Below are all Al Viller’s leadership-related blog posts summarized on one convenient page.
These articles are designed to inspire you become a more effective leader so that you can better serve those who are in your care and make a even greater impact in the world.
Inspire On!
Reading Time: 6 minutesThere’s a framing problem at the heart of how many leaders think about developing people. Without realizing it, they approach leadership like carpentry. They’ve got a blueprint. They’ve got tools. And they set out to cut, shape, and sand the people around them until they fit the design. The problem? People aren’t lumber. […]
Leadership is like Gardening, Not Carpentry Read More »
Reading Time: 11 minutesSpecial Note: This isn’t my usual post on alviller.com. Most days, I write about leadership, communication, and how to turn values that hang on the wall into virtue-driven action that walks down the hall. This story lives in a different setting. A second-grade classroom and an operating room. Yet, the theme is the same. I’m
The Teacher, the Husband, and the Surgeon Read More »
Reading Time: 8 minutesMany of us learn how to perform before we learn how to discern. At a very early age, we figure out what it takes to gain approval and succeed. We learn how to carry responsibility, meet expectations, achieve goals, and keep moving. Along the way, we strive to build a respectable life but maybe still
Discover Your Light Read More »
Reading Time: 7 minutesA year ago, I stepped off the corporate hamster wheel. I wasn’t tired of running or weary of what I was doing. In fact, I had an idea and helped create a role that would fill a gap at work and was both excited and energized by the new challenge. The Backstory But things
My Year on Sabbatical Read More »
Reading Time: 7 minutesDiscover the Virtues Hardwired Inside You Centuries before satellites orbited the earth or glowing maps lived in our pockets, explorers relied on stars, sketches, instruments, and instinct. Few minds obsessed over direction, proportion, and orientation more than Leonardo da Vinci. His notebooks brimmed with maps, mechanical designs, river systems, and flying machines. Navigation fascinated him,
Calibrate Your Compass Read More »
Reading Time: 5 minutesI picked up Just the Good Stuff by Jim VandeHei, co-creator and CEO of Axios, expecting a quick read. What I got was something more: a mirror that reflects the communication habits leaders need right now, whether we admit it or not. If you’ve ever read Axios and thought, “Finally, someone respects my time,”
Just the Good Stuff: A No BS Guide for Leaders Read More »
Reading Time: 5 minutes… and the way I think about them, they’re not preachy either! Leaders, including me, love their Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Objectives & Key Results (OKRs), dashboards, and quarterly reports. They’re the love language of logic, the scaffolding of competence. And they absolutely matter. But here’s the inconvenient truth: KPIs, OKRs, and the data on
Stop calling Virtues “Woo‑Woo” Read More »
Reading Time: 11 minutesSome people think manners are old-fashioned. They ask, “Who has time to be polite?” or “This is work — people get paid to do their jobs. Why should I waste energy on courtesy?” These questions are honest. And they reveal the real tension in business today: efficiency versus principle and presence. But if courtesy is
Do Manners (in Business) Matter? Read More »
Reading Time: 7 minutesQuick note: In many fonts my first name, Al, looks exactly like AI. In this post, every mention of AI refers to artificial intelligence, not me… even if we do make a pretty good team. 😉 When I was choosing my Word for 2025, I started playing with an idea. Like most insights, it started
How My Inner Circle turned into Parallel Intelligence Read More »
