Writing this blog provides me with a much-needed time-out from the lingering torture of watching England’s dismal performances against the US and Algeria in the soccer World Cup. However, their failure to deliver the goods under pressure was surpassed on Sunday at Pebble Beach when American golfer, Dustin Johnson, leading the US Open by three …
Category: Graham’s blog
May 24
Mental Toughness and Real Leaders
My last couple of weeks have largely been taken up by one-to-one coaching. This has involved working with lawyers who find themselves in leadership positions and are tasked with getting the best out of a bunch of individuals who are good at what they do, used to working on their own, and see no reason …
May 10
The ‘new normal’
I’ve just finished writing an article for MWorld, the American Management Association’s magazine. The Editor asked me to write about the implications of the ‘new normal’ for leaders and it made me realize that we hear a lot about the ‘new normal’ but what does it actually mean? At the micro-level, there is no precise …
Apr 26
Reinvent youself
I should be writing this in Holland where I was due to deliver a three-day workshop on ‘Creating High Performance Teams’ to a group of 15 senior leaders in the CRH European business. Instead, I’m at home in Princeton as one of a huge number of people whose travel has been disrupted by the travel …
Apr 12
Q&A with Sue Hybart, Cardiff University
I hope you’ve had a good couple of weeks. Mine have mainly involved running workshops and coaching lawyers. Last week I recorded a podcast on ‘real leadership and mental toughness’ for the American Management Association (AMA) in New York. This will be available on the AMA, Lane4, and this website very shortly. I also discovered …
Mar 29
Creating an environment in which high performance is inevitable and sustainable
The last couple of weeks have provided plenty of variety and adventure. The week before last I was avoiding the seemingly millions of trees that line the ski trails of Vermont. As a relatively unskilled skier still mastering the art of turning at rapid speed (I don’t know how to slow down either!) this was …
Mar 15
Are you a Real or Safe Leader?
I’ve just returned from Tampa where I ran the first of a series of four modules that Lane4 will roll out with 12 senior leaders in CRH over the next ten months. Having experienced the amazing blizzards that have hit New Jersey over the past couple of weeks, it was great to feel the warmth …
Mar 01
A First! For Me!
I never fail to be astounded by the number of ‘firsts’ I continue to experience in a world where change is ever more inevitable, rapid, constant, exciting, and occasionally chaotic. It’s almost as if my life, and everyone else’s from my generation, has been turned upside down – Benjamin Button style! I always thought most, …
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