Learning for Learning’s Sake

It took more energy than I had anticipated and when it was over all I wanted to do was lay down and take a nap.

No, it wasn‘t the workout at the gym I should have been doing. Instead it was delivering a guest lecture for a class of first year university students studying leadership. While it might have been there, they definitely didn’t exude much energy or excitement about learning. I found myself practically tap dancing to keep them focused and resorted to sharing more stories than theory and asking questions just to keep them engaged.

It was… More Posted on 03-28-10

Messing with the Lyrics

It’s safe to say Stephen Harper and his team didn’t quite anticipate the brouhaha that greeted their recent speech from the throne promising to “examine the original gender-neutral English wording of the national anthem.’’

It’s no secret that the majority of Canadians were adamantly opposed to messing with lyrics such as “all thy sons command”. And, while I know I’m rowing upstream on this one and it makes me nervous to put it in writing, I have to admit I’m siding with Harper in thinking it might have been a good idea. After all, there is tremendous power in… More Posted on 03-14-10

A Perfect Example of Imperfect Leadership

It was a perfect example of imperfect leadership. It was also an example of a leader having the courage to stand up and publicly admit a mistake.

This week I was part of a townhall meeting designed to help grow the community by engaging a cross section of stakeholders. As a result of the discussion, it became apparent the town was poised on a precipice. In many ways a bedroom community for a nearby larger municipality, the town had the advantage of proximity to amenities but lacked a clear understanding of what made them unique and authentic. Because they… More Posted on 03-06-10