About Michael Holland

Michael Holland unravels the mysteries of leadership. Michael is a professional executive coach and trusted advisor to executives who seek to become better leaders and build cohesive teams. Michael’s wisdom and insight are the product of 30 plus years of leadership experience and an uncanny, natural ability to perceive the questions that need to be asked. The Missing Leader: One Man's Journey to Leading Well - A Leadership Fable -- is available on Amazon.com (http://amzn.to/2nsZzhK)

You Just Fired Your First Employee: The 6 Things You Should Do Next

By Michael Holland The pressure has been building for months.  You were clear on his performance review 6 months ago.  You were clear 3 months ago when you put him on the performance improvement plan and 1 month ago you met with him to sign the update to the PIP making sure he [...]

By |2026-07-21T11:47:16-04:00July 15th, 2026|New Leader|Comments Off on You Just Fired Your First Employee: The 6 Things You Should Do Next

Do You Need DiSC® Certification to Facilitate a Session?

I get some version of this question almost every month: “Do we need someone certified before we can run DiSC® with our team?” For a long time, I hedged on the answer. Not anymore. No, you don’t need certification to run a good DiSC session. I know that’s not what people expect to hear from [...]

By |2026-07-12T14:47:14-04:00July 12th, 2026|General Posts|Comments Off on Do You Need DiSC® Certification to Facilitate a Session?

The 3 Misuses of a Spotlight by Leaders

by Michael Holland  -   Are you using a spotlight or a floodlight when you review an employee’s performance?  A spotlight is directed, tight, and narrow in its focus, able to illuminate specific targets, like an actor on a stage. A floodlight is broad, less discriminating, and wide in dispersing light to see more [...]

By |2026-07-21T10:24:27-04:00July 1st, 2026|Managing Performance|Comments Off on The 3 Misuses of a Spotlight by Leaders

Why Your Boss Sucks at Leadership and How NOT to Lead Like Him

By Michael Holland -  Your boss is an okay guy but there are so many things about the way he leads that drive you nuts.  He's the one who never received the training needed to get a clue on how to lead. He taught you all about leadership through an oft-experienced yet little known methodology called [...]

By |2026-07-21T10:16:46-04:00June 23rd, 2026|Managing Change|Comments Off on Why Your Boss Sucks at Leadership and How NOT to Lead Like Him

6 Ways to Lead Like Albert Einstein

By Michael Holland -   While reading a biography on Albert Einstein by Walter Isaacson, I became very intrigued with how great a man Einstein was even given some of his flaws.   Here are 6 ways you can learn to lead like Einstein. Dress the Part Einstein’s iconic ruffled hair and disheveled appearance fit [...]

By |2026-07-21T14:39:35-04:00June 16th, 2026|Your Development|Comments Off on 6 Ways to Lead Like Albert Einstein

Your Inner Circle: Are They a Catalyst or an Anchor?

by Michael Holland -  John Maxwell's 11th Irrefutable Law of Leadership (from The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You) states that a leader's potential is determined by his inner circle, those closest to him. Basically, your success as a leader, whether you're a CEO or a new [...]

By |2026-07-21T14:39:57-04:00June 9th, 2026|Your Development|Comments Off on Your Inner Circle: Are They a Catalyst or an Anchor?

The Massive Impact of a Little Leadership Training

By Michael Holland -  Investing in early leadership training is critical for fostering effective leadership, enhancing team performance, and driving financial success in organizations. In this post, we explore the value of such training, utilizing research from sources like Gallup and McKinsey & Company. We will also provide a financial analysis incorporating the cost of [...]

By |2026-07-21T10:15:13-04:00June 8th, 2026|For HR Leaders|Comments Off on The Massive Impact of a Little Leadership Training

Are You Afraid of Failing as a Manager? You Should Be!

By Michael Holland -  Only 1 in 10 people have the necessary traits to be great managers and lead their team to achieve excellence in ways that truly impact company performance.  That’s what Gallup finds from their research. That’s not 1 in 10 managers, that’s 1 in 10 people!  And are those talented [...]

By |2026-07-21T14:42:33-04:00June 3rd, 2026|Your Development|Comments Off on Are You Afraid of Failing as a Manager? You Should Be!

The Celery Test of Your Leadership

by Michael Holland -   Two friends have recently told you that living a healthier life is very important to them. While at the grocery store, you see both friends checking out with different cashiers. One is buying nachos,  French onion dip, a 12-pack of Coke, and a box of pastries.  The other friend is [...]

By |2026-07-21T14:42:55-04:00May 26th, 2026|Your Development|Comments Off on The Celery Test of Your Leadership

Crafting the Story: The Critical Questions You Need to Answer as a Leader

By Michael Holland -  Great leaders learn the art of crafting the story in which employees can place themselves. The story has historical underpinnings, heroes, villains, a bit of drama, obstacles to overcome and a goal to be achieved that is just beyond the capabilities of the team but is within reach. Great [...]

By |2026-07-20T15:04:59-04:00May 20th, 2026|Building My Team|Comments Off on Crafting the Story: The Critical Questions You Need to Answer as a Leader
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