I can distinctly recall a discussion from my first real job. It was with a Regional Vice President, named Jim, who was about 4 levels above my direct supervisor. This was at a Fortune 100 organization, so being fresh out of college and having a serious discussion with a leadership team member was kind of a big deal. I had recently voiced my opinion on our current processes and procedures for time service standards at a large national conference. I offered several new ideas to evolve our standards. Jim called me a few weeks later to personally thank me for speaking up. And although most of my ideas were not feasible at the time or just bad, one of my ideas he loved and was already beginning to implement.

I wanted to discuss further my “bad ideas” that Jim said were not feasible, but he was too busy and basically ended the phone call with “Keep bringing me ideas – for every 20 bad ideas, hopefully 1 will be good.” I remember getting off the phone and being discouraged, thinking “Wow, what is that supposed to mean – 1 out of 20 is a good batting average?” Little did I know, this would be my first serious discussion on being an innovative leader.

Once your child turns 18, your ability to act on their behalf changes. Their medical history is no longer available and you cannot make medical decisions for them. Even if your child lives at home or is on your health insurance, a parent has no legal authority to make health care decisions nor do they have the right to obtain medical information due to the Privacy Rule of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Mike Cahill, President of Banking Services at Ruoff Home Mortgage. We hope you enjoy Mike’s wisdom and perspective.

I recently came across a person on social media who was probably one of my worst hires ever. A very good person, just a very bad fit for the job and a poor judgment call on my part. I shared this with a friend who reminded me of a promotion I gave someone a few years back that was also ill advised. This friend has known me for a long, long time, so we reminisced about various bad hires or poor promotion decisions I made over the years.

As we all move up through management, the decisions that more times than not either make our break our success are the people decisions. Who do you hire, promote, reassign, develop, fire, etc.? After making sure you have the appropriate vision and strategy for your business, nothing is more important than the people decisions we all make.

At home, your family is exposed to the risks of robbery, fires, weather damage, and car accidents, among other things. When your young adult heads off to college, the same risks exist, even when they live on campus. It is important to understand your insurance policies to know what is covered and where there may be gaps.

Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Shery Roussarie, President and CEO of Allied Physicians of Michiana, LLC. We hope you enjoy Shery’s wisdom and perspective.

Two recent experiences have caused me to think about the legacy I am building. Is it a legacy where people will speak fondly of me, or will it be a celebration the likes of which hasn’t been seen since Dorothy’s house landed in Oz?

The first of these experiences was at Notre Dame’s annual President’s Breakfast. This year’s event concluded with a special tribute to John Affleck-Graves, retiring Chief Financial Officer of Notre Dame since 2004. It just takes a quick Google search to see the significant impact Dr. Affleck-Graves is leaving on Notre Dame and the financial development of the region.

What is hard to convey in an online search, or even in a sentimental tribute, is how he makes you feel. Should you have the good fortune to meet Dr. Affleck-Graves, you would indeed come away feeling blessed. He is one of those rare individuals who fully engages in the conversation at hand without regard to the status, title, or role of the person with whom he is speaking. Whether you are the president of the university or a little-known attendee at a breakfast.

 Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Anita S. Knudtson, Consultant/Owner of Experient Consultancy. We hope you enjoy Anita's wisdom and perspective.

Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger, Jim Gilkey, Director of Member Development at trueU. We hope you enjoy Jim’s wisdom and perspective.

I remember when my first employee quit. I was sitting in my office, a first-time branch manager at Enterprise Rent-a-Car, listening to a newly hired employee explain to me how he got an offer from “his dream job” and how he would be leaving me in two weeks. I told him, “no worries - sounds like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” and let him take the next two weeks out of the office to prepare for his next role.

I sat in my office for a while after he left. My head was spinning - a battle was raging inside me. One voice was trying to reassure me, explaining the logic of why this employee left (he is a millennial), telling me that I’d do the same if I were in his position (no one grows up dreaming of renting cars for a living). The other voice was not as sure.

Would that employee have quit if I was a better leader?

Accidents are preventable, predictable, and unacceptable. Heat illnesses are no exception – they are preventable. It is your responsibility as an employer to provide a workplace safe from excessive heat, as well as appropriately train your employees on understanding heat illnesses and how they can be prevented. 

“The only thing you have power over is to get good at what you do. That’s all there is; there ain’t no more!” – Sally Field

Even after four decades of writing and speaking on excellence, Tom Peters continues his impassioned plea on training with an entire chapter devoted to it in his most recent book The Excellence Dividend. He makes the point that you don’t achieve mastery during the game, while delivering the speech, or playing at the concert. Rather, “mastery is achieved only on the invisible preparation stage.”

As a performer, training should be your highlight, leaving the main event as an afterthought. When you think about it, success has essentially been decided before you even step on to the field or stage.

Writes Peters, “I find it interesting that many people I come across think they would make a great writer, actor, executive coach, seminar speaker, or even leader with little or no investment in training. Odd how they don't feel the same about neurosurgery, instrumentation design, and dentistry.”

Today we’re sharing insight from guest blogger Joe Calloway, author of “Keep It Simple,” “Magnetic,” and several other game-changing business books. We hope you enjoy Joe’s wisdom and perspective.

There are common threads woven through winning companies and top individual performers. There are also common threads woven through the mediocre and the struggling.

When I talk with people in companies that are not doing well, they will invariably tell me how complicated their business is, how different it is from other businesses, and that they “have a thousand things to do” each and every day.