back doesn’t make

sense—on the surface.  But Andrew Wright, founder and CEO of Franklin Street Financial, saw opportunity where the competition could see only demise.  His Tampa based company grew in excess of 400% last year.  What Andrew did is less relevant then how he thinks.  The foundation...

“Those choosing to lead in the post industrial age must make a 180°

Transitioning your company from a dependence on personal authority (power, knowledge, and experience) to managing by process-discipline will be challenging because industrial age thinkers typically know—so they will have less compulsion to learn. Without continuous improvement, what your team knows will eventually start holding you back.  To grow...