Posted on July 4, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
Independence Day is a time to reflect on the freedoms we have and the people who paved the way. Though many readers of Lead on Purpose reside outside the US, I hope you will also appreciate the great things that happened back in the late 1700s and the impact those men had on establishing freedoms [...]
Filed under: Knowledge, Leadership, Trust | Tagged: constitution, Founding Fathers, freedom, liberty, peace, self-government | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 25, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
Today’s post comes from Jim Holland. Jim’s passion is enabling product marketing teams. With over 20 years of technology experience, he has a fresh and unique perspective in guiding and managing product teams and has a knack for synthesizing conceptual ideas and turning them into reality. Enjoy the post and don’t hesitate to tweet your [...]
Filed under: Integrity, Knowledge, Leadership, Learning, Trust | Tagged: assessment, collaboration, Communication, confidentiality, consistency, education, expectations, gap analysis, Jim Holland, kindergarten, leadership capabilities | 4 Comments »
Posted on June 11, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
In game theory and economic theory, zero-sum describes a situation in which one person’s gain is exactly balanced by another person’s loss. In games like chess, one person wins and the other loses. The win (+1) added to the loss (-1) equals zero.
Life in the business world at times feels like a zero-sum game. As [...]
Filed under: Knowledge, Leadership, Purpose, Trust | Tagged: Art Petty, Chris Warner, confidence, Don Schmincke, inspire, life lessons, passionate, relationships, Stephen MR Covey, Steve Farber, strategic focus, success | 5 Comments »
Posted on June 8, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
In a down economy when things get tough, people get nervous. Some employees feel nervous about keeping their jobs. They get in the “hunker down” mode and do everything they can protect their job. Do you know anyone who behaves that way?
The people who are the most secure in their careers follow similar patterns of [...]
Filed under: Knowledge, Leadership, Learning, Purpose, Trust | Tagged: career, competition, confidence, Eric Hoffer, Learning, success, value | 1 Comment »
Posted on May 26, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
Working as a product manager has at least one interesting side effect: you become keenly aware of customer service in nearly every aspect of your day-to-day activities. At the end of the day, happy customers spread the word about your products and services and you get more happy customers. So when you go into a [...]
Filed under: Leadership, Product Management / Marketing, Trust | Tagged: Communication, customer service, Delta, Hilton, honesty, Marriott, social media, Universal Studios | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 18, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
I picked up the book The Sticking Point Solution: 9 Ways to Move Your Business From Stagnation to Stunning Growth In Tough Economic Times by Jay Abraham to give me something to read on a flight today. Given the book’s title I wasn’t sure what to expect (’sticking point’ and ’stagnation’ are not words I [...]
Filed under: Leadership, Trust | Tagged: humility, service, market, relationships, position, trusted advisor, research, brand equity, Jay Abraham | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 14, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
If you want to succeed, create value for other people. This principle has been taught by many leadership gurus and success coaches for decades.
My friend Dr. Paul discusses the concept of creating value for others in a recent podcast episode. If you get really clear about what you love and what you do well, and [...]
Filed under: Leadership, Trust | Tagged: Chris Brogan, David Meerman Scott, Dr. Paul, leadership principles, success, value | 2 Comments »
Posted on April 30, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
An important aspect of successfully leading people is showing gratitude for who they are and what they do. Gratitude connotes a positive emotion or attitude in acknowledgment of a benefit you have received or will receive. It is recognizing the good things in your life and acknowledging those who helped you achieve them. Gratitude also [...]
Filed under: Leadership, Trust | Tagged: attitude, collaboration, contribution, goals, gratitude, opportunities, peace | Leave a Comment »
Posted on March 31, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
Leadership, by its nature, involves being out in front, cutting a trail through difficult surroundings and confronting problems as they arise. Leaders spot opportunities and through the combination of market evidence and intuition pursue the right course for themselves and their organizations. They figuratively walk ahead and make sure the surrounding conditions are suitable for [...]
Filed under: Integrity, Knowledge, Leadership, Market-driven, Product Management / Marketing, Trust | Tagged: confronting problems, courage, humility, Integrity, intuition, market evidence, opportunities | 3 Comments »
Posted on March 25, 2009 by Michael Ray Hopkin
The practice of love in the context of leadership is both powerful and necessary. Steve Farber describes this clearly in his audio book Extreme Leadership: In Pursuit of the OS!M. What does it mean to love the people you lead? My definition for the acronym LOVE embodies the actions necessary to cultivate positive behaviors that [...]
Filed under: Integrity, Knowledge, Leadership, Techology, Trust | Tagged: confidence, effort, experience, inspire, Knowledge, love, participation, success | 1 Comment »