Aviv’s Blog
To Lead is to Transform
A Glorious Passing
Moshe Domb was a special man. At 92 he was an emblem of the greatest generation—hard working, curious and honest—a man of integrity and honor. Whenever we visited Sara’s family I enjoyed the banter with Moshe. He was stubborn. A man of principles. He fought and got wounded twice when serving in the Jewish Brigade of the Russian Army during the Second World War. He...
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What Wakes You Up?
What wakes you up? Is it the alarm clock? Or are you awaken by the task you have taken, by the mission you serve, by a dream you are here to realize? Do you wake up by an opportunity or by fear? Remember days when you woke up with the excitement of what you will learn today? What adventure excites you when you wake up...
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Are You Wasting A Good Crisis?
Leaders not using this crisis to repurpose and reposition their organizations are wasting a good crisis. If you are preoccupied only on surviving these critical times, you are missing out on the opportunity to do something bigger, to play a bigger game. Strategic leadership is not about “how will we come out of this in six or nine months?” It is about, “how are we...
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Your “Born to Do” Gifts – The 13th Emerald Key
Excerpt from the CD – Your “Born to Do” Gifts The oracle of Delphi had written at the entrance “know thyself.” The message meant that by knowing and understanding your nature and the way you are made and work; by having insight to your patterns and inclinations you gain access to the greatest secrets of all. Understanding the workings of human nature and of self...
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“Are You Afraid Of The Work You Were Put Here To Do?”
Author Elizabeth Gilbert delivered a great TED talk, to challenge conventional paradigms about the nature of creativity. Here are a few questions to reflect on as you watch this: 1. Are you afraid of the work you were put here to do? 2. Do you have to suffer to find creativity? 3. What are the conditions you need and practices you use to enter the...
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Stretch Goals For 21st Century Management
Gary Hamel framed on HBR a list of 25 challenges for 21st century management strategies. Here is the comment I posted with suggested additional challenges: Thank you, Gary. This is a great list! The fulcrum of the 25 points is number 11. “Dramatically reduce the pull of the past.” May I suggest reframing the challenge to say – “Be ready to engage in a newly...
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In Hard Times, The Soft Stuff Is Crucial
You feel maxed out, stretched thin and overwhelmed. You are a leader and you feel you have no time and no energy for the soft stuff, especially now that the times are hard and uncertain. What’s the blind spot? The “soft” stuff becomes even more important in hard times. That’s the blind spot. More than ever, the right kind of soft stuff gets the most...
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Stop Extrapolating
To break the sonic speed you must first stop extrapolating. Here is what it looks like. Don’t get me wrong. Extrapolating can be helpful. You might be able to extrapolate the federal debt in 2012. Extrapolation helps the government calculate social security obligations in 2032. You may calculate the traffic expected on major freeway in 15 years to help you design the freeway systems and...
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The KEY: A Leadership Moment
This KEY unlocks the pivotal task of leaders and 15 practices that effective leaders carry out. Reflect on this Key and use it. Put the key to practice today. When you look at an issue, what “frame” do you use? The reality you perceive is shaped by your beliefs and assumptions. When you interact with another – a peer, an employee, the boss, your client,...
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Davos Reflections and Capitalism 4.0
The Davos webcasts tell a story. If the World Economic Forum is a gauge of the current global economic mindset, it tells us that decision makers are in “Stage two” and in part “stage three” of the five stages of grief – they are in the anger and blame phase and beginning the bargaining phase. The grief framework originally pioneered by Kübler-Ross includes Five Stages:...
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