Author: Doug Brown

Today’s BBTL book entry highlights the very real and constant balancing act of being a leader.  Do I give her more direction or give her more space?  Am I smothering of coddling?  Should I invite or demand?  Push or pull?  Be tender or tough?  Or, as we discovered yesterday, BOTH?  “Leaders,” as Chet observes, “have to find the … Continue reading Day 222 – Loners to owners…

In today’s BBTL book entry, Chet spoke of his need to “flip the script”  in order to suit his approach to the needs of his client.  As he put it, “A leader is not judged by how much he or she knows, but by how much the team learns.”  And the team learns most if the leader is willing and able … Continue reading Day 221 – Good Will…

This one hits so close to home it has me trembling as I type. Truly.  It’s been well over a decade, yet you would still hear my voice cracking if I were telling you this in person.  I’m bound not to reveal details, but they’re not really necessary.  So, here it is…short and sweet…and vague. Person goes BIG time Benedict.  I find out.  I freeze in stunned … Continue reading Day 220 – Sabotage…

Picking up on Chet’s reference to the book Atomic Habits, author James Clear observes that, “Everybody wants a transformation.  Everybody wants radical change or success.  But many people think they lack motivation when what they really lack is clarity.  We think we need to get more motivated; that we need more willpower in order to execute.  ‘If I … Continue reading Day 219 – Study, learn, apply…

If you’ve been following this Blog closely and/or keeping up in the BBTL book, you’ll recognize this is not the first entry titled, “Hard on self…”.  In reality, nearly every entry could carry a “Hard on self” subheading, as becoming BTL very often involves a long, hard look in the mirror.  As Kouzes & Posner wrote in their bestseller, The Leadership … Continue reading Day 218 – Hard on self…

“Listen better” is one of the key melody lines that run all through the BTL process.  It’s also one that grabs me, shakes me, and makes me a bit uneasy.  Because it’s one of my greatest challenges.  I try.  I know I can try harder.  Still, my mind races ahead, trying to connect the dots quickly, instead of letting the … Continue reading Day 217 – All ears…

Joey Bosa does it in L.A.   Brother, Nick, in San Francisco.  If you’re a Browns fan, you watch Myles Garrett do it in Cleveland. And in 1985, when the Chicago Bears began rolling their strong side linebacker to defensive end, nobody did it with the ferocity of Wilbur Marshall.  And by “it” I mean set the … Continue reading Day 216 – Setting the edge…

My third day on the blog is day 215 in the BBTL book and this one hit me right between the eyes, again.  I’ve played three exceptionally great and difficult golf courses this summer.  All three days, I played some of my best golf of the year.  Late in the most recent of these better-than-usual rounds, a buddy … Continue reading Day 215 – Attention…