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 Jesse Lyn Stoner, Kate Nasser, Karin Hurt, Chris Edmonds, and Mary Jo Asmus..

From Jesse Lyn Stoner: Situational Team Decision-Making: Collaboration Does Not Require Consensus

“There are six ways teams can make decisions. Some people believe that in a collaborative environment, consensus is the best. But that’s a big mistake.”

From Kate Nasser: 18 Things Respected Well-Liked Leaders Consistently Do

“I continue to hear leaders say they must choose between being respected and being liked. The good news is it’s not true. Moreover, it is important not to trade one for the other. Respected well-liked leaders inspire, engage, and foster organizational success.”

From Karin Hurt: 3 Ways Thinking Small Will Improve Employee Engagement

“Great entrepreneural companies have a passionate spirit that feels like a gust of warm wind sweeping you off your feet as you walk through their door. It may be a bit hectic, but you want to tighten your shoelaces and run along. I’ve been working with some of these guys on strategy and growth, and it’s an exhilarating journey.”

From Chris Edmonds: The Hawthorne Effect and Your Culture

“What do you pay attention to in your work environment? Do you actively engage with players regularly to learn what’s going well and what’s not, or do they rarely see you? Or are you somewhere in between those extremes?”

From Mary Jo Asmus: 10 conversations you’re avoiding and how to start them

“There are lots of conversations you can have that you aren’t. Here are some of my favorites and some questions you can ask to get things going:”

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 digital imperative, how online home sales may become reality, what to do while you’re waiting for Steve Jobs, what “disruptive innovation” is, and how companies with high employee ratings outperform the S & P 500.

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.