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Independent business blogs are blogs that aren't supported by an organization like a magazine, newspaper, company, or business school. Those people provide lots of great content, but they don't need any additional exposure. In this post, every week, I bring you posts of quality from excellent bloggers that don't get as much publicity.

This week, I'm pointing you to posts on learning about leadership from Nuisance the Cat, dealing with expectations, a leadership meditation, the moment between, and why you should try a technology-free retreat.

From Gwyn Teatro: Four Leadership Reminders from Nuisance the Cat
"Her name is Nuisance.  She just turned up one day at our window, a little black cat with bowlegs and signs of the stress that spending too long outside alone can bring."

From Ed Batista: When Christmas Bites, Bite Back
"Much of my work as an executive coach and with my MBA students at Stanford involves helping people grapple with the belief that their life should be different in some way because it fails to conform to a set of expectations--their own or those of other people--or that they should (or shouldn't) pursue a particular course of action because it's demanded (or forbidden) by some preconceived narrative that they're supposed to follow."

From Terry "Starbucker" St. Marie: In Praise Of The Open Mind: A Year-End Meditation on Leadership
"It’s that time for reflection – on the year that is about to pass, and what’s to come in the year ahead."

From Jesse Lyn Stoner: Pause, The Moment of Between
It is the winter solstice – the darkest day of the darkest week of the year in the northern hemisphere. It is the moment before the balance shifts and light begins to overtake darkness. The darkness has been particularly difficult this week, in the face of horrific tragedy, loss and suffering. And yet, even in the darkness, great kindness, support and generosity of spirit emerge."

From Mary Jo Asmus: Try a personal technology-free retreat
"Seriously, as an extrovert, I really never imagined I’d appreciate getting away from the internet, television, cell phones, and the din of everyday life. In the last few years, I’ve come to appreciate the quiet and freedom of thought that an extended period away from all things that crowd introspection and creativity out."

That's it for this week's selections from independent business blogs. If you liked this piece you may enjoy my regular post on "Leadership Reading to Start Your Week" points you to choice articles from the business schools, the business press and major consulting firms. The last issue had pointers to articles about leadership, stories about Red Bull, Spin Master, Fresh Choice, Brenda Barnes, Carol Bartz, and entrepreneurship as well as surveys, studies, statistics, and lists.

How I Select Posts for this Midweek Review

The five posts I select to share in my Midweek Review of the Independent Business Blogs are picked from a regular review of about sixty blogs I check daily and an additional twenty-five or so that I check occasionally. Here's how I select the posts you see in this review.

They must be published within the previous week.

They must support the purpose of the blog: to help leaders at all levels do a better job and lead a better life.

They must be from an independent business blog.

As a general rule, I only select posts that stand on their own, no selections from a series.

Also as a general rule, I do not select posts that are either a book review or a book report.

I reserve the right to make exceptions to the above.

Here, on Three Star Leadership, I post things that will help a boss at any level do better and live a better life. At Results vs Activities, I join other bloggers with posts on talent development. .

If you're a boss, you should check out my Working Supervisor's Support Kit.

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.