Ego rejects limits. Action requires them.
Focus intensifies when options shrink.
Narrow options to expand opportunities.
Weak leaders complain about limits. Wise leaders create them.
Learn how to thrive in a world of constraints.
Defensive people resist growth. They deny, deflect, and justify.
Helpers receive insults. Leaders suffer disappointment.
Defensiveness protects self-image. Arguments threaten it.
How to Disarm Defensive People
“The chief danger in life is that you may take too many precautions.” Attributed to Alfred Adler
Caution weighs risks. Look both ways before crossing the street. Excessive caution never leaves the sidewalk.
Caution prepares. Excessive caution demands perfection.
Caution acts with incomplete information. Excessive caution demands certainty.
How to choose courage over self-protection…
Two leaders I coach aspire to tell compelling stories. A no-nonsense leader might scoff, “Just the facts.” Skillful leaders don’t simply share information. They create experiences.
Facts fill minds. Stories move people.
Stories bring ideas to life. The “Good Samaritan” gives life to “Love your neighbor.”
Learn the secret to moving people with stories.
A leader I coach mentioned that people seem disappointed when new problems keep showing up.
The reality is that yesterday’s success won’t answer today’s challenge.
The Navy SEALs say: “The only easy day was yesterday.”
Leadership isn’t for people seeking comfort. It’s for people determined to make a difference.
Learn the truth about problems and success.
#1. Oblivious jerks: don’t see how their behavior harms others. Thinks people should grow up.
#2. Coldhearted jerks: see how they drive people crazy, but don’t care.
#3. Visionary jerks: believe vision justifies walking on people.
