Even if you don’t like the music (which is borderline inexcusable in my view) there is plenty here for those who care about hunger, debt relief, HIV/AIDS, and justice. Glimpsing behind the scenes in the halls of political and corporate power, as well as the dry fields and overwhelmed hospitals of the majority world, provides insights well worth the cost of the book.

The most popular Insights from LeadWithCatalyst.com this year have been:

A surprising number of remarkable people are open to being approached to do something different.

I’ve spent my whole career working with the charitable sector in several different ways. I care, a lot, about charities doing good work and doing so ethically.

Taking an hour to interrupt the busyness of rushing to the year end to realistically re-prioritize will give you the best chance of enjoying the season, finishing with confidence, and having some energy to begin a new year optimistically.

Many of our leadership examples come from past generations when men (and official leadership was all too often limited to only men) were expected to be stoic and strong. If any emotion was revealed it was most likely anger. The legacy of those expectations has more impact today than we may like to admit on leaders of all genders.

It’s good to invest in the development of your senior leaders individually. Higher education, conferences, courses, and coaches all have a place. But we rarely see enough return on investment from those things for the team.

“As a leader you need to take responsibility for not only what you say, but what other people hear”.

Recent conversations with leaders from two different organizations have involved helping figure out what to do when they see organizational issues they aren’t empowered to address. I bet you can relate.

Today’s charity leaders understand that the Lone Ranger, do it all executive style that was common in previous generations isn’t effective in the complex and ever-changing environment we lead in now.

And yet, the vast majority of leadership training is geared to individuals.

“Have you already decided that this person does not have a future with your organization?”

Many times there is a significant pause on the other end of the call.

Turns out bosses hate micromanaging almost as much as staff do.

So then, why does it happen so much?

The LeadWithCatalyst Executive Team Leadership Program commits your team to growth and development. Proven tools, custom design, and an expert facilitator ensure that your team, and organization, will be healthier than ever one year from now.

My experience on both sides of the lawyer-client relationship has taught me it is always best to seek at least preliminary advice early. “Penny wise pound foolish” is an operative phrase as is “pay me a little now, or a lot later.” As we all know, yet constantly need to be reminded, the outcome is rarely as bad as the fear that precedes it.

Many charity leaders and directors have experienced the fear of lawyers. For too many of us legal matters are always perceived as threatening and uncertain; and even the uncertainty of fees makes us hesitate before calling for advice.

Politicians and reporters may never agree on how questions should be asked and answered, but you and your team will be far better off if you agree to some clear mutual expectations.

But we need to start thinking about orange flags. When something is moving from a caution towards a crisis but hasn’t gotten there quite yet.