Up on the soapbox…

We citizens deserve a pat on the back for making and keeping this nation great – and don’t kid yourself or get fooled by others – this is a still great and good place where opportunities are open for people of all types.  We have our flaws and some are bigger and more serious than others and we need to keep working on those, but when the rubber meets the road the US  leads in ways that can’t always be measured.

That said, on our birthday I ask us all to keep an eye on what we as individuals can do to help others and make things better on a small scale. We don’t have to invent new things or donate huge monies to make positive impacts – sometimes it is as easy as picking up a phone and calling an old friend or acting on whatever opportunity to help another person shows up.

Down off the soap box…

I want to talk about leadership and how things can go well with good leaders, and break bad with poor ones. The thin line that separates the good and bad leaders is sometimes hinged on being able to listen, with ears truly open, to something like a single phone call that comes from out of the blue.

We see small efforts (as mentioned above) being able to impact bigger problems and here is an example of how that happened  in the real-life business world in New York city as well as in Pitt football in Oakland.

Continue reading “Keep Your Ears Open and Lead, Dammit!” →