Often people freeze under severe pressure, but that says nothing about their ultimate capability- only their level of preparation.

There is a common misconception that intelligence is synonymous with IQ. "Intelligence Quotient" or IQ was originally built to predict the academic aptitude of schoolchildren, and is nothing more than a measure of the skills needed for academic success. Intelligence, however, is a much broader concept that encompasses a person's level of skill for any of a number of subjects.

In the past there was not much social acceptance of men taking a primary care taking role at home. That has changed, and along with it, the opportunities for mothers to take on more demanding executive roles.

The intelligence gap is essentially a shortage of executives with superior thinking skills who are needed by every business, as compared with the number of decision-making positions available.

CEOs must master three essential attributes, realistic optimism, subservience to purpose, and finding order in chaos. One's capacity in each determines their ability to cope with today's business environment.

Research has shown that one's level of intelligence is the single most predictive component of professional success - better than any other ability, trait, or even job experience. Yet, too often, employees are selected because of their likeability, presence, or charisma.

The development and/or revelation of a CEO's potential for great leadership requires slow escalations of experiences that involve pressure, each time given the tools to succeed. Successful experience breeds confidence, as well as an eventual restlessness to try more.