wisdom Archives - Jeff Everhart

Leaders Let People Do, Not Follow

No one wants to be a back seat driver forever. That is a fact. There are many kinds of leaders with differing opinions on this simple fact: Those who gain their authority from the structure of an organization—a boss, a manager, a supervisor Others, however, seem to gain this type of authority almost organically. If […]

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The Challenge of Making It New

Most of the ideas that people have are not new. They may be new to that person, or new to the situation, but so often they are reproductions of other ideas, other situations, other solutions. There is nothing wrong with this. We are social creatures. We learn from each other, our successes, our failures. The […]

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Understanding and Promoting Innovation in 21st Century Communities: Part 2

Ignoring Conventional Wisdom Communication has a large role in influencing how people make decisions. People develop opinions and sometimes these opinions become widely accepted, often disguised as facts. That is not to say that conventions are devoid of value entirely, but little new ground is ever struck by following old or worn paths. Great ideas […]

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Understanding and Promoting Innovation in 21st Century Communities: Part 1

I’ve been reading a lot lately on innovation, how to harness it, how to define it, and how to help other people get there. Although all of these scenarios require a fair amount of work to achieve, it is important to be honest with yourself so that you understand where you fit in currently so […]

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Conceptualizing the ELL Experience

I had a long discussion with a young man this afternoon. His words were to me far more poingent than he must have intended. He is not a native Of the U.S., and many of us would judge him for the way that he spoke, his accent, the awkward rhythms of his speech. He told […]

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