by Michael Holland - We’ve all seen him, that leader who just has a black cloud hovering over his head throughout the day. The world seems dark around him. He is unhappy with the changes in direction of the company, changes that were announced 7 months ago. He’s discouraged with his team that appears to [...]
By Michael Holland - One of the most irritating comments I hear from leaders at all levels is along the lines of ". . . my team is my family . . . " And when a leader above the rank of director talks this way, I become extremely concerned for the welfare of the [...]
By Michael Holland - You cannot re-lead. You can't go back in time and lead in a different way. You can't wipe the slate clean and have people - your employees, peers and bosses - view you differently. You can't take back those words. You can't change the look that was on your face. Every [...]
By Michael Holland - In a book I read a few years ago, a company was mentioned where the owner and leadership team decided they wanted to live out their cultural values in a radical way: They would provide employees with a guarantee of lifetime employment. That decision had profound impacts on so many aspects [...]
By Michael Holland - During a coaching session with a leader, he spoke about how tired he was having recently spent his whole weekend to get his employees' performance reviews completed and then delivered the reviews in back-to-back sessions on the Monday and Tuesday right after the weekend. In my mind I thought "what a [...]
By Michael Holland - It’s a beautiful little house on the lake. With the windows open early in the morning the cool breeze comes off the lake providing a fresh feel to the new day. The small waves lap against the shore and birds can be heard singing in trees. It’s 5:00 am and there’s [...]
By Michael Holland - Sunflowers have it. Pine cones have it and so do pineapples. Leonardo Di Vinci used it in his art. Many architects and builders use it. In non-geek terms, the golden ratio is basically a math term that describes a ratio, 1 to 1.618 that is commonly found in nature. (See the [...]
by Michael Holland - Walking up a trail in the Adirondacks with a 35-pound backpack while staring at the majestic scenery creates the prime opportunity to catch your toe on the root in the path and tumble forward. Doing it twice in a matter of 15 minutes… well, that just feels stupid. New leaders – [...]
By Michael Holland - We all carry around an invisible piece of leadership luggage. Some stagger under the weight of a huge steamer trunk; some lug an old suitcase, bursting at the seams; others shoulder a backpack, ready for the big hike; still others sling a svelte messenger bag casually over one shoulder. Inside each [...]
by Michael Holland - So much of what we do every day is executed via muscle memory. Walking to a meeting is so simple that we don’t even think about the physics of how our body works. We can unthinkingly create a fluid motion that moves the mass of our weight away from a desk, [...]
