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    Joseph Lalonde

    Joseph Lalonde is the owner of JMLalonde.com. He shares leadership insights from movies, extreme sports, and life experiences.

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    5 Leadership Books To Read In December 2024

    I love finding and reading/listening to great books. They help me gather the wisdom of others who have been there and done that. They’ve gone through trials and tribulations I won’t have to if I heed their tales.

    That’s why I love bringing you a list of great books to read every month. I can help you avoid some of those same traps and tribulations.

    This month is no different. Here’s your reading list for December 2024.

    5 Leadership Books To Read In December 2024

    1. Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization by Dave Logan, John King, Halee Fischer-Wright:

    In Tribal Leadership, Dave Logan, John King, and Halee Fischer-Wright examine what it takes to build great organizations. They’ve noticed 5 levels to great organizations.   Read more...

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    Coach K’s Two Ways To Build Trust

    Coach Mike Krzyzewski was the American basketball coach for Duke University from 1980 to 2022. His time as a coach led to many victories and awards. These include:

    • 5 national titles
    • 13 Final Fours
    • 15 ACC tournament championships
    • 13 ACC regular season titles
    • 1,202 victories

    His record says a lot about what he accomplished and did with the young men he coached over 40 years. In fact, he currently holds the distinction of being the all-time winningest coach in DI men’s basketball history. 

    Wow!

    To be honest, I’m not a huge basketball fan. I don’t watch it on TV unless I’m at a restaurant and a game is playing on their TV sets. It’s not something I enjoy.

    However, learning about Coach K (how people refer to Mike Krzyzewski) has been eye-opening. His class Values-Driven Leadership on MasterClass is one I’d recommend leaders to watch and learn from.  Read more...

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    Quotes And Leadership Lessons From Red One

    A Reel Leadership Article

    If you enjoy this article, you’ll love my book Reel Leadership. It’s available on Amazon.

    Ho, ho, oh no! That’s the premise behind Red One. Red One takes place just before Christmas. The North Pole is bustling with energy and excitement. Then, the unthinkable happens.

    Santa Claus/Nick (J.K. Simmons) is kidnapped!

    Christmas will be ruined if Nick doesn’t take back the sleigh and deliver all the presents. He’s in luck. His right-hand man, Callum Drift (Dwayne Johnson), is on the case. He’s going to find Nick one way or the other.

    Krampus and Cal from Red One facing off in a dungeon like environment

    Callum’s luck runs out as the head of the Mythological Oversight and Restoration Authority, aka M.O.R.A., Zoe Harlow (Lucy Liu) knows her options are limited. If Nick isn’t back, kids and parents worldwide will be disappointed. She seeks the one man who can track the bad guys who did this: Jack O’Malley (Chris Evans). He’s a Level 4 Naughty Lister. He’s a bad guy who’s going to help.  Read more...

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    4 Reasons To Be Thankful For The Hard Times

    When we think of things to be thankful for, the hard times are often not the first thing that comes to mind. In fact, they’re often the last thing we want to be thankful for.

    The death of a loved one, divorce, business troubles…

    All of these things are hard. They challenge us. They stretch us. They make us want to quit.

    But what if, instead of being frustrated, discouraged, or defeated, we look at these hard things as something to be thankful for?

    4 Reasons To Be Thankful For The Hard Times

    Missionary Kevin Prevost recently shared a message at our church, The Gateway Church (no, not THAT Gateway Church. He asked a poignant question. One that gave many people pause. He asked:

    Are you thankful in the hard times?  Read more...

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    Take The Risk

    Leaders are risk-takers. The risks they take aren’t off the cuff but rather well-thought-out calculated risks. They’ve pondered what could happen, would happen, and then act. 

    We need more leaders who are risk takers.

    Person walking on a tightrope across an open gap

    Photo by Loic Leray on Unsplash

    Take The Risk

    Vick Hope summed up risks quite well when they said:

    Taking risks doesn’t mean shirking responsibility, but embracing possibilities.

    Whoa… think about that for a minute. It goes right along with what I first wrote. There’s possibility in taking risks. You are acting toward something, not recklessly but with intention.

    The founder of Mint, Aaron Patzer, said:

    Turn a perceived risk into an asset.

    Many times, we perceive something as a risk. The reality is that while there is a chance things could go wrong, there’s also the possibility of the risk becoming an asset. You learn, grow, and change every time you take a risk.  Read more...