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“Carve your name on hearts and not on marble.” ~Charles Spurgeon  We had just started dating and one Sunday afternoon, I took my future wife to a local park to explore and have a get-to-know-you-better picnic. While enjoying our time together, my wife saw a dandelion “puffball” nearby. As a horticulturist and high-end resort landscape manager, I recognized this obnoxious weed immediately as a foe. In my world, dandelions are weeds, a menace that needs to be prevented...

"Your attitude is either your best friend or your worst enemy, your greatest asset or your greatest liability." ~John Maxwell  Last week on a wet, cold day, I took advantage of an opportunity to grow my team’s leadership abilities. I brought together all my landscape services employees and we discussed attitude and the role it plays when working on the front line. Is it important? Does attitude really matter and why?    We started the exercise by writing down the name...

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”  -William Arthur Ward  Recently, I was speaking with a leader who produces millions of dollars of revenue each year through his organization. He employs over 80 people, and his company creates an amazing product. In gratitude, he would give his team a lot of love at Christmas - a big company party, lots of food, gift cards, iPads, entertainment, trips. He really wanted...

Victoria and her husband Brian started their design/build construction business back in 2000. When the housing industry took a serious downturn in 2008, the business got hammered by the recession and they struggled to find work and had to let people go. They eventually had to close the business for good.    A few years later, they started a new construction business, Bear Creek Outdoor Living, that only focuses on delivering unique backyard structures that help inspire families...

“One day, I am going to do it.”   Have you ever been there? Maybe you felt like that, even said that out loud. “One day, I will invest in my team and not just our daily routine.” Maybe, deep down, you know it is time to get someone to coach some of your team leaders.   “One day, I am going to invest in myself as a person.” Maybe you would like to get some insights on a challenge...

I was speaking to a very engaged Grounds Manager recently about a situation he was privileged to be a part of. Each day at work, he purchases a cup of coffee for himself and for a young worker on his staff, who happens to have downs syndrome. He said the coffee is not that expensive and he really enjoys the daily ritual with his young worker. One day, however, he was surprised when the young worker...

1. Be honest  Zig Ziglar once said, “Honesty is not the best policy, it’s the only policy.” According to the book, The Leadership Challenge by James Kouzes and Barry Posner, honesty is the most admired trait in a leader. You don’t need a degree to model this.  2. Be inspiring  Most leaders don’t see themselves as inspiring, but what does it mean to inspire others? According to The Leadership Challenge, people expect leaders to be excited, energetic and positive about the future. As a leader, be excited to be...

“You may delay, but time will not.” ~ Benjamin Franklin.  Recently I was having a conversation with a young leader who told me he spent all day Saturday watching football and as a result, he didn’t get any work done. He felt bad because he had some projects planned, but he had wasted the entire day just watching football. This is a good guy; he takes care of his family, running a couple of successful “side hustles” to make...

Don't assume. One of the biggest mistakes I made was thinking our workforce thought of themselves as leaders. I assumed because I thought of everyone as leaders, so did they. When I ask our team to raise their hand if they felt like they were a leader, about half did and half did not. I needed to communicate more often and with greater clarity. Don’t blame your team. Once you blame others on your team, you lose...

How do you get more done with less? You develop people who lead well. How do you go home earlier, stop working late and have happier customers? You grow great leaders in your organization who can do more. Most of us are not able to attract experienced leaders with high salaries and fancy benefits, but all of us can grow those leaders that work with us.  Do you need people who “Lead by Example?” Do you need leaders who can adapt in the situation and...