Econ Recon: The Week We’ve Been Waiting For
The Week We’ve Been Waiting For: The only event more anxiously awaited than the outcome of this year’s presidential election may be the Fed’s long-awaited call on interest rate reductions. The Fed aggressively dropped its Fed Funds rate 50 basis points. This action reflects both confidence about taming inflation and concern about assuring that economy does not […]
“Bonusing Toxicity”
Most CEOs have worked with or supervised a “diva” (women) or “divo” (men): someone who performs at a high level but whose toxic behavior makes them untrusted by their peers or subordinates. Simon Sinek in his book “Leaders Eat Last” discusses what he learned about the “trust versus performance trade-off” from one of the highest performing […]
Tupperware, RIP?
A 1950s Tupperware Party….A Tupperware Display A common saying in Vistage groups is that the second worst thing that can happen to a company is success…because success can be seductive. Once achieved, leaders may convince themselves that it’s like a rock; more or less permanent. A better metaphor is ice; solid but slippery if you’re not careful and […]
22 Ridiculous Myths
C-Level people (to whom the missive is targeted) are usually the least tech savvy people in the organization either due to age or a choice to focus on getting good on something else the business need. IT has so deeply penetrated our lives that a fertile breeding ground for falsehoods about our tech lives grows bigger […]
The “Least Dead Founding Father”
Author Eric Weiner thinks you don’t really know a man whom some have called “the first American:” Benjamin Franklin. If you’ve got 13 minutes, Mr. Weiner would like to reintroduce you to man whom he calls “the least dead” of the Founding Fathers” whom most of us know only through bite size anecdotes because we’re not going to […]
“Top Gun” Accountability
The next Vistage CEO Climb Event is this Friday, September 27 at 10 a.m. CDT. I hope you’ll join Air Force Lt. Col .Robert “Shark” Garland;, former CEO of the US Airforce Weapons School for a 90-minute introduction to “Mastering Accountability: The Military’s Secret to High Performing Teams.” Lt. Col. Garland is also a highly rated […]
Best Blogs
I resource material for your “edification, enlightenment, and enjoyment” from many sources. I will continue to provide specific recommendations as above for the content I think is worthwhile. But if you don’t find anything to your liking above, check out this list of the best (in my opinion) blogs, websites etc. for the C-Level Executive from proven […]
Econ Recon:
“Slower Fast”: Despite slowing inflation, booming stock market and recently upwardly revised GDP, economic Brian Wesbury is less sanguine that these metrics might suggest. Check out why he thinks the US economy may be slowing down faster than most investors think. “There’s a lot going on”: according to ITR Economics’ Brian Beaulieu and he’ll explain […]
A Business Six Pack
There are two aphorisms about history that I have found compelling. First, a quote attributed to Mark Twain that “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it rhymes;” and Harry Truman’s observation the “There is nothing new in the world except the history you do not know.” I think you’ll find these Six Very Short Stories about Business History […]
Civics Lesson: “The Nostradamus of Elections”
Dr. Alan LichtmanProfessor of History, American University Note: As with last week’s issue, between now and November 5, I will be sharing articles that I hope will be of interest to any C-Level executive about the election, and I do so without any intention to support any party or candidate but to share some aspects of the race […]