Blitz02LB

Rules Quietly Followed By People Who Last Long In Corporate!!!!! 1. They never put anything in writing they would not want forwarded to the entire leadership team. 2. They build relationships during calm periods so they have real allies when the storms arrive. 3. They never speak negatively about a former employer in any room, no matter how justified it feels in the moment. 4. They know the difference between being busy and being productive and they ruthlessly protect their time for the latter. 5. They always make the person above them feel informed, never surprised. 6. They treat the receptionist, the intern, and the janitor with exactly the same respect they give the CEO. Without exception. 7. They keep a private record of their own accomplishments because no one else will remember them accurately at review time. 8. They know when to speak, when to listen, and when to simply leave the room and let others exhaust themselves. 9. They never make an enemy they do not absolutely have to make. Even difficult people are managed, not confronted unnecessarily. 10. They always have an updated resume, an active network, and enough financial runway to walk away if the situation demands it.

Hard truth: You don't start magically leading when they give you a title. You lead and the title eventually catches up. The good news? Anyone can do it. It's how you show up. How you treat people. How you deliver. Start with these 9 skills:

Learn How to speak well.

@thewinningdiff1 Winning comes from your habits and what you are willing to consistently do. This is why everyone emphasizes that you need to the focus on the inputs and the process.

"We are not trying to repeat an outcome. We are trying to repeat a process." You don’t build dynasties by chasing results. You build them by mastering the habits that produce them. The scoreboard only reveals what the process already decided.

6 Leadership lessons from the filed to the office

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10 Soft skills to future proof your career

Nick Saban's 5 Enemies of Greatness. Tack them on a wall.

Read this when you're having a bad day:

Meta's CTO guide to starting a new job. One of the most useful things I learned there:

The best CEO advice I received throughout my career: • trust must be #1 business core value • customer service is not a department • sales is the hardest job in any company • customer focus > competitor focus • agency (can do) > intelligence (IQ) • adopt a beginner’s mindset - experts are lifelong learners • tactics drive strategy - adapt faster • always try to add value and be helpful • own it and never point fingers • influence > authority • learn and use people’s names • show up when it matters most to your customers • earn a seat next to your customer, not across from her • our job is to educate and inspire • we are all in sales • stay accessible, curious and humble • people do business with people they trust, respect and like • if you are waiting for a title to lead, you are not ready to lead • the language of business is finance • there are no IT projects, only business projects • pay your best people the very best you can • hire people based on their good judgment and high rate of learning • in a celebration lead from the back, in a crisis lead from the front • you are not a team because you work together - you are a team because you trust, respect and care for each other • to improve the customer experience, start with the employee experience • you are not taller by making others look smaller • revenue growth ahead of expenses • remove bad apples quickly • leave your desk and spend time with customers • culture is what happens when the managers leave the room • tactics drive strategy • there is nothing more important than our customers • if you are waiting for a better title to lead, you are not ready to lead • business is personal - you can be decisive and also be kind, graceful and empathetic • recognize effort but reward outcomes • your company is only as good as the company you keep • your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room • learn to speak your customer’s language • often remind people that their work matters • a zero sum mindset limits your growth • your company is only as good as the company you keep • innovation opportunities are found at the edges, not centers (how your customers serve their customers)

After decades of working with leaders at companies like Apple, Salesforce, and Cisco, we've identified 4 storytelling techniques that consistently work to deliver important messages in high-stakes settings: 1. Start with the unexpected Don’t begin your presentation with context. Instead, begin with the moment that makes people think, “Wait…what?” Instead of something like: “Here’s an update on our September campaign…” Try starting with the most interesting detail: “I broke our biggest marketing rule last month, and it worked.” Lead with the surprise. You can add context later. 2. Let people feel the tension After the surprise, don’t rewind to the beginning. Take your audience to the moment where things weren’t working. Flat numbers. Missed goals. Stalled progress. Instead of: “The campaign was underperforming, and our team went back to the drawing board.” Try: "We were two weeks out from the end of the quarter. The campaign wasn’t producing results, and the team was out of ideas. That’s when I decided to take a risk...” You don’t need to explain the problem. You need to make people feel it. 3. Use real dialogue When your audience hears what was actually said, they stop listening to you and start visualizing the moment. This helps them connect emotionally with what you’re saying. Instead of: “The campaign manager said team morale was low and they were struggling to find a solution.” Try: “My campaign manager pulled me aside in the hallway and said, ‘We’ve tried everything. The team has been working overtime, and we don’t know what else to do.’” Dialogue brings listeners into the moment with you. It makes the story real. 4. Share the lesson Never assume people will infer the meaning you intended. End your story by answering: - What does this mean? - How should someone act differently now? Example: “Breaking our biggest marketing rule helped us turn this campaign around and hit our numbers. I strongly suggest we revisit our marketing guidelines. We could be leaving a ton of revenue on the table.” Without the lesson being clear, even a good story feels unfinished. These are the same techniques we teach to our clients at Duarte. Try them out during your next presentation and watch how people lean forward and tune in to your message

As a manager, my 1:1s were broken for years. I cancelled on my best people. Used the time as a live status report. Did most of the talking. I thought I was leading. I wasn't even managing. Here are 4 tests to know if your 1:1s are actually working...

@therealbeadle @caden_sim @micahnewcombe3 @TalanScott9 @Keegan_AZ Keegan with CV definitely not DL, he is a Safety.

#AZHSFB D1 OFFER & COMMITMENT DATABASE UPDATE: arizonavarsity.com/2026/03/25/ari… COMMITMENTS: '26 LS @caden_sim - Sacramento State New Additions: '27 LB @micahnewcombe3 - Northern Arizona ALA-QC: '27 TE @TalanScott9 - Indiana Canyon View: '27 DL @Keegan_AZ - Illinois State Desert Vista: '27 ATH @EliToms_5 - Hawai'i Maryvale: '27 ATH @m1leswoods_ - Illinois State Pinnacle: '27 OL @BigJu330 - Army @AZHSFB

Hard truth: AI will produce two winners. Those who go all in on AI and build at a scale previously unimaginable. And those who go all in on being deeply human and deliver experiences no machine can match. Conviction leads to excellence. Only the uncommitted get left behind.

I love this so much. All time coaching moment from Brenda Frese. “I need you to lock in and stop being distracted. I BELIEVE in you but YOU’VE got to want this moment. This isn’t my story alright?”

💯 "...you cannot have those conversations without a relationship." Not about position or status, it starts with a relationship

“I believe in you, but you gotta want this moment.” True coaching isn't always quiet. It’s about meeting an athlete’s intensity with your own, demanding excellence because you care about their growth more than their comfort in the moment. That’s the work.