Thoughts On Leadership: Going Undercover

by mvaillancourt on February 11, 2010

On Super Bowl Sunday, following the game and the usual evening ritual of putting the kids to bed, I made my way back downstairs to our family/TV room.  Our son’s room is in the basement and we committed long ago that one of us, my wife or I, would hang downstairs until he falls asleep.

I usually take this time to catch up on my TV watching – I don’t know how we ever lived without a DVR – but not this night.  In a matter of minutes I was sucked into the new CBS reality series, UNDERCOVER BOSS, which follows high-level chief executives as they slip anonymously into the rank and file of their companies.

The first episode was an eye opener for me and, I think the series should be required viewing for every chief executive in America.

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What Kind Of Work Are You Doing?

by mvaillancourt on February 10, 2010

I’ve been following Michael Bungay Stanier’s work for the past few years.  He first caught my attention with his book titled “Get Unstuck & Get Going…On the Stuff That Matters“.  Since that time, I’ve been reading his blog and have been inspired at every turn.

In 2008, he released the book “Find Your Great Work (Napkin-size Solutions to Stop the Busywork & Start the Work That Matters)” (Amazon.com link) and I continued to be inspired. His new book, “Do More Great Work” will be released on February 22, 2010.

Michael has a knack for asking simple, yet powerful questions … questions that will help you discover your passion; questions that will help you do great work!

I encourage you to follow his work and, more importantly, pick up a copy of his latest book.

Until then, take a look at the following videos … they are should to make you think!!

So the question is … what kind of work will you be doing starting now?

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Thoughts On Leadership: The Circle Of Trust

February 7, 2010

Most of us have seen the movie Meet the Parents with Robert DeNiro and Ben Stiller and will long remember the “circle of trust” scene when DeNiro’s character introduced the concept.
Just the other day, I read a twitter post by by Steve Keating, CSE (@LeadToday) that caught my attention and reminded me of the “circle [...]

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Daniel Pink At Google Headquarters

February 6, 2010

Daniel Pink is fast becoming one of my favorite authors.  I’ve heard him speak twice and had the privilege of meeting him at an event hosted by my previous employer.
Here is a video of Daniel speaking at Google HQ.

Note:  Thanks to Mitch Joel at Twist Image for bringing this to my attention.  Also, there an [...]

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