Most Clicked SmartBrief on Leadership Stories
1. The 6 core competencies you probably don't have
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 18, 2009
A survey of 2,200 business leaders identified seven core competencies critical for successful leadership now and in the future -- and found that the majority of today's business chiefs had mastered only one of them. The report, from the Center for Creative Leadership, says that there's a "leadership gap" between executives' actual and required skill sets, and that big changes will be needed to keep companies on track in coming years. ThePracticeOfLeadership.net (11/17)
2. Does your leadership pass the lunch test?
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 17, 2009
You know you're a real leader when you're so invested in a project that you're willing to skip lunch for it -- and amazed your employees aren't eager to do the same, writes David Silverman. "A few weeks ago, at around 2 pm, I realized I'd become an executive," he writes. "It's at meals where priorities and responsibilities are realized." HarvardBusiness.org (11/16)
3. What it takes to inspire confidence
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 20, 2009
Leaders inspire confidence by displaying such traits as trustworthiness, competence, a common touch and a clear sense of purpose, according to a new poll published by Harvard's Center for Public Leadership. Leaders from the military and medical professions and the nonprofit sector inspired the most confidence, the poll found, while Wall Street bankers and the news media came at the bottom of the list. Next Level Blog, The (11/16)
4. Should we Europeanize the U.S. economy?
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 16, 2009
Conservatives fear that European-style taxes and social spending would erode American freedom -- but they're wrong, writes Bruce Bartlett. Europeans have just as much freedom as Americans do, and by some measures their economies are healthier. "I don't mean to imply that Europeanization is unambiguously good; only that it's not unambiguously bad," Bartlett says. Forbes (11/13)
5. How salty slang shaped modern English
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 16, 2009
Groggy and under the weather? Try chewing the fat -- or even getting three sheets to the wind -- with this guide to the nautical roots of nine common words and phrases. MentalFloss.com (11/14)
6. Most managers aren't real leaders, survey shows
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 16, 2009
The majority of modern business leaders aren't actually leading anyone, asserts John Baldoni. That's the conclusion he draws from a survey suggesting that fewer than half of managers think they need to inspire their workers or to provide direction during the economic downturn. "If a majority of managers do not feel that inspiration and direction are necessary ... then our companies are in far worse shape than imagined," Baldoni writes. HarvardBusiness.org (11/13)
7. Time for purpose-driven leadership
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 17, 2009
In the 1980s, business leaders were heroes; in the 2000s, they became touchy-feely team-players. Now we need another transition, writes Richard Rawlinson: To lift themselves out of the downturn, companies need visionaries who can delegate day-to-day decision-making and instead focus on articulating their company's broader drive and mission. Strategy+Business (free registration) (11/16)
8. When do you believe the national unemployment rate will begin a sustained downward trend?
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 16, 2009
Watch for the SmartBrief on Leadership year-end report, on Dec. 15, to find out how your peers are responding.
9. Hire Tigger and fire Eeyore, says HSN CEO
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 16, 2009
When it comes to hiring, bosses should look to hire people with the bounce and boundless optimism of a cartoon tiger, says Mindy Grossman, chief executive of HSN. "You only hire Tiggers. You don't hire Eeyores," she says. "It doesn't mean they have to be loud, but I need energy-givers." New York Times, The (11/14)
10. An MBA doth not a leader make
SmartBrief on Leadership | Nov 19, 2009
Gaining an MBA is a wonderful investment in your career and your personal development, but it doesn't make you a natural leader, Sacha Gera writes. Too many business-school graduates get a bad attitude and a sense of entitlement along with their diploma, Gera adds. "An MBA does not give you the keys to empowerment nor leadership -- this must be earned," Gera writes. "Leave your MBA ego at home!" Financial Post (Canada) (11/16)
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