Priceless leadership lessons from a $6M banana

Skipping lunch breaks might seem like a time-saver, but it often results in burnout, reduced focus and health issues, writes Allison Dunn, the founder of Deliberate Directions. Without proper breaks, leaders risk fatigue, increased errors and long-term health problems, which can ultimately diminish productivity, Dunn writes.

Trained dogs with the USDA's Maryland Detector Dog Program are helping conservationists find a tiny, rare orchid in the Chesapeake Bay watershed so that its habitat can be protected. Dogs with motivation and an ability to work in water are chosen for the program and trained to sit and bark when they smell an orchid's leaves.

Charlotte Water, Town Brewing and Xylem have launched Renew Brew, a beer made with recycled water, at select locations in North Carolina. The beer is made from Charlotte Water's QC Water, which undergoes an extensive purification process with carbon filtration, reverse osmosis and ozone and ultraviolet treatment. "Usually, highly treated effluent from one of our wastewater treatment plants would be discharged into a nearby creek, so we're incredibly excited it now has the capacity to be transformed into a water source for beer," said Charlotte Water's Angela Charles.

My take Friday on what Christmas carols can teach us about leadership, based on Scott Cochrane's article, got some creative juices flowing.

Martin L. wrote in to contribute two more: "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" teaches you to be wary of the unexpected. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" teaches that perceived inadequacies are often our greatest strengths.

Kathy F. added on to the "Rudolph" lessons, writing that it teaches us "the value of searching down or outside of the standard ranks to find the right person for the job and the necessity of finding the right person for the job."

Kathy had more, though:

• "Frosty the Snowman" -- the value of finding the right material (Frosty's hat was made of silk, which conducts electricity), and you need to have the right material (talking points, etc.) to spread the magic of your message.
• "Jingle Bells" -- no matter the situation (windy, chained to others, falling into a ditch), there is great value in having fun.
• "White Christmas" -- the value of communicating with others.

Thanks for having some fun with me on these. Remember, leadership lessons are everywhere if we have the eyes to see them and the ears to hear them. Oh, maybe that could be the lesson "Do You Hear What I Hear?"

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