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 by Dan Rockwell, Nina Simosko, Susan Mazza, Mary Jo Asmus, and Scott Eblin.

From Dan Rockwell: The Toxic Leader Score

“Your Toxic Leader Score* (TLS) is the level of unnecessary irritation you cause others. If you occasionally irritate colleagues by arriving late, you’re a 3 on a range from 1 to 10. If you frequently irritate colleagues, but don’t realize it, your TLS is 9. The worst leaders don’t know they’re toxic.”

From Nina Simosko: Do Women in Leadership Offer More Opportunities for their Female Employees?

“The hope was that as more women moved into leadership positions in companies, the wage gap would naturally narrow, because surely women managers would treat their female employees fairly. Unfortunately, a new study performed at the University of California Berkeley Haas School of Business shows that this is not the case.”

From Susan Mazza: Are You All In?

“‘Are you all in?’ is a pivotal question to ask yourself if you want to achieve anything remarkable. Of course, ‘yes’ is the answer that will put you on the road to success. However, the difference between saying ‘yes, I am all in’ and being ‘all in’ will be the deciding factor in whether you actually arrive in a future that matches the picture you envisioned.”

From Mary Jo Asmus: The top 10 things you’re resisting that will make you a better leader

“There are certain patterns of resistance I’ve noticed in the leaders I’ve worked with that are really good at their craft – but have the potential to be great. These behaviors that leaders resist can increase their potential to lead at the top of their game. Perhaps as you read through the list, you’ll notice some of your own resistance poking through as you tell yourself:”

From Scott Eblin: The Surprising Benefits of Being More Fully Present at Work

“If you’re paying attention to or distracted by what’s on a screen, you’re not fully present for the people you’re actually talking with. The same goes for picking up your phone and checking the caller ID when it rings during a meeting. Same thing with allowing someone to stick their head in your office or conference room to interrupt for ‘a quick question.'”

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 about strategy, innovation, women and the workplace, and work now and in the future. Highlights from the last issue include the power of gratitude, lessons from the real Silicon Valley, using algorithms to determine character, whether women in leadership offer more opportunities for their female employees, and why cities should stop trying to be the next Silicon Valley.

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 a better job and live a better life. At the The 360 Degree Feedback blog, I join other bloggers with posts on leadership development. And, at Wally Bock’s Writing Edge, I share tools and insights to help you write better.

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