Legendary basketball player and broadcaster Bill Walton, who died of cancer this past weekend at the age of 71, is remembered by Inc. contributing editor Jeff Haden as a great leader who focused on finding his happiness in the success of others. Since no one ever succeeds alone, Haden observes, living and leading by such a rule "will make us more successful. And happier."

Put it into practice: Despite being a two-time NCAA champion, a three-time national college basketball player of the year and a successful broadcaster, Walton kept a humble perspective, Haden writes. When Walton won the NBA's Sixth Man award while playing for the Boston Celtics, he remarked, "Which means I was Larry Bird's valet."

You can assess the quality of your workplace culture by measuring it against five levels of what S. Chris Edmonds calls "workplace inspiration" that run from cultures of dysfunction that feature open disagreement and intimidation to cultures of validation where teams respect each other and cooperate. Use annual custom assessments to "provide insights into how employees perceive your culture," Edmonds recommends.

Put it into practice: To move from a culture based on tension and conflict to one where respect and cooperation are the norm use an outside entity to interview leaders and team members annually about what's working and what needs to change, Edmonds recommends. "Only then can leaders begin to implement practices and then hold everyone accountable for a validating and respectful work culture."

Good managers make for great companies, according to Gallup research, which shows top management skills include putting people in the right jobs to match their talents, nurturing their top performers and managing team members' weaknesses so they can focus on success. "In this nirvana, employees glide through their tasks with ease, buoyed by the knowledge that their strengths are recognized and their quirks accommodated," writes Eric Barker.

Put it into practice: Great managers don't rely on a "one-size-fits-all" way of treating their team, Barker writes. Instead, they ask each member what they need and provide that support, which may be different from person to person.

Mediating conflict. Most of you (80%) either offer to mediate conflict between team members if they want you to (49%) while another 27% of you jump in to mediate without asking. If you're one of those who jumps in, recognize you're depriving them of a skill-building opportunity. The better they learn to mediate conflict on their own, the less of it you'll deal with and the less of it you'll have.

Try taking a step back and pause before jumping in. Perhaps offer "It seems like there's some conflict between you two. If you'd like my help in resolving it, let me know and I'm happy to engage." Leave it up to them to see if they can resolve it on their own or if they want assistance.

While having conflict on a team isn't fun, having a team that can't resolve it on their own is an even bigger headache.

-- Mike Figliuolo is managing director of thoughtLEADERS, which includes TITAN -- the firm's e-learning platform. Previously, he worked at McKinsey & Co., Capital One and Scotts Miracle-Gro. He is a West Point graduate and author of three leadership books: "One Piece of Paper," "Lead Inside the Box" and "The Elegant Pitch."

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, the former CEO of Celebrity Cruises and current president and CEO of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Miami Host Committee, says the pressure of women advancing to a CEO position, especially if they're the first in their industry, can be paralyzing, but argues for the elimination of the term "imposter syndrome," because it implies women's advancement especially is not deserved. "Let's frame it in terms of courage and how important courage is in everything we do, in every decision we make, in every position we have," Lutoff-Perlo says.

Researchers say that in addition to other remarkable skills, carrion crows can count aloud. The researchers trained the birds to caw one to four times in response to seeing numerals or hearing a cue, and although the crows were correct most of the time, they did sometimes lose track, and researchers say the skill is not exactly like the kind of counting humans do but instead is more of a precursor.

If you've been in the workforce for any length of time, you've had a bad manager. Either they micromanage, or they're entirely absent or they treat everyone the same no matter their level of talent.

Eric Barker's take on the Gallup research into what makes for a good manager is eye-opening. I especially like his take on handling your team like a casting director. This means putting each member in their best role. If someone is great with computers, you don't put them in a sales position (where they will ultimately fail); you put them in IT, where they will rock!

"A manager's job isn't to perfect people but to capitalize on their uniqueness," Barker writes. "They're trying to make people into more of who they already are."

When I've had managers who did this (and my current managers are stellar at it), my engagement and job satisfaction go through the roof. Let your people do what they love to do, and as Barker writes, they'll be "happier, vastly more productive, and less likely to steal all the good pens."

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