Billionaire executive and leader Sheryl Sandberg is quoted as saying,

“Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence."

This quote seems to stand in contrast to the wisdom of the day that asserts that we can’t make people change. Of course, this is usually in reference to romantic relationships and not necessarily to business ones. However, I think we’re all aware that interpersonal conflicts with others are a primary source of strife in our lives.

We’re well into the first month of 2020 and I must say — never have I felt such optimism and apprehension towards the future all at once. For me, I prefer to focus on the things in my life that I can change rather than those that I can’t. The first thing I think of outside of my role as a partner with REI Nation is my health and fitness.

No matter what industry you’re in, there are power dynamics at play. It’s true of me, it’s true of you. Power dynamics — sometimes understood as workplace politics — are not always a bad thing. However, they can be unhealthy. After all, they’re the unspoken rules about communication and interaction in the workplace. 

In the past few decades, open office spaces have grown in popularity. Be it Google or Facebook, companies all over the world have been looking to tech giants and start-up pioneers for crafting the most effective workspaces.

As an entrepreneur and partner in my family’s real estate investment company, I’ve seen business done in different ways, good and bad, through the years. My own experiences in every job, every career, have taught me a lot about what it takes to succeed. It’s easy to look at me and see only the success and not the hard work that brought me to where I am now. (And make no mistake — I’m still working hard!)

At first glance, it is easy to mistake a leader for a manager and vice versa. There’s no doubt that the two roles share similarities. Both are “above” others in that they provide guidance, direction, and oversight. Managers can become leaders but the point at which they bridge the gap can be fuzzy and difficult to navigate.

Most of us, at some time or another in our lives, had big ambitions. Maybe you’re remembering being a fresh-faced college student with dreams of fancy degrees and big earnings. You might think about that big promotion and living in a beautiful house. I think we often confuse ambitions with dreams. Ambitions are the things we set out to accomplish — we make moves and game plans and strive. Dreams are those things we would like, but we either never pursue or never make real plans to get there.

It’s that time of year again. While we’re still feeling the warm glow of the holiday spirit and ringing in not just a new year but a new decade, new year’s resolutions will be more ambitious than ever. It’s almost a joke now to talk about resolutions, knowing that in a few week’s time we’ll be right back to our old habits. We fail to see the possibility of our own success, believing that we’re set up for failure every time.

Running doesn’t seem like a winter sport, does it? When it’s cold and blustery, it’s not attractive. It gets dark early. It doesn’t feel right! You should be inside sipping on hot cocoa, not braving the elements. As an avid endurance runner, I enjoy running just about year-round. It can get tough during these humid Tennessee summers, but generally speaking, I see it as an all-year event.

As we live in a capitalist society, there is often an assumed correlation between success and making lots and lots of money. I think we all know, however, that wealth doesn’t fix everything. While we all strive for financial security, there are some things in life that are more valuable than profit. If we wish to be the best employees, entrepreneurs, and executives out there, we have to recognize what is and is not worth it to us in the pursuit of success.

Communication is one of the best tools we have as professionals. Few of us, however, know how to communicate effectively — particularly where feedback is concerned. What is it that makes giving feedback so difficult? Even if we’re comfortable dispensing criticism, it isn’t always well-received.

Thanksgiving is barely passed and I already feel as though I’m overwhelmed by a slew of decadent treats and warm, fattening meals around the dinner table. As much as we want to eat healthily, the holidays bring out all of the temptations that can disrupt your stomach and your progress towards a goal weight. 

Reputation builds influence. The better our reputation, the more sway (and respect) we will have. In leadership, a solid reputation is absolutely essential. Building a reputation starts when you’re hired, but it will always follow you whether you change careers or rise to the top. Building a reputation doesn’t happen on its own, either. For us to shape a good reputation in the workplace and in leadership, it takes conscious, consistent effort.

The idea of hating our jobs is ingrained in our culture. Only recently has the tide shifted to encourage people to do what they’re “passionate” about (though I would argue that passion isn’t enough). We still live in a “working for the weekend” world that dreads Mondays, sees the workweek as a slog, and can’t wait for five o’clock on Friday.

The statistics around childhood obesity are not encouraging. When we look at the statistics provided by the CDC, we see that obesity affects some 13.7 million children between 2 and 19. That’s over 18 percent of American children and teens. Even when we’re not talking about obesity, the food choices we make for our children impacts more than weight. The consumption of junk food and fast food lead to attention and focus issues, mental illness (including depression), as well as the risk for long-term illnesses and obesity.

Back in college, I had a friend who got fit through running. He got in great shape, but I noticed he was eating meals sized for a linebacker. He wasn’t a big guy — and when asked, he’d bring up how great his metabolism was because he was a runner. That he could eat anything he wanted to and burn it off fast. 

Whenever I think of wasting time at work, I picture time spent idle — lingering at the coffee pot, checking social media, or having prolonged discussions with coworkers. Our time-wasters aren’t always obvious, though. I think it’s easy to target habits of procrastination. What is harder to pinpoint and correct are our internal habits that waste time and stunt our careers.

Listen. I like my job. I do! I get to do some awesome things, whether it’s working with my Memphis Invest family or pursuing my own entrepreneurial ventures. Because of this, I have to be critical of my habits. I can fall into a workaholic lifestyle if I’m not careful!

I’m passionate about leadership. It’s one of the primary topics I write about on this blog. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about leading from the top, leading in a managerial position, or leading to inspire others. Regardless of the type of leadership, I really do love all of the ins-and-outs of leadership.

According to Psychology Today, emotions will drive our decision-making whether we like it or not. As inherently emotional creatures, it’s impossible to separate feelings from our decisions. The difference between making good and bad emotion-driven decisions is our ability to interpret and understand the emotions that drive us.