I call it dog dumping. It’s when your grown children dump their pets on you while they take a vacation or a trip. 

They were taking a risk. They didn’t know these strangers, other than the connection of being friends of friends. Yet, they did it anyway.

Sometimes I think the young generation that is saturating our work force gets a bad rap.

The goal of many of those in the work force is to amass as much money as they can, as quickly as possible. They envision and pursue a financial portfolio that will allow them to retire at an early age.

Sometimes you find strong leadership right under your nose. My sister-in-law, Charlotte, has been leading for a long time. She is incredibly civic minded and has a heart for education among other things. She has been leading an uphill battle to begin a charter school in her city.

Recently, I had the opportunity to visit the Normandy region of France. It gave me a new perspective of what happened during the WWII freeing of France by the Allies. Specifically, we walked the Omaha and Utah beaches.

Kamal has been working for a large International Hotel conglomerate for over 22 years. His job is to provide transportation for the people who stay in the hotel.

They live in chronically cramped quarters where privacy is near non-existent. They work long hours with incredibly high expectations of performing with excellence over and over again.

"It is impossible to get it right all the time." This leader was describing a dilemma that her team was facing. She continued, "But we are better together than any one of us alone."

He had no idea. He thought things were good or at least on track. They were not. His team was frustrated, his peers annoyed and his clients were threatening to leave. 

It appears that the more a leader rises in prominence the less he or she is willing to listen to others.

We spend a lot of time as a country complaining and bemoaning what we don't have and very little time appreciating what we do.

Our choices define our character. My friend who is a CEO with many years of leadership experience shared a story he has recently observed.

I love to meet people who love what they are doing, even if they don't necessarily love what they do.Let me explain. I met Kendra at lunch at a downtown restaurant. I was there for a business lunch meeting and she was there to make ends meet.

Recently, I had the opportunity to meet with our Eagle Coaches for an onsite training day. This group is made up of experienced leaders and executives who are committed to using this season of their careers to coach and invest in the lives of leaders across the world.

Ask anyone. Literally. Ask anyone who is in a relationship of any kind. Ask the professional who is attempting to meet demands and create success. Ask the couple who have been married for 30 years, 20 years, 10 years or 2 years. They will all tell you the same thing.

I never knew Uncle Carl. He was a hero, like so many who have gone before us to sacrifice their lives for our freedom. He served his country during WWII and never came home. He left a father, mother and a host of siblings who mourned his death.

You would have thought that they were a losing team. The list of "things that are wrong" was much, much longer than the "things that are right". A leadership team was going through an extensive strategy offsite.

Meet Chad. He is a carpenter by trade but it's been tough lately. Chad has not always made the best choices and he is reaping the consequences of some of those decisions

It was a total fail. The message was completely wrong and the timing was awful. Those who were in the room when the event occurred knew immediately that this went directly against the mission of the organization.