Category Archives: Leadership

Face-off: The Truth about Authenticity

Face-off: The Truth about Authenticity
By: Dr. MaryJo Burchard Organizations claim to value authenticity, but if we don’t understand what authenticity really is, it can seem like an unrealistic expectation or the quickest way to help your naysayers shoot you where you’re most vulnerable. Yet your authenticity will determine your effectiveness as a leader – and more crucially, as a…
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3 Levels of Awareness

3 Levels of Awareness
Recently, I was invited to address the senior leaders of the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC. The 82nd is the world’s most elite light infantry unit. They jump out of airplanes behind enemy lines, and their mission is to forcibly gain entry to enemy territories to secure key targets. When you’re jumping out…
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3 Differences Between Optimism and Positive Thinking

3 Differences Between Optimism and Positive Thinking
Optimism and positive thinking are not the same thing. One is always an asset to your leadership, but the other can be a liability if you’re not careful. If you are a student of leadership, you already know that attitude and perspective are critical to your success, so I invite you to walk with me…
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Use Self-Reflection for a Successful New Year

Use Self-Reflection for a Successful New Year
I was all alone in the boardroom on the 26th floor. No one else had been called to this meeting, and that was by design. I had booked the room to have a meeting with myself, an end-of-year review of my own performance. I had been looking forward to this meeting for several weeks, because…
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Embracing Change When It Comes at a Cost

Embracing Change When It Comes at a Cost
Several years ago, I was asked to resign from a job that I loved. A short time later, a dear friend and mentor of mine encouraged me to embrace that decision as if it had been my own. At the time, his advice was a bitter pill to swallow, and it seemed almost heartless. But…
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Mastering the Art of Motivation

Mastering the Art of Motivation
Motivating other people is actually quite difficult. I’ve known seasoned leaders who were highly skilled in multiple areas of leadership but still struggled when it came to motivating other people, especially when those people were not like them. If you approach motivation in the wrong way, it is actually impossible. Unfortunately, a lot of management…
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