A Curator of Strategy, Leadership, Spirituality, and Rock and Roll…. "Changing the world…one "contact" at a time…."
I consider myself fortunate—twice a year I get to return to the town of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. Walking the streets in Cambridge is always a treat and there is nothing better than grabbing a cappuccino at Nero’s Coffee right across the street from King’s College and just pondering all the historical figures that …
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? …
Continue reading "Machiavellian Leadership and Knowing Yourself to Lead Yourself: DeMarco Banter"
Saw the Stranglers in Cambridge summer 2011...and I've always loved the> song; No More Heroes... and I wonder, are we there? I ponder the hero ... Someone that triumphs over adversity and evil... I'm not so sure about the Stranglers' choice of heroes...Leon Trotsky, Lenny Bruce, Elmyr de Hory, but--Sancho Panza was a pretty cool …
For some strange reason, the letter “C” offers the solution to so many problems. A good while ago, we wrote a piece on solving the issues of crisis, complexity, and confusion through communication, collaboration, and creative thinking. “C” also offers concepts in leadership as well. There is this unhealthy cycle that can develop in leaders …
Continue reading "The Leadership Power of the Seven “Cs”: DeMarco Banter"
Life is a dance— you know the song: “Life's a dance you learn as you go... Sometimes you lead, sometimes you follow Don't worry about what you don't know Life's a dance you learn as you go… That’s cute. Do you believe it? I know dancing is a popular metaphor for life, and I am …
Continue reading "Life’s A Dance…until you get punched in the face: DeMarco Banter"
-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 …
Continue reading "Third Rail and Fifth Column Leadership: A Contrarian’s Thought"
Those of you who know me know I tend to obsess about vision--perhaps too much? As we change jobs and move positions--I don't know about you, but I tend to look back and take stock in what went right and what could have gone better. I definitely do an internal inventory, but I also look …
Continue reading "Inventory, Vision, Leadership, and the 49ers: DeMarco Banter"
Empire, leadership development, innovation, creativity, and warfare. Maybe I worry about it too much, but when we look at the history of the world it seems the decline of empire is usually due to a decline in leadership and leadership development. Perhaps a decline in the strong advocacy of stellar leadership and bold ideas and …
“For I believe a good king is from the outset and by necessity a philosopher, and the philosopher is from the outset a kingly person.” —MUSONIUS RUFUS, LECTURES, 8.33.32–34 Should a leader be a philosopher? According to Plato, a philosopher king is a leader who possesses both a love of knowledge, as well as intelligence, reliability, and a …
Continue reading "Leadership and the Philosopher: A neo-DeMarconian Thought"
Delegation (or passing down) is the partnership of authority and responsibility to another person (normally from a manager to a subordinate) to carry out specific activities. It is one of the core concepts of leadership. However the person who delegated the work remains accountable for the outcome of the delegated work. Delegation empowers a subordinate …
Continue reading "Delegation…What is it good for? Absolutely everything: DeMarco Banter"
