Tag: Stephen Covey

Breaking Out of Your Personal Perception Prison

By Peter Jeff
The Leadership Mints Guy

Here’s an idea to help you become more aware of your surroundings.

One night at sea, a ship’s captain saw what looked like the lights of another ship heading toward him on a collision course. He had his signalman blink to the other ship: “Change your course 10 degrees south.” The reply came back, “Change YOUR course 10 degrees north.”

The ship’s captain answered, “I’m a full captain – change your course south.” To which the reply was, “Well, I’m a seaman first class – change your course north.”

This infuriated the captain, so he signaled back, “Dammit, I say change your course south. I’m on a battleship.”To which the reply came, “And I say change your course north. I’m in a lighthouse.”

That’s how then Senator Joe Biden told the Battleship vs. Lighthouse story in a 2005 speech. Continue reading “Breaking Out of Your Personal Perception Prison” →

Conflict Management : Throw ’em a LIFE line

By Peter Jeff
The Leadership Mint Guy

Here’s an idea to get your proposals approved in a negative environment.

“I don’t like it one bit,” groused the president after reviewing a proposed policy from one of his vice presidents. The vice president stood firm as the president shot his proposal down like a gunslinger in those old Western movies in a duel at high noon. The vice president fired back but his bullets of information seemed to bounce harmlessly off the president. The vice president left the office depressed and dejected. The president felt misunderstood and abandoned. Nerves fried. Egos frayed.

Resolving conflict in the executive suite is modus operandi. As leaders we know that we are supposed to first seek to understand then to be understood as Stephen Covey conveys so well in his Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. But you and I both know that resolving conflict is easier said than done.

We jab and jaw to get our ideas heard, understood and acted upon, yet too often our ideas are dead on arrival. Here’s a way to pump LIFE in to those proposals . LIFE is an acrostic for: Listen, Investigate, Feel, and Explore. Continue reading “Conflict Management : Throw ’em a LIFE line” →