In my last couple of blogs I’ve been focusing on my new book, Great Leaders Grow, which I wrote with Mark Miller. Even if you don’t think of yourself as a leader, this book can make a difference in your life—because everyone is a potential leader. Any time you seek to influence the thinking, behavior, or development of people, either personally or professionally, you are taking on the role of a leader. All of us can be leaders, whether it’s at work or in our homes or communities. And continuous personal growth is part of what makes a great leader. In addition to Gaining Knowledge, which I talked about last time, another important move toward becoming a leader for life is to Reach Out to Others—the R in our GROW model.  One of the best ways to reinforce your own learning is to help others grow by teaching them what you have learned. This doesn’t need to be a formal situation where you facilitate a seminar or teach in a classroom. It can be as informal and friendly as a lunchtime conversation. In fact, storytelling is one of the best ways to share what you know with someone else in a memorable way. Look for "teachable moments"—opportunities to challenge others to grow. For instance, I reach out every day by sending a voicemail to everyone in our company. My morning message usually includes something I learned while working with a client, something I read in a book, or maybe just an interesting observation that I felt like passing along.  I believe these daily messages reinforce our organizational values and also strengthen our close sense of community with each other, even though we now have team members all over the world. If you pay attention, you might just encounter a teachable moment while you are driving your daughter to soccer practice, having a phone conversation with a colleague across the country, or grabbing a cup of coffee with some co-workers in the break room. When we share what we learn, we model self-leadership as well as personal growth. It gives us credibility to challenge others to grow. What is something you recently learned that you could reach out and share with people in your organization?  How will you do it?

Last week, we discussed how serious games within simulations like Virtual Battlespace 2TM (VBS2TM) are great at engaging soldiers during training. Another component that increases the quality of simulated training, one that we focus on at Discovery Machine, is behavior modeling — the modeling of how humans make decisions under various circumstances. While behavior modeling […]

If you are a regular reader of my blogs, you’ll know that I’m highlighting the four major areas where great leaders need to grow continuously, taken from my new book with Mark Miller called Great Leaders Grow.  I’ve already covered the first two parts of our GROW model—Gain Knowledge and Reach Out to Others. The third aspect of growth we’re going to focus on is to Open Your World. It’s so easy to get into a rut, both in our work life and our home life, and just stay there. One of the greatest ways to ensure your own continual growth is to expand your mind and your life through new experiences—both at work and outside of work—that light a spark within you. Mark Miller likes to use the analogy of an artist with a palette. When an artist puts paint on the palette, he can then use that paint to create a masterpiece. As we open our world, we’re putting different colors of paint on our palette. We won’t be able to use all the colors immediately, but they are now at our disposal because we’ve had that experience or we’ve established that relationship. What are some ways for you to open your world—and open yourself to growth—at work? I love the idea of having lunch with different people periodically. I have lunch with different groups or departments at our company every so often. I’m always surprised at how learning a few new things about someone can give me a whole new perspective on that person. And then I have a better connection with that person. Try it! Take advantage of the opportunity to lead any kind of group at work you can, whether it’s a cross-functional team working on a new company initiative or a weekly book club. Any time you lead, you learn more about being a leader. Shadow someone from another department or team. If you are in Finance, learn more about Marketing. If you are in Marketing, spend an hour with a person in Shipping. If you are in Shipping, hang out with someone from Human Resources. It can be eye-opening to see the view from a different side of the organization. It’s just as important to open your world outside the workplace. A balance between interesting professional work experiences and exciting personal life experiences is essential if you are going to keep growing. This still counts as paint on your palette, because all of these experiences impact you and fuel your point of view. Here are some ideas to open your world outside work: Take a class at a local community college. Learn a new language or become proficient with a new type of computer software—this will add something to your resume that wasn’t there last year. Volunteer at church, a local Boys and Girls Club, or an animal shelter. Volunteering not only expands your mind, it can make your problems seem less important. Travel. It doesn’t matter where you go. Whether you take a day trip to a nearby town or plan a three-week European vacation, growth and learning can happen anywhere. Expose yourself to the arts. Get out of your comfort zone if you have to.  Listen to a classical music CD, attend a local play, go to an art museum, or take guitar lessons. Remember, leaders are learners. Every time you open your world, you grow a little. Whether it be meeting with a new colleague, helping at a food bank, organizing the company picnic, or whitewater rafting with friends—you’ll be a more well-rounded person, a more interesting conversationalist, a more critical thinker, and a more confident leader. Take advantage of every opportunity to open your world and you will continue to grow as a leader for life.

As I continue on with the lessons from Great Leaders Grow, my latest book written with Mark Miller, you may notice that all three of the previously mentioned areas in which leaders must grow—gaining knowledge, reaching out to others, and opening your world—are lifelong pursuits. Our fourth way to assure growth as a leader, Walk Toward Wisdom, is no different. The pursuit of wisdom never ends for those who aspire to leadership. Wisdom can be defined as the application of accumulated knowledge and experience. Contrary to what you might think, wisdom really has nothing to do with age. We all have known younger people who might be described as "wise beyond their years," and many of us probably can say we know a few "old fools." The truth is, wisdom is attained, bit by bit, throughout our lifetime. It’s always within our reach, but it must be pursued. The walk toward wisdom should include these elements: Self Evaluation - First, slow down, look in the mirror, and be truthful with yourself. What’s working and what’s not working? What are your strengths and how can you better leverage them? What are your weaknesses and how can you minimize them? How are you adding value to your life, your organization, the world? Self evaluation isn’t easy, but it is a necessary starting point for pursuing wisdom. We all have blind spots and things we don’t know but need to learn about ourselves. Socrates said, "An unexamined life is not worth living." And even Shakespeare referred to self evaluation when he wrote, "To thine own self be true." Honest Feedback - Feedback helps us learn from our past. No matter how candid you try to be during your self evaluation, you’ll never be able to overcome your own bias and perspective, so you must ask others for feedback. This can be done either formally or informally. My associate Rich Case always used to say that feedback is the breakfast of champions—I love that!  So ask your colleagues at every level for honest feedback on how you have been doing. Encourage them to be frank. Ask them what you should start doing, what you should keep doing, and what you should stop doing. A word to the wise:  Typically, even folks who are honest with their feedback will tell you only about 90 percent. Yes, they tell you the truth, but don’t always give you that last 10 percent. Both Mark Miller and I have always had a few people who care enough to tell us the whole truth by giving us that last 10 percent. It’s important to have at least a handful of these "truth tellers" in your life to keep you in check. Whether you are successful at getting people to give you honest feedback has a lot to do with how you react when feedback is given. One of the ways you can tell the difference between great leaders and self-serving leaders is the way they respond to feedback. Self-serving people get very protective and defensive, because they think they already know the truth, and will often "kill the messenger." But you can always tell when someone wants to learn from feedback, because when you give that person feedback the first thing he or she will say is, "Thank you. That’s really helpful. Is there anything else I should know?" or simply, "Tell me more." Great leaders will actually encourage the other person to give that extra 10 percent of feedback. They want to be sure they are getting everything out of that person. Self-serving leaders don’t want to hear feedback at all. Next week I’ll talk about the last aspect of walking toward wisdom and have some final words about Great Leaders Grow.  In the meantime, I’d love it if you would leave a comment and share how you are choosing to grow as a leader, either in the workplace or at home.

I was reading something by Karl Kapp, a former professor of mine at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. He is an expert in the field of instructional gaming or what he likes to refer to as "The Gamification of Learning and Instruction". The article I was reading was called "Creating a Natural, Engaging Conversation in Your […]

When’s the last time you went to the movies? Chances are, your visit involved buying your movie ticket, silencing your phone, and maybe even splurging on a box of overpriced popcorn. I’m able to say this with some confidence because many of our day-to-day activities, like going to the movies, are governed by a group […]

In my last blog I talked about walking toward wisdom as one of the four major areas of growth for leaders and aspiring leaders, along with gaining knowledge, reaching out to others, and opening your world.  During your lifelong pursuit of wisdom, it is necessary to do a thorough self evaluation and also to be continually open to honest feedback from others. In addition, you must seek out the counsel of those with more wisdom and experience than yourself. I love the concept that feedback is about the past and counsel is about the future. My friend Marshall Goldsmith, who is a great author, says that even when some people aren’t too excited about feedback, they are excited about what he calls "feedforward." He has a great exercise where he has people get up and walk around the room and think about something they would like to accomplish this year. He has them go one on one with each other and ask, "Do you have any advice for me?"  They move around and meet ten or twelve people and get advice and counsel from everyone. Receiving counsel from others is about what lies ahead and is a tremendous opportunity to benefit from someone else’s wisdom. We can gain the most if we are open minded and guard our heart against pride and arrogance.  Over time, what we learn from the counsel of others will add to our own store of wisdom. Work with a mentor or mentors—particularly those who are further down the road than you are. Borrow from their wisdom and experience. A mentor is someone who has "been there and done that." One of the best ways to learn from a mentor’s experience and wisdom is to ask profound questions. You’ll be surprised what you’ll learn. For instance, ask an open-ended question such as, "What decisions in your life have made the greatest contribution to your success?" "What books have had the greatest impact in your life?" "What are the biggest lessons you’ve learned so far in your career?" Start making a list of profound questions such as these, and then look for opportunities to ask those questions. When you ask a profound question and listen—really listen—to the answer, that’s when the learning really soaks in. In my seminars I try to encourage more interaction by asking participants questions and then having them interact with others around them. That’s when learning really seems to come alive for everyone involved. A commitment to pursuing wisdom will enhance your leadership—but don’t expect to become wise overnight!  Walking toward wisdom is a lifelong journey. Every step you take will enhance your growth and bring you closer to your final destiny. So decide today: I will Walk Toward Wisdom. As are many of my books, Great Leaders Grow is an easy-to-read parable with an enduring message. If you read The Secret - What Great Leaders Know and Do, my first book with Mark Miller, you will be familiar with the characters in Great Leaders Grow. If you enjoy it, pass it around to other folks who may be able to benefit from it, and then leave a comment here to let me know what you think.  Remember, everyone is a leader and everyone needs to keep growing. Mark and I hope that Great Leaders Grow will fuel your passion to grow for the rest of your life.

The world is in a desperate need of a different leadership role model. Everyone has seen the effects of self-serving leaders in every aspect of our society. What we need today are leaders who are servant leaders. When people hear the phrase servant leadership, they are often confused. They immediately conjure up thoughts of the inmates running the prison, or trying to please everyone. Others think servant leadership is only for church leaders. The problem is that they don’t understand leadership. They think you can’t lead and serve at the same time. From my experience, not only is it possible, it’s the only way over the long run to get great performance and human satisfaction. To prove my point, I’m always looking for good servant leader examples. As an ex-basketball player and coach, I love March Madness and the NCAA basketball run. This year was especially sweet with Coach John Calipari leading his Kentucky Wildcats to the National Championship. I have known Cal since his coaching days at the University of Massachusetts. He considers me part of his "kitchen cabinet."  What I admire most about Cal is that he is a classic servant leader. He proves season after season that you can lead and serve at the same time if you understand the three aspects of servant leadership: the servant, the steward, and the shepherd. As a servant, Coach Cal realizes that leadership is not about him; it’s about the people he is serving. When asked how he felt about winning the championship, Cal was quick to say, "This is not about me. This is about these thirteen players. This is about the Big Blue Nation." He always focuses on the kids and the fans who support the Wildcats. As a steward, Coach Cal knows that he doesn’t own these kids—they are "on loan" to him to nurture, support, and help develop. Some people criticize him because a number of his players are "one and done"—they leave after their Freshman year and go straight into professional basketball. Last year, four members of his team were drafted in the first round and this year there likely will be two. He is pushing the NBA to not draft any college players until they have completed a minimum of two years of college. Whatever Coach Cal does, though, it’s all about his kids and what’s best for them and their families. If he feels a player such as Terrence Jones is not ready for the pros after one year, he encourages the player to stay—which is what Terrence did. The Terrence Jones who played in the Final Four this year was very different from the Terrence Jones who played last year. Coach Cal does whatever he can to help each player develop to his own highest level of performance. As a shepherd, Coach Cal thinks every one of his players is important. This year’s team had six players who averaged 25 points or better in high school—in other words, they were all stars. The great gift that Coach Cal has is to get them to subvert their ego and realize that "none of us is as smart as all of us." Different players in every game stepped up when they needed to.  Anthony Davis, who was chosen the most outstanding player in the NCAA Final Four tournament as well as being the recipient of several National Player of the Year awards, realized the importance of everyone as well. When he was interviewed after the game about what a great game he had played even though he only scored six points, he said, "Well, it’s not me. It’s these guys behind me. They led us this whole tournament. This whole game, I was struggling offensively, and I told my team, ‘Every time down, you all score the ball; I’m just going to defend and rebound.’" What a great example of everyone depending on each other. Just think of these young people, who have learned to recognize that: As servants, life is not about them but about those whom they serve; As stewards, they don’t own anything—everything is on loan and they need to nurture and support what is given to them; and As shepherds, every human being is important. These are life lessons, whether they stay in college one year, two years, or four years. As Reid Cherner recently said in USA Today, "John Calipari persuaded teenagers to put others first, play unselfishly, and believe the whole is better than the sum of its parts. Every parent of a teen has to be in slack-jawed awe of that." Does servant leadership work?  You bet it does—and Coach John Calipari proves it. The result is great performance along with great human satisfaction. Not a bad outcome for a servant leader.

Shown in the picture from left to right: The Discovery Machine Behavior View Manager, The Discovery Machine Human-Communication Recognition (HCR) Client, and VBS2 from Bohemia Interactive.  Yesterday, Discovery Machine hosted  a webinar showcasing voice interaction. The webinar focused on how voice interaction could enhance training in simulations, specifically in Virtual Battle Space 2 (VBS2). Participants […]

I recently had a wonderful experience working with the founder and the head of leadership for a wonderful healthcare company in the Midwest whose main focus is elder care. It was inspirational to be with leaders who understand that the most important customer they have is their employees. They really want their employees to be excited about giving the absolutely best, most legendary service. The elder healthcare industry has tried hard to change a less-than-stellar reputation caused by news reports over the years of some facilities mistreating patients. But this organization has a great reputation for serving their patients. The workers respond to the needs of the patients and maintain an atmosphere that is stimulating and exciting for them. It all starts with the leaders of the organization creating a motivating environment for their people to work in. When that happens, it’s no surprise when the workers go out of their way to serve their patients—their customers. Then the patients, who are pleased with the way they are being treated, start bragging to their kids and friends about the great service they receive, and the good word gets around. The organization’s best salespeople are the customers they’re already serving. The end result of all of this good news is that the organization becomes sound financially. So often we think business is all about making money and that customers are the most important thing. But if you don’t treat your employees well and give them a reason to come to work, they aren’t going to be motivated to give excellent service to your customers, and customers who aren’t treated well have lots of other places they can go. Don’t forget that without your people, you’re nothing. Think of your organization as a stagecoach. Upper management might be the drivers of the stagecoach, but your people are the horses—the ones who create the forward movement. If the leaders get knocked out of the stagecoach, it keeps moving. But if something happens to the horses, everything comes to a screeching halt.  So serve and help each other, and then reach out to your customers with the enthusiasm and desire and fabulous service that will make them raving fans.

As you may have noticed, my posts have mostly been about instruction and different ways AI can improve the learning process. This is mostly because I had spent 10 years in higher education before coming to Discovery Machine Inc. While working in distance education, instructional design, and instructional media, I noticed that online education is […]

In all my years of participating in and observing presidential elections, I have never heard so many people—both Democrats and Republicans—expressing disappointment with what’s going on in Washington. The complaints are not so much about the leadership capability of the current president as they are about the political system in general. Probably at no time in our country have we had so many major problems—yet we don’t seem to be making much progress in addressing them. Both parties seem to be more interested in getting their incumbents reelected than in problem solving. In light of this situation several people have said to me, "Ken, you ought to write a book called The One Minute Manager Goes to Washington." When I mention this to others, they laugh but often follow with, "That might not be a bad idea." Perhaps because my mission statement has to do with being a "loving teacher and example of simple truths," some people think I might have some suggestions that could make a difference. So finally, after much prodding, I’ve decided to give it a try—because our leaders need some new ideas if America is going to regain our reputation as "a shining city upon a hill." Instead of writing a book, though, I’m writing a series of twelve blogs that will focus on leading Government at a higher level. So watch this space! Every two weeks, you are invited to read a new installment of my ideas for alleviating Washington’s leadership woes. As blog-worthy incidents arise—as they surely will during any election season—I’ll throw in a few of my thoughts regarding those events as well. I hope you will feel free to participate in this dialogue by leaving a comment or two along the way. In thinking about what could help to turn around the system in Washington, I have been struck by four leadership secrets I have learned over the years that could lead to effective solutions to many of America’s dilemmas. In the next segment of this series I will introduce you to the first secret.

Simulation-based training has proven to be an efficient and effective approach to training cognitive decision making.  Militaries around the globe have adopted simulation-based training into their curriculum (as evidenced by I/ITSEC) and it is being seen more and more in the corporate world. At the end of his blog, "Psychological Research Guides Next Generation Computing", […]

I/ITSEC 2013 was a great success for Discovery Machine. Our demonstrations this year showcased the power of our AI, intelligent behavior models, and voice capabilities for training in a variety of simulations including Bohemia Interactive’s VBS3, the US Navy’s Joint Semi-Automated Forces (JSAF), and the Unity3D game engine. You can read all about our demonstrations […]

(The second installment in my twelve-part blog series A Leadership Vision for America) The first of my four secrets toward effective solutions in Washington is really not a secret at all—I have been promoting it as a requirement for organizational success for over thirty years: The First Secret: Have A Compelling Vision Assumption:If people don’t have a larger purpose to serve, the only thing they have to serve is themselves. We are in desperate need of a clear and compelling vision for our country. A vision is a picture of the future that produces passion, and it’s this passion that people want to follow. An organization without a clear vision or goals is like a river without banks—it stagnates and goes nowhere. A colleague of mine, Jack Bowsher, former Director of Education for IBM, agrees with my assessment in his book Educating Voters for Rebuilding America. According to Jack: "As the old saying goes, ‘If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.’ Unfortunately, this adage describes our country in recent years. Americans need to develop a vision of where they want their country to be in future years. Political parties can then develop and implement the strategies and programs that … will achieve the vision. This vision will motivate voters to support the fundamental changes that are necessary to achieve the vision." To help people create a compelling vision for their organization, I wrote a book with Jesse Lyn Stoner entitled Full Steam Ahead! Unleash the Power of Vision In Your Work and Your Life.  In our work with organizations all over the world, we have observed that the biggest impediment to success and goal achievement is the lack of a compelling vision—knowing who you are (your significant purpose), where you’re going (your picture of the future), and what will guide your journey (your values). In fact, fewer than ten percent of the organizations we have visited have been led by managers who had a clear sense of where they were trying to lead people. Next time: What is America’s significant purpose—what makes us who we are?

Why do humans anthropomorphize Non-player characters in games?  Studies have shown that even a circle with facial expressions and the right motion can engage a human.  Part of this anthropomorphism may stem from how we, as humans, naturally interact with each other. When you observe another person’s actions, you naturally attribute a sentient mental model […]

(The third installment in my twelve-part blog series A Leadership Vision for America) In my last installment, I introduced the idea that successful organizations are led by someone with a compelling vision.  A compelling vision comprises knowing who you are (your significant purpose), where you’re going (your picture of the future), and what will guide your journey (your values). Let’s take this concept, one segment at a time, and apply it to Washington. A significant purpose (who we are). In helping people develop a significant purpose, one thing I’ve learned is that you don’t want it to be complicated. A purpose statement simply needs to tell everyone involved what business you are in. When I coauthored Lead with LUV with Colleen Barrett, President Emeritus of Southwest Airlines (whose stock symbol is LUV), I was eager to find out why they were the only airline that was able to make money year after year in an industry that historically has lost money. One thing that became very clear was that Southwest has a compelling vision every one of their employees understands. When I asked Colleen what business Southwest Airlines was in, she smiled and said, "Southwest Airlines is in the customer service business—we happen to fly airplanes." That’s certainly simple and straightforward.  From the president to the frontline employees, everybody knows that is their purpose. That’s why, year in and year out, they are voted one of the top customer service providers in any industry. Walt Disney started his theme parks with a clear purpose. He said, "We’re in the happiness business." That is very different from being in the theme park business. Being in the happiness business helps cast members (employees) understand their primary role in the company. A clear purpose tells you the reason for your existence. In other words, it answers the question "Why?" rather than just explaining what you intend to do. So, what’s the purpose of the United States?  Are we in the business of being a role model for democracy?  What about the quality of life of our own people—where does that fit in our purpose statement?  Right now, I don’t think we have a clear sense of what business we are in as a country. What business do you think we are in? Next time: What is the picture of the future for America—where is our country going?

Artificial intelligence can seem a lot like magic. How do self-driving cars navigate through traffic without human input? Just how does Siri come up with answers to your questions? And how does the AI technology used in serious games work? Do you think you need to be a super smart programmer to see beyond the […]

(This is the fourth installment in my twelve-part blog series A Leadership Vision for America) Last time, as part of my thoughts on what we can do to make a positive difference in Washington, I gave you the first component of a compelling vision: having a significant purpose. The second aspect of a compelling vision is a picture of the future. What do you want to be true in the future that is not true today? If you do a great job at what you’re doing, what will happen?  Focus on the end result, not the process of getting there. And your picture of the end result should not be abstract—it should be a mental image you actually can visualize. Southwest Airlines’ dream has always been for every American to be able to be with a friend or a relative in a happy time or a sad time. Everyone should have the freedom to fly—that’s why they are a low-cost airline. When cofounder Herb Kelleher saw in the 1970s that the only people who were doing much flying were business people or the wealthy, he decided that wasn’t right. He asked, "Why can’t everybody have a chance to fly?" and that’s when they decided they were going to "democratize the skies."  Democratizing the airways is Southwest’s picture of the future. Jack Bowsher, former Director of Education for IBM and author of Educating Voters for Rebuilding America, suggests a picture of the future for our country that I think most Americans could get passionate about: "Americans want to live in peace and be able to support themselves financially throughout their adult years with at least a middle-class standard of living. During their lifetime, they will need affordable health care and excellent education systems. … In their senior years, retired Americans should be able to continue living an independent life with the help of a government pension plus the income they can earn from their investments. Americans will always enjoy the personal freedom that the United States Constitution guarantees all citizens." So what’s the picture of the future for our country? Where is the United States heading? What will a good job look like? I don’t know that our leaders have good answers to any of these questions. The first and second aspects of a compelling vision—a significant purpose and a picture of the future—are powerful, but those two components alone do not create a truly enduring vision. I’ll explain the third element-clear values—in my next installment. In the meantime, I’d love to hear your thoughts and ideas on how we can help create a more effective leadership vision for America.

The ability to rapidly inject automated entities into a simulation is an area of simulation-based training that is ripe for enhancing capability without increasing cost.  The problem is that all instructors have unique needs for what they want their entities to do for a given training event.    As such, entity authoring technology must enable […]

 (This is the fifth installment in my twelve-part blog series A Leadership Vision for America) Our leaders in Washington first need a compelling vision if they are going to move this country in a positive direction.  In recent posts I’ve covered two elements of a compelling vision: A significant purpose—what business we are in as a country; and a picture of the future—where we are headed. The last component of a compelling vision is having a clear set of operating values. What will guide our behavior as we move forward?  This is critical. I’m amazed that of all the organizations I’ve worked with or visited around the world, fewer than ten percent have had a clear set of operating values. Without values, it is a free-for-all. Even those organizations that have a set of values often have too many values. It’s hard to remember eight, ten, or twelve values—much less have them guide your behavior. They may be framed beautifully and look nice on the wall, but they have little meaning to anyone. So what you want is a few values—three or four—that people can focus on and live by. Also, organizations should rank order their values. Why is that important?  Because sometimes values conflict with each other.  If values are not rank ordered, people can choose any value they like and justify their behavior. Southwest Airlines has four values. Their number one value is safety, which is understandable given their business. They then have three values they choose not to put into rank order because they want people to engage in them all every single day:  a Warrior Spirit, a Servant’s Heart, and a Fun-LUVing Attitude. A Warrior Spirit means that if you have a job, do it. Give it your all. A Servant’s Heart means that their people are there to serve, not to be served. And the Fun-LUVing Attitude of Southwest employees is legendary—it’s one of the things that sets them apart from the competition and contributes to their success in the airline industry. What are the operating values that guide the behavior of our leaders in Washington? I don’t know of any agreed-upon values. Even if our politicians individually have good intentions and good values, without big-picture values for our government, it becomes a free-for-all.  To me, the values that run our country now are driven by the squeaky wheel—when someone protests, we focus on their values. I think we are in desperate need of a set of operating values everyone can agree upon that can guide our journey as a country. What do you think? Is this possible in today’s political climate?

Alex Trebec: "We have a 57 year old male smoker with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.  He has a history of diabetes in the family…"  … BEEP. Alex:  "Watson?" Watson:  "What is experimental drug trial 3?" Alex: "Why do you say that?" Watson: "…" Alex: "Watson?" Watson: "…" As everyone who follows our blog is probably aware, IBM’s […]

(This is the sixth installment in my twelve-part blog series A Leadership Vision for America) In the past several weeks, I have gone into detail about the first secret our government leaders need to know to improve our system in Washington:  Have a compelling vision.  For a compelling vision to endure, all three elements—a significant purpose, a picture of the future, and clear values—are needed to guide behavior on a day-to-day basis. A perfect example of this is the way Martin Luther King, Jr. outlined his vision in his "I Have a Dream" speech. By describing a world where his children "will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character," he created powerful and specific images arising from the values of brotherhood, respect, and freedom for all—values that resonate with those of the founding values of the United States. King’s vision continues to mobilize and guide people beyond his lifetime because it illuminates a significant purpose, provides a picture of the future, and describes values that resonate with people’s hopes and dreams. Once you have a clear and compelling vision, you can establish goals that help people determine what they should focus on right now. In his book Educating Voters for Rebuilding America, Jack Bowsher suggests six potential national goals that would achieve the picture of the future he proposes: Peace with strong defense and Homeland Security systems Prosperity and a rising standard of living with high level of employment Adequate and affordable health care system for all Superior and affordable education systems Efficient and affordable government Decent retirement for senior citizens I think Jack is really on to something with these goals. I would love to see each of our presidential candidates identify the key goals he wants to accomplish nationally, and then spell out his plans and programs to achieve those goals. Rather than debates, candidates could participate in goal accomplishment sessions: First they would have to agree on the key goals to accomplish in the country within the next four years, and then each would give his own strategies to achieve each goal. Wouldn’t you love to hear our candidates lay out their specific goals for America and then clearly explain how they expect to accomplish those goals? Do you think this idea is realistic, unrealistic, optimistic, idealistic, or something else? Next time, we will move on to the second secret for how our leaders in Washington can turn things around:  Treat citizens as their business partners.

Me:  Siri, I have a headache. Siri:  I found 3 drug stores fairly close to you. Me:  Is the pollen bad? Siri:  I don’t know the Rating for "Pollen" (Director: Louis Shwartzberg) (Runtime: 1h 17m) [G] In my last blog I talked about transparency as a way to increase interaction and trust between humans and […]