This article is a follow-up to a previous article I published on Forbes.com in which I promised to write about three powerful, but hidden, forces responsible for almost all performance and profits in organizations. Prior to writing my first book on developing the conscious leadership mindset, I spent a decade attempting to write another leadership book that I just couldn’t seem to get out.  During the many detours and dead ends, I came upon a discovery that profoundly changed how I viewed organizational design and leadership. It has reaped enormous benefits for the companies I consult an ..read more

Of all the human experiences we get to have, being in the presence of, or achieving, excellence in its true form, is one of the most inspiring of all. As leaders, we have the responsibility to and are paid to, recognize, promote, and achieve excellence, both in ourselves and in others. To that end we create countless mission statements and corporate communications that promise to deliver it; state our dedication to it and call forth all employees to exemplify it. Then we set out to achieve it. But we have a problem. No one can definitively define "excellence". The word is subjectiv ..read more

How Stress Saps Your Energy Stress is exhausting. It attacks us physically, emotionally, psychologically, spiritually and even on a cellular level. Some of the ways stress appears to us is as fear, anxiety, depression, uncertainty and "overwhelm." It can appear in a short bursts that are over in a few minutes or days; such as what happens during an argument or an upset. It can also have a much longer tail that can last for weeks, months or even years. Stressors that fall into this category could be things like long term financial struggles, troubling family situation, intractable problems, ser ..read more

One of the areas I explore in my efforts to find impactful solutions to modern problems is in the realm that I refer to as "The Wisdom of our Ancestors."   I don't like reinventing the wheel and I love shortening my, and others', learning curves.   It's a fact that people in every generation going back thousands of years face very similar challenges over and over and over again. While the specific details change based upon the times at a macro level the basic challenges remain the same.   It's also a fact that there have been millions of women and men who, over the decades, ce ..read more

I have a bias This is a difficult article for me to write without expressing a strong personal bias; either in words or energies. I am struggling for two reasons. The first is because I have first hand experience with the death, devastation and the hell caused when ones close to you find themselves in the jaws of the most brutal addictions one can imagine: Opiates. The second is that as someone who is devoted to bringing a higher level of consciousness to both leadership and business, I find predatory capitalism and those who engage in it to be beyond reprehensible. So, I will do my best to w ..read more

I owned a telecommunications integration firm from 1987 until 2008. And while the company was located in Rhode Island I spent almost two years working exclusively in Manhattan from 1999 to 2000. (More about my background here.) What an experience! For those of you who have never had the opportunity to work in Manhattan for any extended period of time I have to tell you there is nothing like it. One of the things that stood out the most to me about “the city” was how rich in resources it is. There is a staggering amount of human capability and financial capital located within a cab’s ride ac ..read more

A Peaceful Workplace The focus of my practice is to help build skillful and resilient leadership teams. I do this at the supervisor, manager, and executive levels. This is very rewarding in that a high percentage of people at these levels are very conscientious, have a solid work ethic, and are life-long learners. They are also good at their jobs and care greatly about the company and their co-workers; which is often why they were promoted in the first place. But these people face a unique set of stresses that non-management people never experience. Considered Taboo What I am talking about is ..read more

The “Centering Conversation” to Win Challenging Conversations The most difficult employee for the conscientious manager to deal with is the unconscientious employee. One of the main reasons those folks are so challenging to deal with is because they don’t play by the same rules as us. For instance, as a conscientious manager you believe in being honest; making certain you have your facts straight, and that you speak clearly. You also put a lot of effort into understanding another’s perspective and that they understand yours as well. However, the unconscientious employee doesn’t play by the sam ..read more

What The Un-Presidential Debate Taught Us Recently America witnessed the two individuals who are vying to lead the greatest nation in the world through the most challenging times it has faced in over 80 years. What we saw, regardless of which individual or party you may support, was anything but leadership….or at least it wasn’t conscious leadership. Instead of demonstrating calmness, focus, and professionalism during a time of national crises, we were exposed to a political verbal food fight that was more suited for a dingy barroom than international television. The Leadership Crisis As a na ..read more

One of the first and most fundamental ingredients Conscious Leaders use to build powerful teams and healthy cultures is Trust. Very simply, without Trust there is no leadership. Therefore establishing Trust at all levels throughout the organization, above you, below you and beside you, is essential to success as a leader. Throughout all of my Conscious Leadership training programs we speak of the need to "Lead with A.I.R." A.I.R. is an acronym for Authenticity, Integrity and Respect. The reason we focus so much attention on Leading with A.I.R. is because when one consistently does so, they q ..read more