Life-Giving Cultures with Dave Katz
Tim Elmore interviews President and COO of Coca-Cola Bottling Company, Dave Katz. Tim and Dave talk about the components of a healthy life-giving culture, the importance of core values and how to best apply these in your own work environments. Dave Katz is one of the featured speakers for our 2019 RoundTable for Principals in Atlanta, Ga June 20-21. For
Unstoppable Cultures with Ginger Hardage
Tim Elmore interviews Ginger Hardage, the former Senior Vice President of Culture and Communications at Southwest Airlines who has now launched Unstoppable Cultures, a brand designed to help organizations create and sustain cultures of enduring greatness. On this episode, Ginger shares the core values of Southwest Airlines, stories of her culture experience and practical ways to cultivate a healthy culture
Gen Z Slang Terms You Should Know
Do you know the slang terms of this generation? Parents, teachers, coaches, and employers usually don’t need to worry about the new slang terms that students invent and use. It's something that comes with every generation of kids. However, there's one caveat. Some terms can have harmful or double meaning that adults should be aware of. So, what do we
Gender Confusion in our Kids
I am blogging all week about the best questions I received last Saturday when I spoke at a parenting conference at Northridge Church, just outside of Detroit. It was a great day of dialogue and the parents were full of insightful questions. Here is another below. Question: "It seems like I am running into more and more tweens and teens who
Are Video Games Bad?
Last Saturday, I was hosted by Northridge Church who held an incredible parenting conference for 550 parents in the Plymouth, Michigan community. I had a blast, hanging out with such engaged moms and dads who want to lead their kids well. This week, I am blogging about the most common questions I was asked that day. Today’s is a big
Youth Revolutions: We’ve Only Seen the Beginning
The revolts and protests we’re hearing about every day in the news have a few ingredients in common. Have you noticed them? - They are led by a swelling population of young adults. - They occur when youth have too much time on their hands. - They happen when established leaders don’t know how to lead them. “Young people without jobs, young people who
Generation Y: What Are They Thinking (Part 4 of 4)
All week, I’ve been blogging about what Generation Y is thinking. Today, I want to wrestle with a paradoxical reality they face every week: their obsession with both authenticity and appearance. Stop and think for a moment. Few would argue that teens today value authenticity. They want to “keep it real.” They love genuine, earthy stories, food, language and entertainment. (Note
Generation Y: What Are They Thinking? (Part 3 of 4)
This week, I’m blogging about what Generation Y is thinking. While no generation wants to be profiled or put in a box, this student generation thinks so much alike when it comes to social issues. You can tell they’re a connected generation, from California to Singapore. Today—I want to talk about a paradoxical reality among Gen Y. While they continue to
Generation Y: What Are They Thinking? (Part 1 of 4)
The rest of this week, I plan to blog about what’s on the mind of young adults today, the ones from Generation Y (born 1984-2002). In addition to our research with college students, Pew Research and Barna Reports have given us the latest read on this emerging generation and their affect on our culture. If you’re a parent, teacher, coach
Never Lose Your Humanity to Technology
Here’s a sad story. In Manchester, England, a man was accused of killing his neighbor after a miscommunication triggered by the auto correct spelling feature on the man's cell phone. It sounds crazy. It all started when the defendant, 33-year Neil Brook claims he was texting his friend Josef Witkowski. Brook says the auto correct on his cell phone changed the word
The Case Against Screens for Teens and Children
Michelle Obama has launched a crusade against obesity in children in the U.S. It’s a noble cause. May I dig a bit deeper and share one “obese reason” why young people struggle with this problem?
What Shaped the World We Live in Today…
I had an interesting hour at Starbucks the other week with my friend, Derwood Snead. In the midst of our conversation, I had an epiphany. When we stop and think about the events that have shaped our world today -- we see defining moments took place at least once a decade. Consider the following: 1979 – Step one. Iran was in the
A Homogeneous World
This is a second blog post in a series of six on how we must understand and diagnose the world of the emerging generation, if we’re going to lead them well. Below is a second word I’ve chosen to define one of the challenges they face that we’ll need to help resolve. 2. Their world is homogeneous. My research tells me
An Artificial World
As you can see, my goal for these blog posts is to lead the next generation well. I want desperately to do that. If you share my passion for this goal, go with me on a journey over the next six Mondays, where we’ll attempt to understand the world in which this emerging generation (Generation Y) has grown up in,
Leading the Next Generation Well: Over-Served
We are in the age of the “Wanted Child.” Sixty years ago, Dr. Benjamin Spock told parents to allow kids to express themselves and build a strong self-esteem. Today, we have taken this to an extreme. These kids most assuredly have developed a strong self-esteem. According to a nationwide high school survey, over 80% believe they are very important people.
What Scares Me Most About Leaders and Followers Today
Over the last two years, "we the people" of the United States have become "up on arms" over the scandals on Wall Street. Bernie Madoff and Allen Stanford swindled -- not millions -- but billions of dollars from folks who trusted them. On top of that, Americans scoffed at the bailout dollars given to automakers like Chrysler and GM. And
Building a Model Organization
On Sunday, I had an incredible time with the Kansas City Royals front office staff, managers and coaches, and of course, the players. The Royals and Growing Leaders have partnered up to offer character-based leadership training to their minor league players across the country. Three of our team members, Jeremy Slayden, Holly Moore and myself spent time with them
A Team of Leaders
I spent my entire day yesterday with two of our team members at Growing Leaders in Surprise, Arizona. Jeremy Slayden, Holly Moore and I were back at spring training with the Kansas City Royals, for the third season. They are taking their minor league players through the third round of “Habitudes For Athletes.” Dayton Moore, the General Manager of the Royals,
Leadership and a Painful Economy
Finally, we receive some good news about the U.S. economy. In 2009, U.S. credit card spending dropped to its lowest in 30 years. In addition, the number of individuals in America who are saving money rose to its highest level in 15 years. We finally listened to financial counselors who’ve told us for years we need to stop using so
How We Changed in the First Decade of the 21st Century
It sounds cliché, but I can’t believe we’ve already finished the first decade of the 21st century. Do you remember how it all began? It was something called Y2K. We feared losing everything as the clock struck midnight entering the first day of 2000. Millions suspected that computers would shut down and all power would be suspended. Needless to say, it
Doing Life Well
Just got off a plane in California for the holidays. During the flight, I watched a movie I had wanted to see for months. It was called: Post Graduate. It’s about a recent college graduate who’s navigating her way through the early months following her graduation into the real world. It’s a dilemma so many young adults are facing right
Quiet Giants and Unsung Heroes
Captain Kangaroo passed away on January 23, 2004 at age 76. This is a bit odd to me because, frankly, he always looked to be 76, when I watched him on TV as a kid. He always came across as this meek, gentle guy who found his niche with kids. Flipping through channels on my TV remote recently, I saw
Growing Leaders in Asia
Whew! Just returned from a whirlwind week in Singapore. I don’t know if you’ve ever been to this beautiful nation—but it is unforgettable. Clean, colorful, manicured…and full of young leaders. The population is made up of mostly Chinese and Malaysian descent, with a million ex-patriots living among them. These people are hospitable and respectful and mix well with Western culture.
The Best Man for the Job… May be a Woman
Well the numbers are in nationwide. The majority of working Americans are female. The percentage is 51% today and it is climbing. Swiftly. It isn’t hard to see why. The majority of college graduates today are women. Seventy years ago, females made up only 30% of the university population. Today, they make up 60-70%. Women will be more prepared for good jobs
Political Leadership
I rarely write about government and politics because it is such a divisive subject. Today, however, I am going out on a limb. I'm writing about political leadership. You should know, my goal is not to side with democrats or republicans. It is to comment on the leadership of our elected government officials. After watching the news today, I'm convinced the
Bethany’s Rite of Passage
It seems everywhere I go, I run into parents who ask how my wife and I pulled off the “Rite of Passage” for our son and daughter, when they turned thirteen years old. As you know, in many cultures worldwide, adolescents experience a ceremony when they turn twelve or thirteen years old. It is a sort of passage from childhood to
From Illusion to Disillusion
What a difference five years makes. When social scientists began assessing Generation Y (The Millennials born between 1984-2002), their prospects were bright. We began reading about them a decade ago, when authors Howe and Strauss touted their confident attitudes, self-esteem and optimism. Jobs were readily available as commerce was still booming for the most part. Today—not so much. Our nation is in
Too Much Too Soon
I am asking a question more and more these days. I wonder if American’s have overlooked a counter-intuitive idea as we educate our kids. Generally, speaking, we believe that “more” is better. We believe that faster is better. We believe that sooner is better. We want to provide more for our children and we want to do it right away.
Drivers and Passengers
One of my favorite “Habitudes” is found in Book One of our series. It is called “Drivers and Passengers.” It’s simply a fresh way to communicate a growing issue in our culture today. Consider this. People get into a car with different perspectives, based on whether they are driving the car, or merely a passenger on the trip. If you are
A Crash Course in Understanding Generation Y
I know, I know. One minute you think you’ve figure out this new generation of kids and the next, you feel you’re on a learning curve again. I get to spend a lot of time with university students these days and I’m amazed at one thing. The world they live in has produced a generational mindset—a shared paradigm—if you will. Need
Groom the Gift, Tame the Tude
I love working with students. I believe in this next generation of kids--the ones born between 1984 and 2002. Whatever you choose to call them, Millennials, Generation Y, the Digital Generation, their sheer size and demographic are destined to transform our culture, as they become adults. Social scientists believe they will be the largest generation in American history, somewhere between
Culture, Influence and Michael Jackson
It's hard to believe Michael Jackson is gone. It's all we heard about this week. His songs are played on the radio, his biography is told on news programs and he's being emulated in karaoke bars around the world. I grew up with Michael Jackson. That is to say--I didn't know him but we are about the same age. I was
I Just Twittered…
I can't believe it. I just did something that two years ago I said I would never do. I twittered. Yep. I got my son, Jonathan, to help me set up an account and I twittered. Believe it or not, the first twitter I replied to, at his request, was actor Hugh Jackman. He was having a little contest and
The Trouble with Boys…
I've been thinking lately. The more I travel and teach students, the more I can see that the way males learn is just different than females. Now, don't get me wrong. Both genders are growing up today in a new day, impacted by iTunes, iPhones, iMovies, iChat, iPods, etc. All young people seem to be permanently connected to each no matter
I’m Curious to Get Your Feedback to a Question…
I have been musing over a question posed to me today by an attorney in California. I want to pose the question to you and get your response to it. I am desperately curious to read what you have to say. As you consider young people today (Generation Y), you would likely agree there are both good and bad qualities they