Its about Respect and Rememberance

     May 30th is the day we will officially recognize and observe Memorial Day.  Interestingly, this day used to be referred to as Decoration Day and was the day we remember those who had given their lives in the nation's service and the day we decorated their grave sites.  Many towns hold services and in Bethel, Connecticut we hold memorial services and a traditional home town parade. 

     As a Vietnam Era veteran, I find it increasingly important to pay respect to those who have given their lives so I can enjoy the freedoms I am priviledged to have.  Maybe its my age, maybe its observing how young our people in the armed forces appear to be (we were too), maybe its about knowing how invincible and immortal they feel (great military training), maybe its now how much they love this country and are willing to lay down their lives to protect our freedoms. 

     We are all blessed to be in this country.  Anyone who has had to opportunity to visit other countries, to study other ideologies, to understand other cultures, knows the advantage of being an American and also knows and understands how the world has changed dramatically in how others see us as well.  All things considered, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. 

     I truly respect all of you who have served, are serving, or will be in the service of this country.  Its an awesome job, its incredibly rewarding, its dangerous, but you grow up with a whole different perspective of what your freedoms are worth and what you are willing to pay for them.  I am constantly reminded that freedom isn't free.  I have a very

high degree of respect  and admiration for your sacrifices and will make sure you are all remembered on this Memorial Day and every day I enjoy my freedoms.

The shifting tides of Leadership

I recently read an article by Richard Stengel, Managing Editor of Time Magazine, about Sarah Palin's leadership style. He describes her style as, "she is the textbook example of Weber's charismatic leader, who uses personal appeal and magnetism and a disdain for traditional structures as a route to power. Hers is the opposite of the legal-bureaucratic style and seems based on intuition, emotion and frontier values." Richard also states that "we don't write about leadership in a theoretical way-every week we write about leadership in real time involving real events." Inspirational leadership is what most people remember. You only need to think about the leaders you would follow. It would be for your personal reasons of how they

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made you feel. Did you become angry and eager to make/force a change? Did you become more educated and ready to jump in and do some research to inspire others to take action. Did you feel safer? Did you feel less secure? What was that feeling stirring in you veins making your heart pound a bit harder and your senses become more attuned to your surroundings. It wasn't theory. It was and inspirational leader that you took the time to listen to. Someone with conviction, commitment, and a drive that, perhaps, instilled in you a sense of well being and of progress. Or maybe they made your blood boil and your sense of patriotism rise to heights you never thought you had. I can think of leaders that did that for me and I can think of the times of my life in which that happened. We all are at a point in time where the essence of leadership will dissected in the future and through hindsight we'll make course corrections. We all are at a point where we all will move forward. We all are at a point where there is

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no backward...never was, ever, at any time. So the real question is, what type of leader will you follow or even more importantly, what type of leader will you be. Will you reach out and grab the brass ring? Will you dedicate your life to taking steps to improve? Will you learn, mentor, coach, act and be accountable for your actions. What are your values? What will you do and how do you want to be envisioned? What do you want people to say about you? There are a plethora of questions to answer, personal blocks to overcome, steps to take, and opportunities to lead. I leave you with this thought...many leaders have come and gone, many have been taken apart by the press or their adversaries, but a very small number of the population can say they actually ran for the President of the United States of America, or for the Vice Presidency of this great country of ours. Think about it...what will your legacy be as a leader?