Quintus Curtius

When you are leading, you have to make the big decisions. You have to make the call, not sit back and cover your ass. That's why you're there.

In this podcast, we discuss:

1. Why you need to know your job and lead from the front.

2. Why your total focus should be on obligations, not your privileges.

3. Why the ass-covering mentality is so destructive.

This podcast is a reading of H.G. Wells's short story "The Door In The Wall." Published in 1911, it is considered one of his finest short pieces. It describes a young boy's discovery of a secret door that led to an enchanted land, and the effect that this secret revelation had on the rest of his life.

In this podcast, I read two short poems by William Butler Yeats. Listen, relax, and let your mind roam to some other place.

This podcast is a reading of A. Conan Doyle's terrifying tale "The Brazilian Cat." Published in 1898, the story describes the ordeal of a young heir to a fortune who is deliberately locked in a cage with a ferocious jungle cat by a sinister relative determined to murder him.

In this podcast, I read H.G. Wells's short story "The Flowering of the Strange Orchid." It is a weird tale of imaginative fiction that relates the story of a mild-mannered orchid enthusiast who buys an unknown species of jungle orchid. As he cultivates it, he finds out that he got more than he bargained for.

When things have reached a state of paralysis or gridlock, it is often necessary to shatter the paralysis by taking decisive, muscular action. Real leaders do not sit on their hands and wait to test the prevailing winds of opinion. Have the moral courage to act. Many today who call themselves "leaders" ignore or have forgotten this principle. This podcast discusses three examples taken from Winston Churchill's "The World Crisis." They show how he harnessed this principle in 1919 to break through the paralysis that had come to surround some critical issues.

In this podcast, I read H.G. Wells's short story "The Diamond Maker." The tale raises questions about the price that creative people have to pay for their efforts. Have a listen, and see what you think.

You asked for it, and you got it. This is the latest installment in the G Manifesto tweet reading podcasts, and it's called "Lockdown Edition." Tune in and catch the vibe.

I state what I believe are the six most critical leadership traits that anyone in a position of authority needs to master. They can be applied to nearly any circumstance or situation.

This is a crucial moment. You will be judged by how you conduct yourself over the next few months. As for philosophy, you want to talk the talk, but have you really internalized the messages? We discuss shipwrecks, some lessons from the movie "The Edge," and the crucial importance of maintaining a rigorous, disciplined schedule. More than ever before, you have to be self-starter. Your time is now.