We’ve spent a lot of time exploring the rainbow. We talked about the fire of Red , that raw courage and passion that gets a business off the ground. We looked at the stability of Blue , the trust that keeps the ship steady. We even basked in the glow of Yellow , realizing that a good attitude is a competitive advantage. But now, we’ve reached the deep end. We’ve reached Purple . In my Spectrum of Leadership, Purple represents Wisdom . It’s the color of royalty, sure, but it’s

We’ve all been there. You’re staring at a problem that feels like a brick wall. You’ve looked at the data, you’ve checked the bank account, and you’ve talked to the experts. The "logical" path tells you there are only two choices: Option A or Option B. Usually, Option A is "keep grinding until you burn out," and Option B is "give up and walk away." In the world of business consulting, we call this linear thinking. It’s the idea that every problem has a straight-line solution.

When I first walked into the advancement department at Hartford, the air didn’t exactly feel "green." It didn’t feel like a place where things were growing. If I’m being honest, it felt like a room where the oxygen had been sucked out. The team was talented: wildly so. They had the pedigree, the skills, and the history. But they were also exhausted. Burnout wasn’t just a buzzword there; it was a baseline. There was a thick layer of mistrust, not necessarily toward each other,

Welcome back to the Seeing Leadership in Color series. We’ve already hit the fire of Red (Courage) and the steady anchor of Blue (Trust). Today we’re stepping into the brightest one: Yellow. Optimism. Hope. The thing that makes people believe the next step is worth taking. And yes, optimism can be a personality trait. But in leadership? It’s more like a job requirement. Because optimism isn’t a vibe. It’s a choice. Over and over. Especially when the “how” is missing. The

There's a moment in every leader's journey when you have to ask yourself a hard question: Why am I really here? Is it for the win? The recognition? The next deal closed? Or is it something deeper? If you've been following this series on Leading in Color , you know we started with Red : the bold, fiery energy that sparks change and pushes us forward. Red is essential. It's the catalyst. But Red without Blue is just noise. Blue is the anchor. It's trust. Stability. The quiet,

Last week, we talked about seeing leadership in color : how the best leaders aren't monochrome, how emotion isn't the enemy but the engine. We laid out the full spectrum, from the fire of red to the calm of blue, from yellow's optimism to green's growth. Now it's time to dive into the first shade. And we're starting hot. Red. The color of passion, urgency, and the kind of courage that makes your palms sweat. If you've ever had to make a call that changed everything: knowing f

When I finished writing Together at the Top , I thought I'd closed the loop on leadership. Partnership, shared journeys, the people who walk beside you: that was the whole story, right? Turns out, not even close. Years of hallway conversations, late-night doubt sessions, and watching leaders at every level wrestle with the same invisible weight taught me something I wish I'd learned sooner: the view from the summit isn't tidy. It's never just one feeling. Never just one color

Let's be real for a second. You've probably heard a million "growth hacks" by now. Funnels. Automation. AI everything. And sure, some of that stuff works. But here's the thing nobody's talking about at the fancy conferences: the most powerful growth lever in your business isn't a tool, a tactic, or a trend. It's how deeply you understand the humans around you. I'm talking about radical empathy. And before you roll your eyes and think this is some fluffy, feel-good nonsense, s

Let's get uncomfortable for a second. You've got the title. You've got the team. You've got the corner office (or at least, the fancy Zoom background). But here's the million-dollar question: Are you actually leading your people, or are you just... managing them? There's a massive difference. And if you're being honest with yourself, like, brutally honest, you might not love the answer. That's where the Radical Empathy Audit comes in. Consider this your mirror moment. A chan

Let's be honest, how many times have you heard someone say they "trust their boss"? Like, actually trust them? Not the polite, surface-level "yeah, they're fine" kind of trust. I'm talking about the deep, I've-got-your-back, I-can-be-honest-with-you kind of trust. If you're a leader, here's the uncomfortable truth: your team might respect your title, follow your directions, and hit their deadlines, but that doesn't mean they trust you. And without trust? You're managing peopl