Have you ever had a coach, teacher, or mentor in your formative years who pushed you to be more than you thought you could become on your own? If so, you’ll strongly appreciate this month’s leadership profile featuring my high school football coach, Dick Burton – even if you’ve never been an athlete.
Tag Archives: leadership profile
Leadership Profile: Truett Cathy
I grew up in the midwest and didn’t get to experience a Chick-fil-A sandwich until I enrolled in college in Tennessee. Boy was I in for a surprise. Not only was the sandwich (and fresh squeezed lemonade!) amazing, but people were thoughtful and caring. My senior year, I was assigned to research how Chick-fil-A influenced people in positives ways. I decided it wouldn’t hurt to see if my team could interview the founder of the company, so I made a quick phone call. Believe it or not, Truett Cathy agreed.
What we learned on our trip still influences how I think about leadership. But for now, I’d like to share a few notes about the man who invented the original chicken sandwich.
Leadership Profile: Stephen Covey
In case you hadn’t heard, author and leadership guru Stephen Covey passed away last summer at age 79 from injuries suffered in a bicycling accident. Covey is perhaps best known for his book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which has sold over 25 million copies worldwide. It’s the second-best book on leadership I’ve ever read (neck and neck with Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People).
There isn’t room to adequately capture Covey’s contributions in a single post, so I’d like to briefly share a bit from Covey’s first habit: Be Proactive. This is where effectiveness begins.