A Curator of Strategy, Leadership, Spirituality, and Rock and Roll…. "Changing the world…one "contact" at a time…."
By J William DeMarco "Integrity is the basis of trust, which is not so much an ingredient of leaderships as it is a product. It is the one quality that cannot be acquired but must be earned. It is given by co-workers, and without it a leader cannot function." - Warren Bennis Those who I …
Many know—I have issues. I was asked to “talk about AUiX” at a local event here in Montgomery AL and of course I said yes. I was later informed this was an IGNITE event and there were “rules.” IGNITE talks are 5 minutes with 20 slides set on a timer. What could possibly go wrong? …
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-J. William DeMarco “In a time of deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” —George Orwell How many of us use the term 3rd rail or 5th column with no concept of the definition or history? I did, but after some research it appears to be a truly impactful leader, we need to attack …
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Cool opportunity a few months back to talk with Mark Klingsheim on his podcast Motivated to Leadhttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/william-bill-demarco-chief-of-innovation-air-university/id1454443278?i=1000558965112 Possibly even more cool… check out some of the other folks you might know on the podcast: Jeff DeGraff: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jeff-degraff-the-innovation-code/id1454443278?i=1000558310902 Lt Gen Steven Kwast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-148-steven-kwast-lt-gen-ret-president-genesis/id1454443278?i=1000560759115 Rashim McKinney : https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rashim-mckinney-president-gibraltar-solutions-development/id1454443278?i=1000581044441 Mark is an amazing host—please go to his website …
“It’s not about standing still and becoming safe. If anybody wants to keep creating they have to be about change.” - Miles Davis Many people probably do not initially see the parallels between the rock industry and the American military, and in fact, one might think they have been at odds with each other for …
Several years ago, the family invaded the Epcot Center. We all fell silent as we entered the park and fell upon a new feature, giant slabs of black granite all over – tons and tons of granite – and a big sign that says “Leave Your Legacy”. For a fee, a Disney cast member will take …
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There is a great deal of conversation around the concept of bold and innovative leaders as of late. To be truly bold and innovative requires a leader to take risk, and risk requires courage. So, how brave are you? How brave is your organization? Will it tolerate risk? Will it tolerate our potential failure? This is …
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I’ve been spending the last few years reading some of the classic philosophers. One I keep coming back to is Machiavelli. Over the next few weeks we will dive into the works of Machiavelli from a DeMarconian angle. We all know—context matters. Given the context of Machiavelli’s writings—is it possible he is a bit misunderstood? …
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By J. William DeMarco In speaking with a colleague the other day regarding gaining traction with new innovative ideas in large organizations we quickly devolved into a history lesson. Selling ideas is indeed an art form, especially when senior leadership might be more concerned with survival vice improving the organization. As we discussed the concepts, …
Many people confuse good leadership with effective leadership, but a contrarian leader knows there is a huge difference between the two. Hitler was an extraordinarily effective leader, but few would refer to him a good leader. I came across some interesting thoughts on good vs. effective leadership and moral codes as I read through The …
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