By Michael Holland At the movies this weekend, we settled into our seats about 8 minutes before the start time for the movie. The theater was packed and we were lucky to get two seats together and start munching down our popcorn. Right on time the theater goes dark and we get ready for [...]
by Michael Holland Great leaders do all the right things. They establish a culture and traditions within their teams; they communicate and coach up their employees constantly; they situationally adjust their leadership style to match the environment and the mood of their employees; they encourage their employees to stretch their abilities; and on and on [...]
by Michael Holland I could feel the controls with my left hand on the side of the big leather seat. Touching each lever made the seat move: I could scoot the seat up, tilt it back a bit, and raise up my legs. Soon enough I had a full reclining lounge chair which would’ve been [...]
by Michael Holland When we hear the word Amish, the stereotype most people imagine is a horse and buggy driven by a bearded man in a wide-brimmed hat. We think of people who live without modern advances and adhere to strange customs like the excommunication of young adults who venture away from the community. But [...]
by Michael Holland Within a span of several weeks in early 2014, Governor Chris Christie of NJ (with his potential involvement with Bridgegate), and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning(with his horrific Super Bowl loss) were both faced with a vivid reality. One moment they were almost invincible, perched high on great pedestals that were rising toward [...]
by Michael Holland As I drove from one executive coaching session to another, I had a 30-minute window of windshield time with an email and 4 text messages I wanted to take care of… but didn’t. Later, while I pondered the missed opportunity, I thought about my high school aged son who had recently utilized [...]
by Michael Holland Febreze is a magical mist sprayer that covers up almost any smell. In truth, it neutralizes the odor by binding "malodorous molecules" in a super-secret process, and the results are tremendous. But Febreze almost didn’t make it to the shelves. In the first market tests, the chemical was so effective that after [...]
By Michael Holland Leverage that driving or flying time this holiday with a good audio book! Here are 4 books I’ve recently listened to on my iPhone. Get Back to Basics. . . Leadership and the Art of Struggle: How Great Leaders Grow Through Challenge and Adversity by Steven Snyder. In hindsight, many [...]
by Michael Holland Do you have legitimate authority? What a great question. In his most recent book David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants, Malcolm Gladwell brings us perspective that we should know—or may already know—but that we often overlook. This perspective is contained in a principle of legitimacy and helps [...]
by Michael Holland Here are two headlines from the week of November 11, 2013: Microsoft Abandons ‘Stack Ranking’ of Employees Yahoo ‘s Latest HR Disaster: Ranking Workers on a Curve It’s so intriguing to see two large companies having so much fun with the most basic of management tasks while going in opposite directions with [...]
