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James M. Kouzes
Jim Kouzes has been thinking about leadership ever since he was one of only a dozen Eagle Scouts to be selected to serve in John F. Kennedy's honor guard when Kennedy was inaugurated President of the United States. Kennedy's inaugural call to action — "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." — inspired Jim to join the Peace Corps, and he taught school in Turkey for two years.
That experience made Jim realize that he wanted a career that offered two things: the chance to teach and the opportunity to serve. It was in his first job back in the U.S. training community action agency managers that Jim found his calling, and he has devoted his life to leadership development ever since. Jim is a best-selling author, an award-winning speaker, and The Wall Street Journal has called him one of the twelve best executive educators in the United States. His current interests are youth leadership development—because there's a new generation of Millennials joining the workforce; deliberate practice—because talent is highly overrated and because it takes time and effort to become the best; and grit—because these are tough times and it takes passion and persistence to weather the storm. These are also values his parents instilled in him at an early age.
With his wife, Tae, an experienced and talented executive coach, Jim is also examining how leaders can daily improve their practice through three-minute drills, much like those used by athletic coaches. You can reach Jim via email at jim@kouzes.com.