Tuesday Reading
04.25.2006
Why Everyone in an Enterprise Can — and Should — Be a Leader
I found this piece — Why Everyone in an Enterprise Can — and Should — Be a Leader http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/index.cfm?fa=printArticle&ID=893 — which was originally published in December 2003 recently and thought it was really worth sharing. Based upon work by individuals at Wharton and McKinsey, it points out that everyone, no matter their […]
03.28.2006
The IT Profession in the Year 2010
In a pieces spread over three issues beginning in late January NetworkWorld discusses the IT profession in the year 2010 http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/edu/2006/0123ed1.html http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/edu/2006/0130ed1.html http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/edu/2006/0213ed1.html Based upon Gartner report, the articles suggest that “technical aptitude alone will no longer be enough”, IT leaders will need to possess expertise in multiple […]
02.14.2006
Ten Tactics for Tough Times
I really enjoy reading Rick Brenner who writes the email newsletter from Chaco Canyon Consulting. The last two issues of the newsletter has focused on tactics for tough times: http://www.ChacoCanyon.com/pointlookout/060201.shtml http://www.ChacoCanyon.com/pointlookout/060208.shtml In these two pieces Rick focuses on problem solving: – What problem as I […]
01.31.2006
Blame or Accountability
Is It Blame or Is It Accountability? — When we seek those accountable for a particular failure, we risk blaming them instead, because many of us confuse accountability with blame. What’s the difference between them? How can we keep blame at bay? Today’s reading comes from the Chaco Canyon newsletter. In it Rick Brenner […]
12.13.2005
Recalcitrant Collaborators
It is very hard to get our work done without collaboration. Sometimes those collaborators are on our team, sometimes in our organization, sometimes they are elsewhere in our university, and sometimes they are outside our university in suppliers, government agencies, etc. When collaboration occurs things go well. But sometimes it doesn’t; our needed collaborators resist, […]
11.22.2005
Ten Minutes
As all of your know by now, I read a lot from a lot of sources. Yesterday, a newsletter called Marketplace Moments written by a friend, Randy Kilgore, reached my desk. It carries a story which I want to repeat: “It’s December 17, 1941. The citizens of the town of North Platte, Nebraska heard […]
11.02.2005
Mastering Q and A
We all do presentations and after the presentation there is always questions and answers. While the questions and your answers do not add all that much content to what you had to say, how you answer plays into how your audience evaluates you and what you had to say; presence and presentation again. Today’s […]
10.04.2005
FedEx, Flocks, and Frames of Reference
Rick Brenner of Chaco Canyon Consulting here in Boston has a weekly email newsletter called Point Lookout. I like Rick’s writing because it typically leads you to think about a subject from a different point of view. This is truly the case in this weeks reading “FedEx, Flocks and Frames of Reference.” In the piece […]
08.02.2005
Marshall Goldsmith: The Skill that Separates
Marshall Goldsmith is one of the country’s leading executive coaches. Today’s reading is his column from the July 2005 issue of Fast Company: http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/96/mgoldsmith.html In this column Goldsmith talks about the importance of being a great listener. He says that in listening “Your only aim is to let the other person feel that […]
07.19.2005
Notes from Leadership Jazz
One of my favorite books on leadership is Leadership Jazz by Max DePree. Max was chairman of the board of Herman Miller for many years. Leadership Jazz is primarily a set of personal stories about leadership. I first read the book about 10 years ago and have found that rereading it as well as a […]

04.20.2005
A Matter of Confidence
Good morning! In my reading this week, I found this short piece by John Baldoni. In it he talks about the foundational importance of importance and suggests that you can nurture it by “inviting them to look up,” by “letting them see you sweat,” by “learning from your mistakes,” and by “radiating hope.” Enjoy…………..jim Weigh In: A Matter […]

04.20.2005
Emails Hurt Our IQ
A West Coast colleague passed this URl along earlier todayhttp://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/04/22/text.iq/index.html A concrete, perhaps, result about the impact of letting yourself be interrupted throughout the day. And, an interesting comparison with which to end the week. Have a great weekend……….jim

03.28.2005
Recovering Time
In the February 23rd and the March 16th issues of the Point Lookout email newsletter, Rich Brenner and the staff at Chaco Canyon Consulting <http://www.ChacoCanyon.com> present two helpful pieces on “Recovering Time.” Given that all of us scramble to find more time for our work, I thought that I would share their ideas with you. […]

03.18.2005
What I Know Now
As I was reading the current issue of Fast Company, I ran across a longer column reporting on a conversation with Joe Kraus on what he now knows. Kraus was a founder of Excite that in 1996 became one of the biggest tech IPOs ever. At 33 he is not starting Jotspot, a hosted Internet […]

03.09.2005
Being Helpful – Graciously
I’ve attached another very helpful note authored by John Baldoni about how leaders can be helpful, graciously. I think that you will find the comments useful…………….jim ON LEADERSHIP COMMUNICATION Being Helpful — Graciously BY : John Baldoni 03/01/2005 Lessons in the management art that goes one step beyond. One of Franklin Roosevelt’s favorite things to do during […]

02.28.2005
Time Management
Good morning! I found this short piece on time management last week and thought that I would share it with you. Most of the points are straight forward but he does offer some new insights. Have a great week…………….jim FINDING TIME Top Five Time Management Mistakes BY : Dr. Donald E. Wetmore 12/22/2004 […]

02.13.2005
Virtual Communications
One of the things that is becoming more important to all of us is “virtual communication,” whether one-on-one or with teams. Some of us are old hands at this, others are still learning. I’ve copied below three recent columns on the subject from Point Lookout, a free weekly email newsletter produced by Chaco Canyon Consulting. […]