A leader’s gift needs to be special because it is really not about monetary things. A leader shares his knowledge, his gifts of collaboration with everyone with whom he or she comes in contact, his or her creativity and ability to turn creativity into action, and an ability to see beyond the walls of his or her organization. In this holiday season, I want to share my gifts to you—my colleagues, my friends, and my readers. As I just watched a beautiful sunset on the patio of my Florida apartment this beautiful warm December day, I realized that my first gift is the ability to see all the beauty around us and appreciate all that this world has to offer us. The world offers us peace, respite, and ability to unwind each day as light slowly moves towards the calmness of the evening. I give you the ability to learn new things each day throughout your life and to know how to make those new ideas enhance and enrich your life. I give you the value and good feelings when you share yourself through mentoring and coaching. I give you access to the books of the world and their ability to make you more knowledgeable and increase the ways in which you will learn from the approaches taken by other leaders. I give you the gift of collaboration and the ability to develop new relationships and to learn the skills of working together and making our communities stronger. I give you the tools of creativity and the knowledge that each of us has areas of our lives where creativity thrives. I give you the gift of knowing how to make your creative acts enhance the lives of others.
This is a special time of year. It is clearly a time to count our blessings. It is a time to make our spirits soar as we get ready to make next year a special year for you and everyone with whom you share yourself and your leadership.
