Terry Newell is currently director of his own firm, Leadership for a Responsible Society. His work focuses on values-based leadership, ethics, and decision making. A former Air Force officer, Terry also previously served as Director of the Horace Mann Learning Center, the training arm of the U.S. Department of Education, and as Dean of Faculty at the Federal Executive Institute. Terry is co-editor and author of The Trusted Leader: Building the Relationships That Make Government Work (CQ Press, 2011). He also wrote Statesmanship, Character and Leadership in America (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013) and To Serve with Honor: Doing the Right Thing in Government (Loftlands Press 2015).
"Touchy-feely" people are said to be overly focused on emotions. But emotions are central to good relationships, so these people have something to teach us.
Society can be stronger if leaders can admit they are wrong, but we often make that very hard for them to do.
Political arguments often result from people who see different versions of reality but are convinced theirs is the only accurate one.
Voluntarily relinquishing political power is rare in American history. George Washington did it - twice.
Formal efforts to stop the viral spread of disinformation have had limited success. The best antidote is citizens who think critically.
Efforts at fact-checking fake news fight an uphill battle against the flood of disinformation.
The attack by Confederate forces on Fort Sumter in 1861 was preceded by miscalculations on both sides, the result of thinking mistakes still common today.
Jackie Robinson’s character made him a pioneer for civil rights on and off the baseball field.
The efforts of politicians, cable news/talk shows and social media to polarize Americans mask a great deal that we agree on.
Groups perform best when everyone fully contributes. Achieving this means preventing the problem of social loafing.
Arguments against the1787 Constitution still show up today. Disagreements among modern-day Federalists and Anti-Federalists are healthy for democracy, as long as remain civil.
With a blend of mastery, humility and generosity, Yo-Yo Ma has demonstrated the power of being a global citizen.
Living at too fast a pace is unhealthy for us and our relationships. There are many ways to slow down.
When we try to silence viewpoints we silence the dialogue and debate essential to democracy.
Beset by polarization and politics, Americans seem to have lost the self-confidence that has brought forth its greatest achievements - and that still can.
Abigail Adams, a key contributor to the American founding, also expanded roles for women through her intelligence, political savvy, persistence and character.
Civic rituals are a way to strengthen ties among Americans. Strengthening civic rituals can help ease some of our national divides.
A bad outcome does not mean it came from a faulty decision making process. That’s just one trap of the outcome bias.
Candidates for president need to handle cognitively complex reasoning. How well they remember dates is a poor measure of that capability.
The civil rights of Black Americans were gained in the courts as well as through protest marches. Thurgood Marshall was both advocate and pioneer in this use of the law.
