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Go beyond assumptions and barriers in our pursuit of progress
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Go beyond assumptions and barriers in our pursuit of progress
Receive Paul’s latest leadership research, insights, and practical tools to lead smarter — directly to your inbox.
Even for professional speakers, stepping up to the mic can trigger crippling self-doubt and anxiety. From a surprise wedding speech to stage presentations, here are three grounding realities worth remembering whenever you’re asked to speak - and why authenticity always beats perfection.
What is the most important meeting you'll ever have? Whether you are launching a quick project or a major strategic initiative, the way you start determines the trajectory. Yet, the critical initial communication is being skipped by too many leaders under a warm blanket of socially acceptable excuses. Here is why protecting your Return on Effort (ROE) means making the start a complete non-negotiable.
Rules are for amateurs; principles are for pros.
After decades of facilitation for senior executives, I’ve found that truly exceptional leaders can answer four distinct questions without a single shred of hesitation or fuzziness. If your leaders are relying on high school techniques in pro-level rooms, they are likely just winging it. Discover the four core disciplines required to build a trusted, self-validating leadership team.
Ever had to give a team member feedback about their body odour? Or confront an overperforming staff member about their knobhead behaviour? Being a senior leader is a relentless pursuit. Here is the biggest lesson I learnt in my twenties about who is actually coming to save you when things get messy.
Earlier this year, I had a shaky moment: "Oh crap, my business is doomed." With tech bros screaming about AI taking over, I freaked out. Then I looked at the actual data. Here is why human leaders are still lightyears ahead of a microchip—and what you should actually focus on.
A closer look at leadership under pressure reveals a common pattern: the shift into scarcity thinking when control feels threatened. The piece explores how this affects decision-making and communication, and why disciplined, principle-led leadership is key to staying effective in volatile environments.
A recent leadership program revealed a common mistake in how we assess leaders: confusing charisma with genuine social strength. The experience highlighted why principle-driven leadership — not personality — is what builds trust, influence, and sound decision-making under pressure.
A hacked email domain exposed the difference between major tech support systems and small business customer service - highlighting how policy-driven responses versus human-led service impact trust, loyalty, and business outcomes.
Next week I will be taking a dozen leaders through a workshop where they will be forced (in the politest way) to think through their business plans and present their strategies in a powerful and engaging way.
Many are praised as strong leaders. But beneath the spectacle, we see leadership missteps that let players - and often employees - off the hook.
There are a few elements to dissect through an accountability lens.
Why would anyone donate time, money, and effort back to the entity we consume from? What fuels this extra effort in a time poor world? And, how does this translate to our businesses and teams at work?
It can't just be me.
Over the past month I have seen a worrying leadership pattern emerge with clients, colleagues, and friends…
To understand how Luke Donald captained the European Team to a historic win in New York a couple of weeks ago, we need to see how his leadership is steeped heavily following others…
The problem can get ugly. Especially when foreseeable trends are not acted upon.
Steven Sasson experienced this when he invented the digital camera in 1975 as a part of the R&D department at Kodak…
Last week, a Regional Manager (let’s call him RM) working for a construction company was working through a strategy to instil and uplift ownership into his team and frontline workers in one of my workshops.