Articles & Helpful Websites:

1. "Good managers play favorites, don't try to fix their employees' weaknesses, and don't believe in the power of positive thinking. Rather, they build on strengths and cast people in the right role."
• It's the Manager, Stupid - Fortune Magazine

2. "While rising wages and benefits are good news for workers, they raise concerns about inflation especially at a time when productivity is slowing. If companies decide to pass on their higher payroll costs by boosting the price of their products, that could translate into increased inflation."
• Productivity Slows, Wage Pressures Mount - By MARTIN CRUTSINGER

3. "Most training is remedial, and when training is purely remedial, it's a waste of time. What companies need to be able to do is figure out where someone's natural talents lie, and then combine them with skills and knowledge."
• Trying To Overcome A Weakness? This Man Says, 'Please, Stop' - Fortune Magazine

4. "The concept of intelligence, a very old one, has been employed in the most varied ways over the centuries. During the past century, there has been considerable movement on the "intelligence front," and this trend shows no sign of abating. In this essay I briefly describe seven historical steps, or phases, in the development of thinking about intelligence, focusing in particular on work inspired by the Theory of Multiple Intelligence."
• INTELLIGENCE IN SEVEN STEPS - Howard Gardner, Ph.D.

5. "One of the most entertaining writers in the guru business in Malcolm Gladwell of The New Yorker . His latest book, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking , focuses our attention inward to help us better understand what goes into our snap judgments and to make us appreciate "the weird power of first impressions." In many instances snap decisions are better than more deliberated ones, he shows, though we must try to counter unconscious biases that can interfere."
• Brainstormers - These gurus excel at helping execs tap their strengths and think creatively - BusinessWeek

6. "Great leaders tap into the needs and fears we all share. Great managers, by contrast, perform their magic by discovering, developing, and celebrating what's different about each person who works for them. Here's how they do it."
• What Great Managers Do - by Marcus Buckingham Harvard Business Review

7. Brian Thwaits is an engaging and entertaining ‘brain trainer’, a learning and communication whiz with a wealth of experience in both the public and private sectors. Brian first demonstrated his flair for performance as an award-winning educator and is now an acclaimed professional speaker who engages both the hearts and minds of his listeners –– brainspeaker_bio.pdf

Many of today's leaders do not have time to read the most recent business books and articles. Well, here's the answer! Receive summaries of the best business books of the year in your choice of print, audio, CD-ROM!
http://www.summary.com/cgi-bin/Soundview.storefront

Entrepreneur.com is a site that has several helpful resources, how to guides and tools for today's business person.
http://www.entrepreneur.com/

Stephen R. Covey's material is a cornerstone of effective leadership. Check out the Mission Statement Builder on the resources page, very helpful and it is a terrific activity to do with your teams.
http://www.stephencovey.com/

Direct access to The Gallup Organization's extensive library. Very insightful and pertinent information on several topics.
http://www.galluppress.com/content/?CI=17473

PRWeb - The recognized leader in online news and press release distribution service for small and medium-sized businesses and corporate communications.http://www.prweb.com/

For up to date Business news.
• http://www.businessweek.com/
• http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3032072/