Meredith Persily Lamel, coauthor of The Six Paths to Leadership: Lessons from Successful Executives, Politicians, Entrepreneurs, and More, discusses the different paths leaders take to arrive at their formal positions of authority, why those paths matter, and the opportunities and challenges inherent in each path so leaders can create more personal satisfaction and greater organizational success.

Michael Siegel, retiring FJC Sr. Education Specialist and author of The President as Leader, applies a four-part leadership framework to modern presidencies to analyze what makes a successful leader, whether in the White House or the courthouse. He also has observations and advice for court leaders gained over thirty-three years at the FJC. 

Dr. Michael Siegel, Senior Education Specialist, Federal Judicial Center, created the Leadership Development Program for U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services Officers (LDP) in the mid-1990s. Since that time over 1,000 officers have graduated from the program, many of whom have gone on to lead their districts as chiefs, deputies, and supervisory officers. Through LDP and other programs, Dr. Siegel is, in large part, responsible for creating a culture of leadership in U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services. Over his more than thirty-year career at the Federal Judicial Center, he has conducted leadership seminars with virtually every part of the court family: judges of all kinds, clerks of court, court executives, and the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. His portfolio of programs and projects includes many other topics as well. In this episode of Off Paper, Dr. Siegel discusses LDP’s origins, the characteristics of good leaders, and his perspective on leadership generally and within the federal courts.

Julie Zhuo, former Vice President of Product Design at Facebook and author of The Making of a Manager:  What to Do When Everyone Looks to You, shares her experiences transitioning to management and asserts that managers are made, not born. Julie describes a path that includes approaching management with a growth mindset, acknowledging what you don’t know, and seeking input and feedback from those that do.