“One of the most frustrating aspects of human relationships rest in feeling like you have not been heard. No one enjoys the position of voicelessness. Leaders know that one of the wisest, if not the most humbling action they can take is taking the time to have a simple conversation with those they lead.” J Loren Norris

“It is cruel and unscrupulous to manipulate the meaning of a persons words when translating or repeating them. It is vile to do so with ill-intent. To interfere in communication by altering the facial expressions, intonation and emotional state is IMHO down right evil. But we have tools which many see as a game which does exactly that. Leaders must become masters of reality to deal with this new world of AR.” J Loren Norris

”Contributing to society in a meaningful way delivers a sense of purpose to every human alive. The need to be a part of something bigger, grander, more significant than ourselves is a natural part of our existence. IMHO The cultural shift away from meaningful work, hard work and self sufficiency has marred the fabric of our American ethos…” J Loren Norris

“Blind spots, obstacles and blinders may have similar effect, but in the life of a leader they are significantly different. Blinders help us to focus by directing attention and minimizing distractions. Blind spots ...” J Loren Norris

“Instructions not properly translated are instructions not properly given. Not amount of emphatic articulation, passion or conviction in verbal delivery or instructions makes up the difference. SHOUTING via text or email will not more clearly convey unclear instructions. Leaders who fail to insure their expectations and instructions are clear, will be leaders who are just as frustrated as the people they lead.” J Loren Norris ​

”The immeasurable worth of deeply held and strongly rooted values is undeniable. Unfortunately such values and those who hold to them are becoming more rare every day. Leaders know their values are essential to leading with legacy. They also know their values are priced out of the market. They are worth more than any pay raise, vacation, career promotion, other social incentives or political pressure. In short, leaders who know their values cannot be bought.” J Loren Norris

”Life is too short to miss the moments which define us. Moments will come and go naturally. We will engage in most of them intuitively. To get the most of life, however, we must engage in every moment intentionally. Look for moments and even opportunities to create a moment. Make note, take photos, start a journal entry, but never let a moment slip by without savoring and recording it.” J Loren Norris

”Call it shading, facets, partial representation or any other name you like. Nuance is another word for conveying something other than the whole truth. Employees do it. Politicians do it. Toddlers do it. Attorneys do it. You have likely done it, I know I have. Good leaders understand the power and purpose of nuance all the while aware of its dangers. Be alert. Look closely, listen closer and always ask, what’s the whole, entire, complete truth.” J Loren Norris

“If your ego as a leader is too fragile to encourage the dreamers you lead, then its time to reevaluate your ego and self worth. If you are concerned about promoting a dreamer into their own dreams of entrepreneurship and not being able to replace them, consider this: your leadership thus far has empowered them to become who they are. You can repeat the process to cultivate another superstar and you must. The world needs all of the confident dreamers we can muster. If your leader is squelching your dreams, holding you back and not allowing you to imagine, to soar, to succeed, they have disqualified themselves from leading you.” J loren Norris

”You are free to say whatever you feel compelled to say. You are not free from the consequences of the reactions your words inspire. As a leader, you must allow your team the right to speak freely. You must also help them to understand the consequences not only of what was actually said, but the thoughts, feelings and ideas which leads to such speech.” J Loren Norris

“Study the genuine article and not the litany of fakes if you want to get past the deception and get closer to the truth. Leaders who live and thrive on the glitz and glamor of the spotlight and not the transformation of their people, those are the counterfeit. Leaders who do the right thing when no one is looking and nothing is to be gained, those are the genuine article, study them, follow them.” J Loren Norris

“To be confused by language is nothing new. To misunderstand, misinterpret, misconstrue are all human reactions to complicated or emotionally charged conversations. Those who artfully misuse language are doing so with ill intent to confuse and manipulate. Leaders love language and the artful application of it to produce connection, clarity and consensus.” J Loren Norris

“Sometimes the action you see is not what you should be cautious about. It’s not the struggle getting the most attention, the fight turning all the heads, the chaos stopping traffic which is reshaping society. Like a good ‘fight promoter’ the real game is happening in the back room between the power players and power brokers and they really don’t care who survives the scuffle… as long as they remain in power by provoking the scuffle. If you only deal in power, you are a tyrant and not a leader.” J Loren Norris

“Living what you say you believe versus living what you actually believe might appear to be a distinction without a difference. It is not. Most people live by deeply held beliefs which are not consistent with their spoken beliefs. They act in ways which defy their expressed values. Because their subconscious beliefs drive their actions, who they demonstrate they are is not who they say they are.” J Loren Norris

“If you find that people only want to hear your ideas when you scream them or force people to listen by ‘pulling rank’ as a leader, you need to reconsider both your ideas and your approach. Conversation should be a two way street of idea sharing and sharpening. One good test for good ideas would be to ask someone else to present them in your place. If the ideas are better accepted it’s not your ideas that are rejected it’s your communication style. Now you know what you need to fix.” J Loren Norris

​“If your scope of leadership influence does not extend beyond your four walls, you are wasting the tools you have worked so hard to acquire. Rendering help everywhere you can is an unwritten expectation of good humans. I don’t mean inserting yourself where you’re not wanted  or unwelcome but I do mean if you can help DO IT.” J Loren Norris

“Work ethic, professionalism, customer service, individual responsibility are all core values the American society was built upon. Sadly, these are not the driving values of today’s work force. These values are not just about earning a living, building a strong culture and the fabric of society. They are also the foundations of a healthy family and the freedom needed to sustain it. We need diligent leaders who are determined to pass these values like a baton to the next generation.” J Loren Norris

​“The power of a story or collection of stories (aka narrative) possess incredible value in the war for cultural understanding. From revisionist history, to future casting, from vision drafting to social engineering - stories are the wind which direct the sails in the journey through time. Leaders who are not effective storytellers may be great managers or administrators but they will not be legacy influencers.” J Loren Norris

“Confusion can cancel a good sale, destroy a relationship, end a career and destroy a culture. I know that seems like a bold statement, but confusion is a tool used by many who know that chaos follows confusion and then anarchy follows chaos which almost always results in a form of tyranny.  Leaders should be aware and astute enough to recognize third party attempts to ask confusing questions and be ready to maintain the narrative of core values and foundational ideologies.” J Loren Norris

“Leaders will suffer significant effects of stress without taking time to breathe, find white space for the mind and reflect deeply on their actions and reactions. The body handles stress poorly, even when you are not cognitively aware you are stressed. Before you lose your cool, fly off the handle, make rash decisions or have a cardiac event TAKE A BREAK and take a breath.” J Loren Norris

“Friendships should be great investments of time, energy and emotion.  The effort exerted to maintain a strong friendship will have a great return on investment when done well. Friends will watch your back, remain dedicated to your success, speak health to your romantic relationships and perhaps even work for you. The good leader will know where to draw the line between loyal friends and loyal employees.” J Loren Norris

“Leaders and team members alike are HUMANS. This means relationships can be complicated and complex. Some people are ‘with you’ for life. These people believe in you, your vision, your mission, and your way of doing business. Others want to gather from you all the insight and opportunity they can then move along. A leader who cannot determine the difference will not know who to launch, who to promote and who to hold on to.” J Loren Norris

“No matter how good you are as a leader, one trait and skill you share with other effective leaders, even the ones who are genuinely not good people, is the ability to communicate an effective narrative. Using the story to linguistically put yourself and your organization in the most favorable light is job #1 of effective leaders. If you are second to the table of narrative distribution, you are already too late.” J Loren Norris

“If you’re human you have a dark side. If you’re a leader you have faults, short comings, room for improvement and blind spots. You must spend the emotional energy and focused time to identify and rectify those areas. If you do not address those issues, you will never shine as bright as you could from every facet of your personality. There will also be important people you will remain unable to connect with until you become aware and take action.” J Loren Norris