Best Articles

With so many articles and blogs on my site, I know it can be hard to know where to begin. This page compiles the best articles from our top categories to help you discover what calls to you. Enjoy! -Gregg

Browse by Category

Self Leadership

Why Leaders Can’t Be Loners

Early in my business career, I was a loner. I worked hard and was polite to others, but I never connected with colleagues. I never

On Spirituality and Leadership—Leading with Heart and Love

Article Summary: On the relationship between love, spirituality, and leadership—and leading with heart. The first in a three-part series on spirituality and leadership. + +

Why Do You Want to Lead?

Article Summary: Knowing why you want to lead is essential. If your motive to lead is selfish, you’ll fail. Your ego is a leadership toxin.

The Power of Small Groups—And How to Run Them

There is immense power in small groups. But not just any small group. We mean small groups that meet periodically to support each other at

Renewing Yourself Amidst the Chaos

Article Summary: Wise leaders take the time for self-care through a regimen of daily activities, sanctuary, and retreats. The benefits of personal renewal for leaders

Good Leaders Demonstrate Self-Control

Article Summary: Self-control can be learned and developed. Good leaders demonstrate self-control, mastering their impulses and emotions. +++ Self-control is our ability to manage our

Leadership Derailers

Author and Leadership Speakers Bob Vanourek and Greg Vanourek use a train that has run off the tracks to show how rationalizations can adversely affect leadership abilities.

Rationalizations that Derail Leadership

“The softest pillow is a clear conscience.” –Narayana Murthy, Co-founder and former CEO, Infosys Our ability to rationalize our behavior is astonishing. And dangerous. Basically,

Your Ego Is Not Your Amigo

Why do you want to lead? All too often, the answer has breadcrumbs back to ego. The drivers may be disguised in other terms such

Why Conflict Is Good–And How to Manage It

Most people avoid conflict. But that’s a mistake. Conflict is essential in high-performing teams but must be managed well. Here’s how.

What Are Your Leadership Derailers?

Here’s the thing: we all want to be better leaders. But too often we focus on what to do as leaders while neglecting what not to

The Problem with Tired Leaders

Are you tired? Stressed? Busy? Just par for the course for today’s leader, right? Wrong. These days, it seems that “busy is the new black.”

How Ego and Pride Derail Leaders

Article Summary: If you think you don’t have a problem with your ego, watch out. That’s when leaders are at the greatest risk of losing

Ethical Leadership

The 3 Questions Asked of Every Leader

Legendary football coach Lou Holtz, now retired and in the College Football Hall of Fame, had an uncanny ability to turn losing teams into winners.

The Importance of Credibility in Leadership

Credibility: the quality of being worthy of belief and trust Credibility, which flows from character and competence, is one of the most essential aspects of

Ethical Decision-Making: Simple Tests

When it comes to ethical challenges, we are all tested at some point. Leaders are tested most when they are under duress. Many leaders are

3 Things Ethical Leaders Ask and Say

As a leader, you’re probably under a lot of pressure: Hit your targets. Move faster. Motivate your team. Put out fires. Innovate. And all this

Ethical Challenges Across Industries—Implications for You

Some industries are ethically dirty, with widespread corruption, while others are clean. Most are somewhere in between. What are the signs of ethical challenges in

Business Ethics: How Are Today’s Companies Doing?

Since we’re living in a time of declining trust and confidence in organizations and institutions of all kinds, from Congress and the medical system to

Servant Leadership

How Robert Greenleaf Created Servant Leadership

Robert Greenleaf was the founder of the servant-leadership movement. But who was this self-effacing man? Why did Stephen R. Covey say, “… I have found

The Paradoxes of Servant Leadership

Leadership is rife with paradoxes, seemingly self-contradictory statements that may nonetheless be true. We see this in the servant leadership framework as well as other

The Essential Qualities of Servant Leadership

In the years since Robert Greenleaf first published his essay, “The Servant as Leader,” many notable authors and experts have built upon his work. As

Leaders, Do You Have Your People’s Backs?

Article Summary: Good leaders tell their people, “I’ve got your back”—and mean it. They make good on that promise. They protect their team, in the

Bucket Filler or Bucket Dipper?

Jack, Bob’s seven year-old grandson and Gregg’s nephew, came home from school recently talking about buckets. In this metaphor, we all carry invisible buckets holding

How to Become a Better Servant Leader

Decades ago, Robert Greenleaf articulated one of the most important leadership frameworks in history: “servant leadership.” Greenleaf described the essence of this counterintuitive approach here: “The servant

Building Culture

How to Change Your Organizational Culture

Most leaders understand that organizational culture is important. But many struggle with how to change and improve their culture. For too many leaders, culture is

The Four Types of People in Any Organization (Beware the Fourth)

I was co-captain of the soccer team and we were flailing. Things weren’t all bad. We had good players—some great—and were doing well in league

The Power of Dialogue for Leaders and Groups

Article Summary: Dialogue is a rarely used but potentially transformative gathering and communication process that can help groups tap into their collective wisdom, realize new

Why Leaders Should Create a Culture of Stewardship

One of the most powerful ideas we discovered in our research for our book, Triple Crown Leadership—including interviewing leaders in 61 organizations in 11 countries—is

Leadership authors and speakers, Bob and Gregg Vanourek, use this picture of business people in gas masks to show the idea of toxicity in the work place.

The Dangers of Toxic Micro-Cultures

Does your organization have some toxic micro-cultures? If so, you ignore them at your peril. Much is written these days about the importance of culture

17 Steps to a Thriving Ethical Culture

When it comes to promoting ethical behavior in your organization, it’s not just about your own actions. It’s about building an ethical culture in which

Developing People

Ditch Frozen Structures for Tiger Teams

The vast majority of organizations today have a traditional hierarchical structure.* They may be organized by function, division, geography, or some other variable, but they’re

Good Leaders Believe in People–And Show It

Do you believe that most people are basically good, want to do the right thing, and have inherent talents? Good leaders have that mindset. They

Great Questions Leaders Should Be Asking

Article Summary: Many leaders are too focused on providing answers and not enough on asking great questions. On the benefits of asking questions, plus great

How Great Leaders Reward, Recognize, and Celebrate People

“There are two things people want more than sex and money—recognition and praise.” -Mary Kay Ash, founder, Mary Kay Inc. It’s not enough to recruit

The Importance of Heart in Leadership

In “triple crown leadership,” our framework for how to build organizations that are excellent, ethical, and enduring, both head and heart are required for exceptional

Great Leaders Develop People Intentionally

Triple crown leaders—those who build excellent, ethical, and enduring organizations or teams—focus not just on recruiting great people but also developing them intentionally. They focus