Leadership Isn’t About Credit — It’s About Character🏛️

I’ve enjoyed using quotes from five American presidents this week — words of wisdom from leaders who understood the weight of responsibility and the privilege of service. Today’s quote, paired with Truman’s famous reminder that “the buck stops here,” tells us nearly everything we need to know about managing people.

·       Taking personal responsibility when things go wrong is the kind of integrity that fuels teamwork and trust.

·       Giving credit freely and generously allows others to grow in the glow of success.

From the earliest days of the American republic, strong and unselfish leaders have endured hardship, made difficult choices, and stood for what was right — not for personal gain, but for the greater good. Their words and deeds remind us what principled leadership looks like, and what it does not.

Strong, effective leadership never goes out of style. In public service or in business, it’s what makes people proud to belong. Pride fuels engagement, and engagement fuels excellence. I’ve worked in an organization where employees at every level were proud to say where they worked — and the energy that created was motivating, inspiring, and transformative. That’s when great things happen.

If your hands are on the wheel of the bus, make it your purpose to develop leaders by title and role models by choice — people who are proud of what they do and inspire others to feel the same. Make that your responsibility and give others the credit for making it happen today.

Harry S. Truman (1884 – 1972): American politician who was the 33rd president of the United States; he implemented the Marshall Plan in the aftermath of World War II and established both the Truman Doctrine and NATO to contain the expansion of Soviet communism. 

Know What You Don’t Know 📚 And Grow 🚀

Early in my career, I learned the value of knowing what you don’t know. That simple awareness keeps you humble, curious, open to delegation, and honest about your own development. It reinforces the truth that two heads really are better than one — and people respect leaders who admit it.

·       It’s humbling to recognize your limits. It keeps you from speaking just to speak and allows others with deeper expertise to shine.

·       It fuels curiosity. When you see the gaps, you naturally want to fill them — and that’s how careers grow.

·       It encourages delegation. When everyone contributes their strengths, the whole team moves forward.

·       And it keeps you focused on what’s still out there to learn — the fuel of long‑term growth.

This applies everywhere, but especially at work. Collaboration blends backgrounds, experiences, and expertise into something no one person could produce alone.

The Mirage opening was a lesson in admitting what we didn’t know so that we could discover what we needed to know. It was humbling to do that on such a large stage. But it was the only way we could grow enough to succeed. Supported by our leaders. Supported by each other.

As a participant, choose the role that lets your strengths shine without exposing your weaknesses — and learn as you go.

As a leader, orchestrate your team: understanding each person’s knowledge, skills, and abilities so the group performs at its best.

Sports coaches know they need strength at every position, not duplication. Managing people is no different. The goal is to put the right pieces together, so the team performs at its highest level today.

Woodrow Wilson (1856 – 1924): American politician and the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. 

Fast Trust. Strong Teams. Better Results. ⚡️🏆

In most of life, relationships form slowly. We meet people by chance, get to know them gradually, and decide over time who we trust. But the workplace doesn’t offer that luxury. Teams must build familiarity, trust, and cooperation quickly — often with people they’ve never met before. That’s why leaders can’t leave team building to chance.

When I scheduled new employee orientation every Monday, attendance wasn’t optional. It was the first step in setting people up for success. We wanted every new hire to feel welcomed, informed, and confident before they ever stepped onto the floor.

After orientation, managers personally picked up their new employees, introduced them to the work areas, and formally welcomed them into the team. And at the start of their first shift, we made sure additional introductions happened so no one began their job as a stranger.

Those early moments matter. They set the tone for how quickly trust forms.

Managers and supervisors play a critical role in this process. They facilitate introductions, use ice‑breaking techniques, and guide early interactions. Throughout the 90‑day introductory period, they coach, observe, support, and provide feedback — not as a courtesy, but as a business necessity. Strong teams don’t just improve morale; they directly impact guest satisfaction and operational performance.

Work is society’s ultimate melting pot. You don’t get to choose who you work with. You learn to collaborate with people who look different, think differently, and come from different backgrounds. Those differences, when embraced, enrich the final product — whether it’s a tangible item or a customer experience.

That’s why leaders must ensure their managers are trained to build effective teams. Teamwork doesn’t happen automatically. It’s created intentionally, nurtured consistently, and strengthened every day.

And when it works, accountability rises, performance improves, and the team becomes far more than the sum of its parts today.

Abraham Lincoln (1809 – 1865): American politician who was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until his assassination in 1865.

Grownups Wanted. Accountability Required. 💼🔥

Most employee handbooks are filled with pages of rules about what people shouldn’t do. They try to anticipate every possible misstep, as if employees can’t be trusted to use judgment or common sense. But leadership works better when expectations are framed the way Adams framed them: simple, direct, and focused on what people should do.

To be good means embracing qualities that elevate the workplace and everyone in it — compassion, integrity, empathy, kindness. It means understanding that your actions affect not just your own success, but the well‑being of the company, its owners, its employees, its customers, and the community it serves.

To do good means acting with purpose and responsibility. It means following the rules, supporting the team, contributing to the common good, and being a force for positive outcomes. It’s not complicated — it’s character in action.

Is all we have to do doesn’t mean “only this.” It means “at minimum this.” It’s the baseline for being part of a healthy, functioning workplace.

Employees working alone should do their best. Employees working in teams should help others do their best as well. That’s the essence of accountability — not just for your own work, but for the success of the people around you.

Companies often overcomplicate this. They create long lists of rules to cover every scenario, as though employees can’t connect simple principles to daily behavior. I believe the opposite: keep it simple, and trust people to rise to the standard.

In addition to Adam’s statement, consider adding the Golden Rule to your handbook: treat others — and their things — the way you want to be treated. Everyone learned it growing up. Everyone knows exactly what it means.

Work, like life, depends on people knowing right from wrong. Treat employees like adults. Expect them to act like adults. And hold them to that standard today.

John Adams (1735 – 1826): Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801.

Great Teams Don’t Happen by Accident — Leaders Build Them 🏗️🌟

Leaders never want their teams to believe that the only way something will get done right is if they do it themselves. When that happens, trust erodes, burnout rises, and the organization becomes dependent on a single pair of hands instead of the collective strength of the team.

That’s why hiring right, training right, and building team spirit right aren’t optional — they’re the foundation of everything that follows.

Hiring right is both a science and an art. The science is selecting the right people for the right reasons. The art is making sure they fit the team they’re joining — not just in skill, but in attitude, values, and the way they show up for others.

Training right means more than teaching tasks. It’s giving people time to practice, coaching them as they discover their strengths, and helping them build confidence in what they can contribute. Training is where expectations become habits.

Building team spirit is where it all comes together. It’s the moment new employees begin to see themselves as part of something bigger — working with a shared purpose, watching each other’s backs, and learning how to win together.

That’s why the full 90‑day onboarding experience matters so much. It’s not a checklist. It’s a developmental runway. It’s where individuals learn how their skills blend with and complement the skills of the people around them. Daily practice, continuous coaching, and catching people doing things right create the muscle memory that leads to great habits.

Of course, even the best leaders make hiring mistakes. When someone struggles to fit, coaching comes first. Sometimes a team change helps. Sometimes it doesn’t. But waiting too long risks letting someone drift into isolation — and no one wins alone.

Because when teamwork and team spirit take hold, performance soars. Employees thrive. Customers feel the difference. Whether you’re winning hockey games or beating business competitors, the truth is the same: success belongs to the team that works — and wins — together today.

George Washington (1732 - 1799): American commander of the Continental Army, Founding Father, first president of the United States, and commonly known as the Father of the Nation.  

When You Invest in People, They Build the Future 🏗️🔧🌟

Before The Mirage opened, we were told to brace ourselves.

Experts predicted it could take a year before operations stabilized. We were warned to expect no‑shows, inconsistent communication, system glitches, policy confusion, and high turnover. In other words: prepare for chaos.

We chose a different path.

Instead of obsessing over what might go wrong, we doubled down on what could go right. We hired for attitude and trained for skill. We treated employees like guests. We invested heavily in new‑hire training. We communicated simply and consistently. And from day one, we made it a habit to catch people doing things right.

The results were undeniable.

Ninety‑eight percent of the people we offered jobs to accepted — and showed up. Our training investment paid off with higher‑than‑expected productivity and customer service. Clear communication kept everyone aligned. Trust grew quickly. And on the first anniversary of opening, nearly 90% of the original staff were still with us.

By six months, the property was humming. By twelve, business was so strong that Steve Wynn announced plans to build another 3,000 rooms to meet demand. That expansion led to Treasure Island less than four years later, and Bellagio — the first multi‑billion‑dollar resort — four years after that.

Here’s the part that mattered most:

Those new properties were staffed largely through promotion from within. Growth created opportunity, and opportunity created loyalty.

From the Golden Nugget to Mirage, Treasure Island, and Bellagio, we grew to 54,000 employees. They weren’t just part of the brand — they were the brand. Buildings attract guests once. Great employees bring them back.

We amplified what was great in our people. And they amplified the company in return. That message mattered then, and it still matters today.

Brendon Burchard (born 1977):  American high-performance coach, motivational speaker, podcaster, and author who has coached presidents, Olympians, and the Dalai Lama. 

Make It So Your Workforce Can Be Seen and Heard 🎯

Long before the crowds lined up outside The Mirage, long before the volcano erupted on cue or the white tigers took their place on stage, there was a quieter worry sitting in the back of my mind.

Everything about this project was enormous — the building, the expectations, the stakes. But the biggest challenge wasn’t the size of the resort. It was the size of the workforce. Thousands of new employees, many brand‑new to the company, some brand new to Las Vegas, all stepping into a company that promised to be different. My fear was simple: if we didn’t give them structure, clarity, and connection from day one, the scale of the place would swallow them whole.

So, we started small.

We broke every department into groups, each one no more than twenty employees. Each group had a leader — someone they met on day one, sat with at orientation, trained with, toured with, leaned on. In a building designed to impress millions, we created pockets of twenty where people could breathe, ask questions, and build trust. It made the Mirage feel human‑sized.

Then we did something even more radical. We told managers that if they asked employees to do something, they had to be ready to explain why. And if they couldn’t, employees had permission to say no. It wasn’t rebellion — it was discipline. It forced managers to plan, communicate, and think. It built respect faster than any memo ever could.

And we doubled down on the belief that employee satisfaction drives guest satisfaction. So, we built a back‑of‑house that matched the front. The nicest restaurant on the property wasn’t for guests — it was the staff dining room. We wanted employees to feel valued the moment they walked in the door, because people who feel valued take better care of guests.

We paid attention to what mattered early, because we knew that if we didn’t, we’d spend far more time later trying to fix what we ignored.

Starting strong isn’t a luxury — it’s the foundation for everything that follows. Plan well. Think critically. Set priorities with intention. Treat people right from the beginning.

Do it early so you don’t lose momentum today.

David Allen (born 1945):  American bestselling author and executive coach who specializes in personal and organizational productivity.