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I really like these points. Some of them in reverse are g pet peeves...don't name drop, saying less.
Heartfelt. Sincere. Honest. And incredibly powerful.
Posted >1 y ago
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Lt Col (Join to see), that is an excellent article. Thanks for sharing that, ma'am. Definitely some great rules to live by.
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Lt Col (Join to see)
Thanks. Inc.com has quite a few great quick reads in their Leadership & People sections. Sometimes, the short & sweet comments make the most impact.
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Ma'am, good article. I enjoyed reading it. I'm attending CU-Boulder and the University President just emailed his thoughts on leadership in a newsletter that I wanted to share with the Rally Point community as I thought it was very well written. Your discussion seems to be an appropriate place for it.
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Leadership matters. I have had that bedrock truth reinforced countless times in the course of my activities in business, education, politics and community work. When I speak to graduates at CU commencement ceremonies each semester, I share with them lessons I have learned about leadership in the past six decades.
First, and perhaps most important, I urge our newly minted alumni to be leaders. Leadership is one of those intangible qualities that is essential to organizations, communities and our country. And while we have selected courses and programs across our campuses that focus exclusively on leadership, and it is woven across the curriculum in other ways, it is not something that can be taught the way we teach history or physics.
The leadership lessons we impart to students are valuable, yet my view is that the best learning about leadership comes from a combination of experience and observation.
I have been fortunate in my life to be in a position to observe and work with some of the foremost leaders of our community, state and nation, from school superintendents to presidents of the United States. I have also worked with leaders in business and industry.
I tell our graduates I have learned that leaders are open and inclusive. They know what they don't know and they surround themselves with smart people who do know. Teamwork is essential to the success of any organization, and great leaders foster high-performing teams.
It's important for leaders to be thoughtful and not act rashly, but they also need to take calculated risks. While these approaches may seem at opposite ends of a spectrum, they actually work in concert. Conditions will not always be optimal, but when opportunities arise, leaders have to recognize them and seize them.
Failure is part of leadership. Some of the most valuable lessons I have learned were born of failure. It hurts and it can lead to setbacks, but it is rarely fatal and usually a good teacher. Former President George H.W. Bush once told me he learned more from one election loss than from all his victories. More often, thoughtfully considered risks lead to great rewards.
Perhaps the most important lesson for leaders is one that most of us learned from our parents and from kindergarten teachers: treat everyone with respect. I have watched presidents of the United States who treat the White House service staff with the same respect they show senators and prime ministers. People want to work for those types of leaders; they want to be part of that team.
When leaders treat people with respect, they command respect themselves. I have watched some leaders who demand respect because they hold a title or position. That never works. You cannot force respect. It is earned over time by how leaders carry themselves and how they work with people. You have to lead by example.
Universities such as ours do a wonderful job producing leaders. The lessons learned in our classrooms and on campuses not only serve our graduates well, they provide substantial value to organizations, communities, our state and nation. You don't have to look far to find CU alumni in leadership positions. Our university is well positioned to continue to produce the kinds of leaders our country needs. And that is precisely what we are doing.
Sincerely,
Bruce Benson
President
University of Colorado - Boulder
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Leadership matters. I have had that bedrock truth reinforced countless times in the course of my activities in business, education, politics and community work. When I speak to graduates at CU commencement ceremonies each semester, I share with them lessons I have learned about leadership in the past six decades.
First, and perhaps most important, I urge our newly minted alumni to be leaders. Leadership is one of those intangible qualities that is essential to organizations, communities and our country. And while we have selected courses and programs across our campuses that focus exclusively on leadership, and it is woven across the curriculum in other ways, it is not something that can be taught the way we teach history or physics.
The leadership lessons we impart to students are valuable, yet my view is that the best learning about leadership comes from a combination of experience and observation.
I have been fortunate in my life to be in a position to observe and work with some of the foremost leaders of our community, state and nation, from school superintendents to presidents of the United States. I have also worked with leaders in business and industry.
I tell our graduates I have learned that leaders are open and inclusive. They know what they don't know and they surround themselves with smart people who do know. Teamwork is essential to the success of any organization, and great leaders foster high-performing teams.
It's important for leaders to be thoughtful and not act rashly, but they also need to take calculated risks. While these approaches may seem at opposite ends of a spectrum, they actually work in concert. Conditions will not always be optimal, but when opportunities arise, leaders have to recognize them and seize them.
Failure is part of leadership. Some of the most valuable lessons I have learned were born of failure. It hurts and it can lead to setbacks, but it is rarely fatal and usually a good teacher. Former President George H.W. Bush once told me he learned more from one election loss than from all his victories. More often, thoughtfully considered risks lead to great rewards.
Perhaps the most important lesson for leaders is one that most of us learned from our parents and from kindergarten teachers: treat everyone with respect. I have watched presidents of the United States who treat the White House service staff with the same respect they show senators and prime ministers. People want to work for those types of leaders; they want to be part of that team.
When leaders treat people with respect, they command respect themselves. I have watched some leaders who demand respect because they hold a title or position. That never works. You cannot force respect. It is earned over time by how leaders carry themselves and how they work with people. You have to lead by example.
Universities such as ours do a wonderful job producing leaders. The lessons learned in our classrooms and on campuses not only serve our graduates well, they provide substantial value to organizations, communities, our state and nation. You don't have to look far to find CU alumni in leadership positions. Our university is well positioned to continue to produce the kinds of leaders our country needs. And that is precisely what we are doing.
Sincerely,
Bruce Benson
President
University of Colorado - Boulder
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I find out that I have a hard time keeping my old war stories locked.
The waitress test works for me because I have watched people interact with servers, cleaning crew, etc. and treat them like sub human entities. That always upsets me, especially, because I know most of us have done all sorts of menial jobs growing up.
We had the privilege of meeting a Dr. That works high up at the Pentagon, and when she met a young lady who works as a receptionist, she introduced herself by her first name.
This lady quickly grew on us because of her un-pretentious attitude and behavior.
That to me is the essence of a great leader.
In my opinion, a leader is someone who you do not mind follow and would do it willingly.
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Great article. If I know Richard Petty, and I do because I met him once, he would love this article, too.
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Here's another article that has a few really great points about teams & synergy. While I'm not a huge basketball fan (unless my teenager is playing) it still has some significant statements:
"...the team’s players, are literally catalysts – agents that provoke a chemical reaction between substances that would otherwise have no effect on each other. Butler has a higher percentage of catalyst players than any other program in college basketball. Alone they would be just average, but put them on the court and the pieces start fitting together."
“In today’s business world. When teams are brought together to tackle a project, a catalytic, non-star can be as important to the team’s success as the team leader or star...The key then is to find individuals driven by an unselfish desire to achieve success through improving their own teammates."
Basically, the team isn't necessarily dependent on star player(s), but instead how they work together to compliment each other.
"...the team’s players, are literally catalysts – agents that provoke a chemical reaction between substances that would otherwise have no effect on each other. Butler has a higher percentage of catalyst players than any other program in college basketball. Alone they would be just average, but put them on the court and the pieces start fitting together."
“In today’s business world. When teams are brought together to tackle a project, a catalytic, non-star can be as important to the team’s success as the team leader or star...The key then is to find individuals driven by an unselfish desire to achieve success through improving their own teammates."
Basically, the team isn't necessarily dependent on star player(s), but instead how they work together to compliment each other.
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