Christmas is a time for people to get together. Between office parties, get-togethers with friends, and Christmas dinner itself, most of us spend a lot of time face-to-face with family, colleagues, and friends during this season. And all that “face time” has the potential to be filled with either connection or conflict. How do you…

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No matter what your goals are, communicating with others in a meaningful way can help you. On the other hand, if you can’t communicate, it will cost you. For the person who aims to make a difference by partnering with others? Communication is paramount. After spending forty years as a leader and communicator, I am…

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I love collecting good quotes. I’ve been doing so for over 40 years. One subject where I have literally dozens of wonderful quotes is communication. It’s one of my passions, so I pay close attention to what great communicators have to say on the subject. Here are just a few of my favorite quotes on…

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Awhile back, I was doing a question and answer session for members of my John Maxwell Team of certified coaches. And I got a great question from a gentleman named Billy. He asked a question that’s becoming more and more common: How do you gather and lead a leadership team? A generation ago, people asked…

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In my first leadership position, I didn’t delegate much. I didn’t need to; I had lots of energy, and the load wasn’t too heavy. But as time passed, and I moved on to positions with greater leadership demands, I was confronted with the fact that I had limits. I realized that I needed to focus…

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Connecting is the leadership ability to identify with and relate to people in such a way that it increases your influence with them. Connecting demands constant attention on the part of the leader so that people stay tuned in to the vision, values, and priorities of the organization. The trick is to keep the connection…

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By far the greatest obstacle to success that I see in others is a poor understanding of people. A while back the Wall Street Journal published an article on the reasons that executives fail. At the top of the list was a person’s inability to effectively relate to others. One day I was talking to…

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There’s room in any organization for every type of person. From the big-picture person to the detail-conscious, all can make a valid contribution. But sometimes a team member’s strength can be their weakness. Attention to detail can become fixation on the negative. And the voice of reason turns into the voice of discouragement. This is…

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I love spending time with enthusiastic people. I’m pretty high-energy myself. An enthusiastic follower can be a joy to work with. His excitement about his work has the potential to energize the entire team. With one exception. Let’s talk about Excited Eddie. He’s got loads of enthusiasm for his work, but only to a point.…

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