Three Ways to Bring Historical Analysis to Your Community
A thorough analysis of the past might just be the best thing for your community’s future. Because great community-builders think like historians. A recent article in the Harvard Business Review by John T. Seaman, Jr. and George David Smith (both historians) entitled “Your Company’s History as a Leadership Tool” argues that “[g]reat leaders…[d]on’t ignore history until the time comes to plan their organization’s next anniversary. And though they may not view themselves as historians, they find it useful to think and talk about the past – in the present and in living color.”
Three Lessons on Innovation and Adaptability
We’ve always had to innovate to thrive. From developing better clubs for bonking food on the head to wrapping wheels in rubber or miniaturizing on-off switches and building faster, brighter, and more shiny machines upon which we can design faster,…
Four Reasons Volunteering Builds Career Success
In a world where many of us are already struggling to maintain some semblance of work/school-life balance, it is certainly challenging to spend your spare time working for free. While many people pursue volunteer opportunities purely for altruistic reasons, volunteering…
How to Put Your Strengths to Work
When was the last time you were doing something at work that was so engaging and thought provoking that you totally lost track of time?
How to Bridge the Gap between Research and Action
Go to any academic journal and pull up a random scientific article. Can you understand it? Chances are you will probably not understand all of it. Even if you do understand all of it (yes, even including the statistical analysis section), do you understand how this relates to the dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of other articles done on the same subject? And equally as important, do you have the time to sift through stacks of articles to make an informed decision on a program, policy or service you are considering implementing in either your private or professional life? Herein lies the value of knowledge translation.
Social Change Leadership
On Thursday I participated in an awesome staff retreat with my very awesome teammates. One of the many themes of discussion for the day was the Social Change Model of Leadership, made popular (at least within circles of higher education) by Susan Komives and her community of practice.
How to Understand and Engage Introverts
Full disclosure, I’m an extrovert. My lovely, talented and tolerant wife, Michelle, claims that she’s an “amnivert” but is probably an introvert (we’re all a bit of both, right?) – in fact, Michelle absolutely has a suitcase full of books.
How to Give a Memorable Speech
Says* Jerry Seinfeld: “You know, I just read this survey that said the number one fear of Americans is public speaking. The number two fear is death. [INSERT SUBTLE LAUGHTER FROM AUDIENCE]. So, let me get this straight. This means…