I celebrated my 55th birthday on October 25th, and my mind always turns to the fact that this day was once known as the Feast Day of St. Crispin. On this day in 1415, Henry V and his underdog British, outmanned at least four to one, fought and won a crushing defeat over Charles VI of France at the Battle of Agincourt.

The United States is unique among the nations of the world in that it hardly seems that they finish a national election then candidates are already lining up ready for the next one four years later. Since President Clinton left the White House in January of 2001, the widely accepted wisdom was that his wife Hillary Clinton would run in 2008.

Jack Stahl is one of America's most successful young CEOs, managing both Coca-Cola and Revlon by the age of 50. But one of the primary concepts of Ideal Leadership is the Leadership Condition of "place" - which means that an individual needs to find the domain where they best fit. In this case, Stahl should stick to the boardroom and stay out of the writing room.

If management wants to improve in any area of performance, it is important to not disrupt present operations. The best technique is to find little things that can make a big difference.