Phil Cole
Leadership is Learned. So is a Lack of Leadership.
People learn to lead poorly in the same manner they learn to lead well. And they get better at leading poorly.
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Phil Cole
- Apr 22
- 3 min
Power versus the Story of Vision (or, How Leaders Act When They Lack Leadership)
Leadership allows us to change other's behavior. When we lack leadership, we use power to force others to behave in the way that we want.
Phil Cole
- Aug 30, 2021
- 1 min
Observing the Leaderless Group
This SEEING EXERCISE reveals the natural, ongoing, and distributed functions without leadership's intervention.
Phil Cole
- Aug 1, 2021
- 2 min
The Functions in Action
This SEEING EXERCISE reveals the breadth of the functions of leadership in our past successes.
Phil Cole
- Jun 25, 2021
- 3 min
Conclusion (Part 5, The Basics)
In each of the past articles in The Basics, we have explored how the functions define the amount of success that a group can have. We...
Phil Cole
- Jun 24, 2021
- 5 min
The Function of Learning (Part 4, The Basics)
Welcome back to The Basics. Check out the posters for the function of learning here. Learning is the beginning of the definition:...
Phil Cole
- Jun 23, 2021
- 4 min
The Function of Relationships (Part 3, The Basics)
Welcome back to The Basics. Check out the posters for the function of relationships here. The second function in the definition is the...
Phil Cole
- Jun 22, 2021
- 5 min
The Function of Vision (Part 2, The Basics)
Welcome back to The Basics. Check out the posters for vision here. The first function of leadership is vision. In the definition of...
Phil Cole
- Jun 21, 2021
- 4 min
Introducing the Functions of Leadership (Part 1, The Basics)
Welcome to The Basics. Check out the poster for this section here: Our goal here is to introduce the functions of leadership, explain why...
Phil Cole
- Jun 17, 2021
- 1 min
Pre-Orders, Pre-Print, and an Announcement
Pre-print copies of Redefining Leadership arrived... We are taking preorders now. The book will ship on August 1st. Over the next several...
Phil Cole
- Apr 29, 2021
- 2 min
The Metaphor of Motion
I often use a metaphor of motion to explain the connections between vision, relationships, and learning. The goal of the leader is to...
Phil Cole
- Apr 17, 2021
- 2 min
You just finished this book. You are probably thinking, what did I just read? This makes no sense.
You just finished this book. You are probably thinking, what did I just read? This makes no sense. Here is what will happen. You will go...
Phil Cole
- Mar 10, 2021
- 4 min
Someone Makes a Mistake: The Hidden Functions in Action
Someone performs a specific function wrong. So, the business wastes several hundred dollars of materials. That is a big deal for this...
Phil Cole
- Oct 10, 2019
- 2 min
This is how your boss got to be a leader. And it sucks. Do better.
This sounds crazy, but we aren’t born knowing anything about leadership. Go ahead and argue with me about nature vs. nurture and all of...
Phil Cole
- Sep 23, 2019
- 2 min
The Fourth "T" - TASKS
There is one additional thing that leadership is not. It’s a “T” word as well, but it’s a bit different that the other three. This is...
Phil Cole
- Sep 5, 2019
- 5 min
Learning as an Adult - the Adult Experiential Learning Cycle
Learning occurs only when a person changes his or her behavior. That's the end goal, the only measurement that matters. So what does that...
Phil Cole
- Aug 27, 2019
- 3 min
Somebody made a mistake. Should you get mad?
Mistakes happen, and we’re often told that the most important thing is how we respond when they do. However, there’s something we need to...
Phil Cole
- Apr 16, 2019
- 5 min
Visualize leadership in the real world. What do you see?
What do you actually see in the real world when someone is “doing” leadership? It looks a group of people performing tasks together. That...
Phil Cole
- Mar 20, 2019
- 3 min
TACTICS (The Three Ts Series)
(TACTICS is the fourth article in our series about the three Ts. If you haven’t read the series introduction or about TITLE or TRAITS,...
Phil Cole
- Mar 18, 2019
- 3 min
TRAITS (The Three Ts Series)
(TRAITS is the third article in our series about the three Ts. If you haven’t read the introduction or about TITLE, the first T, you...