Lessons in leadership, good bosses, why social is hard, stupid questions and the internet

There are few things as important or as effective in inspiring a movement than seemingly basic – but really tough for most – leadership skills. Priva Ramesh provides a great summary of five leadership lessons you can take away from Martin Luther King Jr.: Be a transformer, not just task master, Be a visionary – and walk your talk, be an effective communicator – internalize what that really means, be inspired and help inspire others, and finally walk your talk. It’s last that seems to trip many people and companies up.

Robert Sutton is a favorite resource on what good management is all about and I often recommend his earlier book, The No Asshole Rule. Sound advice inside for good and bad managers I believe. So this post on 12 things good bosses believe is a great follow up. I particularly like #8: What happens after someone makes a mistake. And it also doesn’t hurt to focus on the small wins that help your teams move forward (#3). All provide sound lessons that help you in the art of management. There’s a lot here – he goes deeper into 10 of the 12. Good reading!

I have gained much respect for Beth Harte via #imcchat which she co-hosts with Anna Barcelos. She’s one of the most knowledgeable when it comes to integrated marketing and lives what it means to be customer centric. She speaks from personal experience about the work it takes from the inside to launch a successful social media program is spot on and offers sound advice for any of you in a similar place within your company. Her points about the need for agility and how your customers are tired of being bombarded cannot be overstated.

While long familiar with Bruce Mau and his work, I hadn’t seen his manifesto until Judy Gombita passed it along last week. Written in 1998, it’s completely relevant today and can provide some focus for you and your teams whether doing cutting edge design or navigating that budget in Excel. A few that really resonated for me are going deep, capturing accidents, thinking with your mind and most of all: ask stupid questions (something I do regularly). But there’s a lot more here; jump in!

Lest we forget, Mitch Joel’s post is a good reminder that the internet is first and foremost a business. And as a business it’s about money. Not your personal connectivity or well being. That it allows you to connect is wonderful.  Privacy is nonexistent if you play and your content is somewhat yours. He does a good job connecting the dots and reminds you that these facts do not make it all bad either. Oh, and everything can change really fast so don’t get too used to what is today.