This week my team met for strategic planning. We set aside several days so the leadership team could review our values, goals, and budget. We’re just finishing up today, actually. But Day 1 was dedicated not just to leaders, but to the full team. Why? I prioritize my team. Customers are important for a business. […]

Many people fail because they are afraid to dream. Their thinking is too small. In this post I provide seven steps for becoming a big thinker.

Several years ago, I was having a really rough day at the office. It seemed everything that could go wrong was going wrong—at the worst possible time.

I’m not much of a baseball fan. I played in high school, but I lost interest after breaking my elbow. So while most of my friends were deep into game seven of the World Series, I went to bed. Then they woke me up. Several of us were staying in a vacation home for a […]

I used to watch Apple’s product events with eager anticipation. But when I watched the most recent one, I was disappointed. I’m a serious Machead. But if I’m honest, I think they’re losing their mojo. It’s a cautionary tale, one that Steve Jobs actually warned about. Using IBM and Xerox as examples, Jobs explained the […]

Ever wonder why some people are likable and others aren’t? Without a high likability quotient, it’s tough to succeed in almost any area of life—especially as a leader or entrepreneur. If you want to win with people, they not only have to know you; they also have to trust you. Likability is the bridge between […]

Good conversationalists have great influence. In this post, I share five strategies I have learned for having better conversations.

Recently, I was talking to the leader of a nonprofit organization who was complaining that volunteerism was at an all time low. “Even when people volunteer, most of them don’t show up or follow through,” he said. “They just don’t seem to be engaged.” This is a common problem in the for-profit world as well. […]

Setbacks are inevitable. They make us stronger and develop our character. But only if we maintain our perspective and use them to grow. Here’s how.

Leading others starts with leading ourselves. That means leaders must be be committed to personal development if we’re going to have long-term success. But some paths to personal development are more direct than others. My friend Ian Cron is both a priest and a therapist. He’s also an expert in the Enneagram, an ancient personal-development […]

During a recent Launch Conference, my friend Ken Davis joked from the stage, “All you have to do to become an expert is read five books on the same subject.” Everyone laughed. But in our get-smart-quick culture, it sometimes seems that way, doesn’t it?

Trust is to an organization what oil is to a car engine. It keeps the moving parts from seizing and stopping forward motion. But trust is not something you can take for granted. It takes months—sometimes years—to build. Unfortunately, you can lose it overnight.

We all have things we do really well. In our businesses, these are usually the tasks that drive revenue. But if you’re like most entrepreneurs and executives, you probably only spend 20 percent of your time on these tasks. The rest goes to solving other people’s problems, wading through oceans of email, attending inefficient meetings, […]

I’m an assessment geek. I’m always looking to improve my own performance as well as my team’s. And I find measurement essential for upping our game. I first started using personality tests over a decade ago when I became the publisher of Nelson Books. It was a way for me to peek under the hood […]

If you want to be a great leader, you must first become a great follower. Great followers share at least five characteristics.

When I started in my career, the key to success was having the right answers. Now it’s more about having the right questions.

Every team experiences friction. But there is one source of friction I’ve observed in almost every organization I’ve ever been involved with. It comes down to a simple distinction, and I bet you’ve noticed it too. Depending on what side of the distinction you come down on, it’s easy to get frustrated with people on […]

As leaders, we spend an enormous amount of time, energy, and money trying to recruit top talent. I know I do. That’s why it’s critical that each hire is the right one. But what’s the secret to guarantee success? We’re in the midst of a season of intense hiring here at Michael Hyatt & Co. […]

A mistake and a sin are two different things. People often confuse the two. But unless they understand the difference, there is no possibility of reconciliation.

Leaders face a lot of problems, but poor communication is one they often create for themselves. In fact, nine in ten employees say it sabotages the success of executives, according to one study. The same study found the second biggest problem area for leaders was a lack of clear directions. I think this probably applies […]

You may be old. You may be sick. You may be divorced. You may be out of work. You may be broke. You are still here for a reason.

Whenever I speak with leaders about their greatest struggles, the answer I hear more than any other is a lack of confidence. It’s a universal affliction. Early in my career, I suffered from almost crippling social anxiety. At formal office functions, I’d sweat like crazy and my hands would go ice-cold. Later, as the CEO […]

Self-starters who take action and get things done are essential to any effective organization. But what are you supposed to do if your teammates don’t show initiative? I was recently talking with a friend. He was frustrated his employees didn’t take enough initiative. The lack was really affecting his business. The problem was he blamed […]

We usually take our workplaces for granted, don’t we? But skyscrapers are colossal achievements. Architects must design them with variables like winds, earthquakes, communication, traffic, and the surrounding environment in mind. It’s impossible to imagine building one without architectural plans. But here’s the thing: The lives of everyone working inside those towers are infinitely more […]