Hermetas

03/19/2026

02/20/2026

150 Years of Robert’s Rules of Order

Today, "Thursday, February 19, 2026, we mark the 150th anniversary of the first publication of Robert’s Rules of Order in 1876. For 150 years, this book has helped groups hold fair, organized, and effective meetings. That is an extraordinary legacy for a book written by an Army engineer. Who Was General Robert? Henry Martyn Robert was a general in the United States Army Corps of Engineers. He was not trained as a lawyer or politician. He became interested in meeting procedure after being asked to preside over a church meeting that quickly became confusing and disorderly."

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This Thursday, February 19, 2026, we mark the 150th anniversary of the first publication of Robert’s Rules of Order in 1876. For 150 years, this book has helped groups hold fair, organized, and effective meetings. That is an extraordinary legacy for a book written by an Army engineer. Who Was Gene...

02/18/2026

02/17/2026

AIP Washington State meeting this evening...

American Institute of Parliamentarians

01/08/2026

"You Don’t Have To Start Now

Every January, we’re handed a script. New year. Fresh start. Clean slate. Set the goals. Make the resolutions. Declare the change. The ball drops on New Year’s Eve, and with it an unspoken expectation that something decisive should happen—that we should be different now. Better. Clearer. More disciplined. More committed.

But the truth is Jan. 1 is just a date on the calendar, an arbitrary marker we’ve collectively agreed upon. Despite that, many leaders feel pressure to begin, ready or not. Resist the urge.

Message from Bill Forest, [Leadership Circle]

Over the years, I’ve noticed how many leaders start the year already feeling behind. Behind on clarity. Behind on energy. Behind on whatever they believe they were supposed to have figured out by now. In fact, I remember once talking with a leader just after the New Year who said to me that the year was basically over already. That kind of pressure doesn’t come from within—it comes from the story we’ve inherited about how beginnings are supposed to work.

Here's the truth: Leadership doesn’t require performative resets. And growth doesn’t happen on command.

In nature, winter is not a season of visible productivity. It’s a season of incubation. Roots deepen. Energy consolidates. Systems prepare—quietly—for what will come next. We rarely grant ourselves the same permission.

Instead, we try to force momentum before meaning has had a chance to surface. We push ourselves—and our teams—into motion without first asking: What’s actually ready to move?

When leaders bypass their own internal timing, they tend to lead from obligation rather than alignment. Decisions feel heavy. Goals feel imposed. And movement—while perhaps visible—rarely feels fully alive. But when leaders honor their own rhythm, something shifts. Clarity strengthens. Commitment steadies. Movement becomes meaningful.

So, if you find yourself this month not quite ready to “start”—good. That may be wisdom, not resistance.

Some leaders may feel energized right now, ready to act. Others may feel quieter, more contemplative, more aware of what needs sorting before action makes sense. Neither is better. Neither is behind. Leadership isn’t about syncing yourself to an external clock.

As this year begins—whether your beginning feels clear or unsettled—I invite you to resist the urge to rush. Resist the narrative that says now is the only acceptable time to begin, that if you’re not ready today or this year, you never will be. Give yourself permission to listen before you move. Even if it's just for a moment.

When we lead from a place that’s aligned, grounded, and internally authored, our leadership takes on a different quality. It lasts. It matters. And it carries others forward.

You don’t have to start now.
Trust yourself. You’ll know when it’s time.

09/05/2025

“You have to decide who you’re going to disappoint.”

Years ago, Bob Anderson and I were talking—one of thousands of conversations we’ve had about the business—when he shared a story that stopped me in my tracks. At the time, I was tangled up in a situation that, no matter how hard I tried, wasn’t going to resolve neatly. I was caught in the trap of trying to make everything OK for everyone, to meet unreachable standards, and to hold it all together.

With just a handful of words, Bob reframed how I think about leadership, perfection, and the futility of trying to make everyone happy.

He told me about a lunch he’d had years earlier with his friend and mentor Peter Block. True to form, Peter skipped the small talk. “How old are you now?” he asked. “Fifty-five,” Bob replied. Without hesitation Peter said, “Ah, then you’re at the age where you have to decide who you’re going to disappoint.”

That line landed hard for Bob—and just as hard for me when he passed it on. Leadership often feels like an unrelenting pull toward perfection: pleasing everyone, meeting every demand, making no mistakes. But sooner or later we hit the truth—there’s no way to satisfy everyone and everything. In those moments, the question must shift from How do I get everything right? to What really matters most?

Peter pressed further: “Fifteen years from now, you’ll be 70. What do you want to do between now and then? And who will you have to disappoint in order to do it?”

That’s the pivot. That’s when perfectionism starts to loosen its grip—not because we stop caring, but because we start choosing. We choose what matters most. We choose where to put our energy. We choose to lead with intention, not obligation.

Perfect, as a dimension of the Leadership Circle Profile®, reflects our drive for high standards. That drive can fuel excellence—but when it becomes tied to self-worth, it runs us into overdrive. We end up exhausted, isolated, and frustrated with ourselves and others. The leadership move is not to abandon excellence but to hold it in balance: to choose consciously, to delegate, to release appearances, and perhaps most importantly, to disappoint.

So today I invite you to ask: What do you want to do with your time, your leadership, your life? And who might you need to disappoint to make that possible?

It’s not easy. But it is freeing. And it’s the beginning of a different kind of leadership—the kind rooted in purpose, not pressure.


Bill Adams
CEO, Leadership Circle
Leadership Circle

06/28/2025

Message from Bill Adams, CEO, Leadership Circle

"What moves you? What moves your team?

It’s one of the most important questions a leader can ask. Because leadership, at its core, is the act of inspiring movement—of self, of teams, of organizations, of communities, even of society.

But too often, we confuse movement with momentum. We think if people are busy, things are happening. If plans are in motion, progress must be underway. If the calendar’s full, we must be getting somewhere. Not necessarily.

Real movement—the kind that matters—isn’t driven by force. It isn’t imposed from the outside. It’s activated from within.

That’s the heart of the Reactive-to-Creative shift. It’s a movement away from fear, reactivity, and control—and toward purpose, vision, and contribution. One that begins with personal transformation and ripples outward—into how we work, how we connect, and the future we choose to build.

I’ve seen it time and again. When a leader commits to going inward—leading with authenticity and intention—something shifts. They begin to move. And because that movement is real and grounded, it moves others.

Teams begin to trust.
Organizations begin to align.
Communities begin to believe that better is possible.

So, if you’re wondering how to get things moving—really moving—start here:
What’s moving you right now?
Are you leading from purpose or pressure?
Are you inviting people into possibility—or pushing them toward productivity?
As leaders, we must make the shift into Creative leadership—turning intention into momentum, and momentum into meaningful, lasting impact. Then, and only then, is our movement anchored in purpose. Because Creative leaders don't just move things forward. They move things that matter.

Are you ready to move?"

06/11/2025

Parliamentary Fundamentals 101 is back! This four-session course returns in July to teach parliamentary procedure basics. Recordings of the sessions will be available, so even if you miss a class you won't miss a thing! Registration is open now: https://nap.users.membersuite.com/events/3206a755-0078-c28b-7f5f-0b483d8fee93/details

05/29/2025

Leadership Is a Long Game

As we embrace the warmer weather here in North America and head toward summer, we reflect on what gardens and great leadership have in common. Both require patience, intention, and a deep commitment to growth. In this season of cultivation, how do we dig in and invest in what truly matters?

A message from Bill Adams...

This time of year, I find myself watching the garden take shape.

The soil’s been turned. Seeds are in the ground. Tiny green shoots are just beginning to break through. Nothing happens overnight—but everything is happening. Quietly. Persistently. Beneath the surface.

Leadership is like this, too. It’s not just about quick wins or visible results. It’s about what we’re cultivating over time—within ourselves, and with those we lead.

The best leaders I know understand this: performance doesn’t start with strategy—it starts with depth. When we do our own inner work of development, we lead with greater clarity, purpose, and presence. We become more intentional about what we plant. More discerning about what needs tending. More willing to clear what no longer serves.

That’s why at Leadership Circle we say: Go deep to play big. Because when you go deep—into your values, your patterns, your leadership identity—you unlock what makes your leadership most effective. You don’t just drive results. You grow capacity. In yourself. In your team. In your culture.

So, as you dig out your garden supplies, organize your greenhouse, and pore over seed catalogs and vegetable starts, I invite you to consider:

What are you planting? Are you making space for growth through self-reflection?
What needs watering? What are you cultivating within yourself and your team?
And what’s taking up space in your garden that you might need to w**d out?
Leadership is a long game. And the leaders who make the most lasting impact are the ones who know that growth doesn’t happen on the surface. It begins underground. And now is always the best time to start planting.

Here’s to the season ahead—and the deep work that makes big things grow.

Bill Adams
CEO, Leadership Circle

03/29/2025

Washington State Association of Parliamentarians Annual Meeting