Bill George's Recent LinkedIn Posts

Listening to Bruce Springsteen sing “Streets of Minneapolis” in front of of 200,000 people at the state capitol, rallying on behalf of Democracy.

Thank you for sharing I am humbled

The White House is learning a hard lesson in Iran: it is much easier to bomb a country than to win the hearts and minds of its people. America learned this in Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq, and Russia in Ukraine. How can America ever hope to gain the support of 90 million Iranians?

One of the most dangerous shifts in leadership is quiet. A leader’s personal narrative begins to outgrow the institution they are meant to serve. What starts as visibility and momentum can drift into self-preservation. The focus moves from mission to persona. That’s when institutions weaken. Authentic leadership is stewardship. Leaders are temporary. Institutions, if well led, should endure. When spotlight and status take priority over long-term value and trust, credibility erodes. Every leader should ask: Am I strengthening the institution — or making it dependent on me? If it cannot thrive without you, you haven’t built an institution. You’ve built a following. And that rarely lasts. Explore more on stewardship and leadership at billgeorge.org.

Thirty years ago, I watched business leaders who were genuine statesmen — James Burke at Johnson & Johnson, Walter Wriston at Citicorp, David Packard at Hewlett-Packard. They built great enterprises and addressed societal issues. They saw leadership as something that extended beyond the bottom line. We named heroes like that. We need them again. Not celebrity CEOs. Not influencers in the C-suite. Business statesmen. People who understand that the power they hold comes with real obligations — to employees, to communities, to the integrity of the systems that make commerce possible. This isn't nostalgia. It's a challenge. Who in your generation will answer it? For more on principled leadership, visit billgeorge.org.

Mackenzie Scott is an amazing example of genuine philanthropy. Hope others will model after her example

Too many leadership teams start with strategy. Markets. Margins. Market share. Competitive response. All necessary. But without purpose, strategy drifts. When leaders aren’t clear about why they exist, decisions turn reactive. Short-term. Defensive. Purpose anchors you. Values set the guardrails. Strategy becomes the route — not the reason. The strongest organizations I’ve seen were clear about who they were long before they focused on how to win. If you’re leading, ask: What would we refuse to compromise — even if it cost us? That’s where leadership starts. Learn more at billgeorge.org. #Leadership #PurposeDriven #AuthenticLeadership #TrueNorth

Tom Friedman captures the true spirit of “neighboring” as he shows how Minnesota citizens’ peaceful actions defeated Trump’s invasion by 3,000 ICE agents. Never in my lifetime have I witnessed such a powerful grassroots movement. I hope our example will serve as a model for our nation

My new course on True North Leadership is now live on LinkedIn Learning. I hope you will take the course and become a True North Leader.

Today’s leaders can’t rely on brainpower alone. Bill George reminds us that real leadership requires heart as well as mind. Go beyond your tasklist and leave space in the day to reflect on what truly matters. Take 20 minutes to walk, breathe, or think. 🚶‍♂️🧘‍♂️🧠 These moments of self‑check help you reconnect with purpose instead of just productivity. How do you find your 20 minutes of reflection during a busy week? Let us know in the comments! 👇 Check out the course here: https://lnkd.in/dgaPr53v #Leadership

A title gives you authority. It gives you decision rights. It puts your name on the org chart. But it does not create trust. Leadership begins when people believe you will act with integrity — especially when the pressure is on. When the numbers are tight. When the decision is unpopular. When doing the right thing carries a cost. I’ve seen executives with impressive titles fail because their teams didn’t trust their motives. I’ve also seen leaders without formal authority shape culture because people trusted their judgment and their values. Character shows up in small moments: • Do you tell the whole truth? • Do you give credit and take responsibility? • Do you stay consistent under stress? Over time, those choices define you far more than your title ever will. Titles are assigned. Character is revealed. #AuthenticLeadership #TrueNorth #Leadership #Integrity

Values are easy to frame on a wall. They’re harder to live with when pressure hits — when earnings fall, when activists call, when competitors cut corners. That’s when values stop being slogans and start becoming decisions. In Authentic Leadership, I wrote that integrity means telling the whole truth — not just the convenient part. It means staying within your core values even as market pressure closes in. Anyone can talk about purpose in good times. Authentic leaders rely on it when the stakes are highest. The real test of leadership isn’t what you say when it’s easy. It’s what you do when it isn’t. #AuthenticLeadership #TrueNorth #Leadership #Integrity For more insights on authentic leadership, visit billgeorge.org.

Yesterday, Thomas Friedman quoted me in his The New York Times column on the remarkable wave of civic action that swept across Minnesota in response to ICE raids this winter. Over the past months, ordinary people across the Twin Cities showed up for one another — driving neighbors' kids to school, helping families cover rent and groceries, sustaining local businesses under strain. No headlines, no press releases. Just people deciding that someone had to act, and that they were someone. What struck me most: this movement had hundreds of leaders, and almost none of their names are known. That's worth sitting with. In a moment when so much of public life revolves around recognition and self-promotion, it's heartening to see that some people still lead without needing to be seen. Leadership doesn't require a title, a platform, or public recognition. It requires only the decision to take responsibility for the people around you. Link to full article here:

Bruce Springsteen kicked off his nationwide tour in Minneapolis, Rousing the crowd with “Streets of Minneapolis,” his new signature song. As he sings, “In this land we will take our stand for the stranger in our midst.” Minneapolis citizens did just that and Renee Good and Alex Pretti gave their lives trying to help those strangers. File:///var/mobile/Library/SMS/Attachments/e6/06/at_0_96F3CF03-A9AB-419D-9994-93F7126BE2B7/IMG_5932.MOV

Thank you for sharing, Shannon

A powerful concert by Bruce Springsteen last night in Minneapolis

There's a transition every leader has to make — and most people don't talk about it directly enough. Early in your career, success is almost entirely individual. Your grades. Your performance reviews. Your accomplishments. The world measures you as a solo act, so you optimize accordingly. Then something shifts. Or it should. The leaders I've seen go from good to great are the ones who made the move from I to We. From ""how do I look?"" to ""how do the people I lead grow?"" From competing to coaching. From needing credit to building others up. That shift doesn't happen automatically with a promotion. I've met CEOs still running on the I model. It happens when you consciously decide that your success is now measured by what you help others achieve. That's when real leadership begins. billgeorge.org.

I joined Yahoo Finance Market Domination to talk about Shantanu Narayen's transition at Adobe — and what it reveals about board governance and CEO succession. We also got into the bigger question: how should leaders navigate this moment — AI disruption, a war in Iran, rising energy costs, and the real risk of recession or stagflation? My take on all of it: https://yhoo.it/4sjqOMK Josh Lipton #Leadership #AI #CEOAdvice #CorporateGovernance #Adobe #ShantanuNarayen

Thank you Susan. You are most kind. Bill