tomjonez's blog

Difficult economic times provide unique opportunities.  In such times, everything we have learned and everything we value is called upon to navigate the challenges we face. Our experiences, victories, mistakes - and most of all - our values, are all called upon.  And in a sense, put to the test.
 
It's sort of like taking a final exam in leadership graduate school.  It is therefore a wonderful opportunity to set the course for the future of our leadership style and effectiveness.
 

I don’t remember much from my 10th grade geometry class.  But I do remember a word we learned and its meaning (because it’s simple).

The word is “congruent.”

In geometry two figures are congruent if they have exactly the same shape and the same size.  For example, two triangles are congruent if their corresponding sides are equal in length and their corresponding angles are equal in size.

Then and only then are they congruent; they are the same.

What in the fat does this have to do with leadership?

Good question.

Most business leaders, and certainly business consultants, recognize the need for a company to develop a clear mission statement – a real mission statement, as contrasted to a clever advertising slogan mounted on the wall behind the company’s reception desk.
 

There are a variety of styles that people use to accomplish objectives when leading teams of people – whether the teams are large or small.

My friend Dennis Trittin, who is the author of the popular new book, “What I Wish I Knew at 18,” has provided great insight into a simple and practical leadership skill that we were granted permission to share with you: the importance of written goals.