FRANCES HESSELBEIN: A ROLE MODEL FOR LEADERSHIP AND MENTORSHIP

Abstract

AbstractThe author, CEO and founder of Best Practice Institute, and Most Loved Workplace®, writes about his relationship with Frances Hesselbein, whom he considered to be a valuable mentor. He recounts how he met Frances through Marshall Goldsmith, and the “first moment I heard her voice and her first few words to me, I knew I was in the presence of greatness.” The author recounts that when he “gave Frances the Best Practice Institute Lifetime Achievement Award at the New York Stock Exchange in 2011, she was in her 90s.” Among her valuable advice to him: “Lou, watch your thoughts. They become words. Watch your words. They become deeds. Watch your deeds. They become habits. Watch your habits. They become character. Character is everything.”