I was brought in to work with a team that was experiencing significant conflict. They were truly at each other's throats. The conflict had gotten so personal, that members of one faction managed to get a member of the other faction fired by taking something he said out of context. Everyone on the team said the problem was personality differences, or cultural differences between two factions on the team. As humans, we tend to personalize conflict - seeing the people as the source of the conflict. This view gets in the way of seeing the real problem, and being able to solve it. From my training in organizations and groups, I thought there might be other dynamics at play. When I dug into the situation, it turned out that there were structural issues at play. Roles and expectations on the team weren't clear. The distribution of authority wasn't clear. This lack of clarity was driving a lot of the conflict. Once we cleared up the roles, expectations and decision-making authority on the team, much of the conflict went away. The group began to work together much more effectively - eventually going on to earn national recognition for their work.

Early experiences can have profound impact on our future selves. In my case, my interest in leadership goes back to when I was just 12 years old. My dad took a new job as Sales Manager for a business owner named Harry, who knew exactly how to make the most of his talents. Before that, Dad had seemed a little stuck. From what I could see, it looked like his superiors weren’t very interested in his opinions, his job satisfaction, or his long-term growth. But Harry was different. He knew how to tap into what was great about my dad.

This job changed Dad’s life. He came alive at work. In doing so, he made major differences for the company, doubling their revenues within just a few years. It also made a huge difference for me. Dad was much more present at home. He had more energy and enthusiasm than I had ever seen before. Harry seemed to inspire that same energy in most of the people working for him. His support helped my dad take his career to the next level and to create a team of people who were committed to and proud of their work.

I thought that was absolutely fascinating and it sparked a deep curiosity in me about the art and skill of leadership. I yearned to know exactly how someone could build that sense of team and engender such loyalty and commitment to quality work. From then on, I devoted my life to learning what it takes, and then guiding leaders to inspire the very best performance in themselves and their team members.