Write Queen Takes a Trip

As I told you in a previous newsletter Jason is a wonderful tour guide. Let me tell you about the last "tour".

Normally we take our sightseeing after church on Sunday. This time, however, Jason and Jennifer had business in Guntersville that had to be taken care of on a weekday. Saturday morning we piled into the car, and headed for Guntersville, which is one of the originally settled areas in Alabama and is surrounded by lakes.

The business didn't take long and we headed up the steep hill out of town to have lunch at a place called O'Charley's. If you're ever in Guntersville you absolutely must try O'Charley's potato soup. It is to die for.

After eating we started our "tour" which was to include Guntersville State Park. Pennsylvania is my native state, and hills and trees remind me of home. Even though I lived in Florida for 23 years if you wanted to see hills and woods you had to travel north, way north.

We probably traveled 30 minutes before we came to our destination, but what a destination it was. We stayed at the lower levels where there were scads of people. We stopped often so Jennifer and Linda could take pictures which I hope to put a selection on my computer so if I can learn from Jennifer how to send them, and if I can learn, watch a future article to contain them.

After a complete tour through the parks, going only five or ten miles an hour because of the large amount of children, we headed up the mountain where we saw some beautiful homes with eye-popping views and those for sale had mind-boggling prices â€" for example $1,500,000 and another one for $672,000.

We admired them, kept on going, passing an under-construction lodge which will house a 5 star restaurant. All of a sudden we were to a look-out point where we stopped for more picture taking.

We went still higher where there were rental abodes. I can't call them cottages and I most definitely would not call them camps. They would, in my mind, be classified as lodges. Guess what? They had two which were handicapped accessible. We decided that would be an excellent place to go for a weekend retreat, rent a lodge and eat at the 5 star restaurant. We are all going to start saving our money to do that, and we have a Florida family friend we're going to invite.

Sounds like fun, wouldn't you agree?

We spent a little more time in the state park, and headed home, where my cat and their dogs were glad to see their human family again.

Other articles by this author »
About Freda Douglas

Freda Douglas is an accomplished author. Her first book "Cherish the Past" was published in 2002. Her 2nd book "Winds of Change" will be released this Fall. She wrote a personal essay column for a weekly newspaper for 17 years. She enjoys hearing from her readers. Read about her business opportunity at http://createmysuccess.com/fredabd If you have a business that is not doing well why not see if http://leadersclub.com/34587 can offer you a solution? Freda Douglas, P.O.Box 155, Eva, AL 35621, 256-796-0651


And here is another random article you might be interested in...

CEOs And Boards Are Locked In A Spiral Of Doom

American CEOs are dropping like flies. Boards, armed with new federal rules and stock exchange requirements coming in the wake of the corporate scandals of the past few years, are getting rid of underperforming CEOs at record rates. This trend is all the more notable because it's happening during an improving economy and stock market.

However, the real reasons for the CEO bloodbath are being overlooked. Analysts pin the bloodbath on the CEOs. But it's not just the CEOs who are failing. Boards are failing too. Working with thousands of leaders worldwide for more than twenty years, I've learned that there is a "spiral of doom" in the relationship between many company boards and their CEOs. Most boards are clueless as to what leadership skills are needed for CEOs to succeed. So they hire clueless CEOs. Clueless boards hiring clueless CEOs -- it's the classic spiral of doom.

The reason boards and CEOs misunderstand leadership is that recently there has been a tectonic shift in leadership skills CEOs need to succeed. In the 80s and 90s, the autocratic CEO reigned supreme. Many companies were like slow-moving ocean liners with autocratic captains giving orders to mates and mates giving orders to the crew. But today the combination of globalization and new, differently-manageable generations coming into the workforce is creating the need for new kinds of leadership. CEO leadership is no longer like piloting an ocean liner but like white water canoeing that calls for flattened organizations that can change rapidly and accurately, decentralized decision-making, motivated employees, and inspiring relationships.

The era of the autocratic leader is over. Yet most boards know no other way of leadership but autocracy.

Here are three things boards and CEOs can do together to stop the spiral of doom.

(1) Be aware of the crucial differences between autocratic leadership and the new leadership. It's easy to spot autocratic leaders. They come with a "my-way-or-the-highway" attitude. They're long on order-giving and short on listening, great at micro-managing and poor at motivation, great at caring for the company's results and poor at promoting the welfare of the people who must achieve those results.

The new leaders, on the other hand, ask a lot of questions. They consult with people rather than command them. They have a passion not only for achieving results but for promoting the well-being of the people who must achieve the results. They listen well. They have the courage to allow others to fail. They challenge people to be better than they think they can be. They are continually enhancing the leadership skills of others. And they understand that rewards and punishments are the lowest forms of leadership.

(2) By all means, don't hire autocrats. Select CEOs who are skilled in the new leadership. This means taking great pains in the interview process to have candidates talk about their leadership philosophy, ways they have manifested that philosophy, and ways they intend to manifest it as a CEO.

(3) Continually monitor and evaluate CEOs on how they're carrying out the new leadership activities. Boards and CEOs must put into place comprehensive and systematic leadership processes. They must hold themselves accountable for those processes. Board meetings must be consistently devoted to leadership issues. When CEOs report to boards on the state of the company, they must also report on the "state of leadership" -- showing how leadership is getting results and how the leadership capabilities and responsibilities of their senior leaders, middle managers and small-unit leaders are being constantly upgraded.

Autocratic CEOs are maestros at getting the wrong results or the right results in the wrong ways. Boards who bring them on buy a ticket to ride on the spiral of doom.

The time is now for boards and CEOs to get off the ride and bring in CEOs who recognize that the best leadership is not about what leaders do to people but what they do with people.

2005 © The Filson Leadership Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in newsletters and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Email notice of intent to publish is appreciated but not required: mail to: brent@actionleadership.com

Other articles by this author »
About Brent Filson

The author of 23 books, Brent Filson's recent books are, THE LEADERSHIP TALK: THE GREATEST LEADERSHIP TOOL and 101 WAYS TO GIVE GREAT LEADERSHIP TALKS. He is founder and president of The Filson Leadership Group, Inc.  and for more than 20 years has been helping leaders of top companies worldwide get audacious results. Sign up for his free leadership e-zine and get a free white paper: "49 Ways To Turn Action Into Results," at www.actionleadership.com

brent@actionleadership.com