I played golf with a friend recently. I was fascinated by his career accomplishments and leadership principles. He’s exactly the leader of the future that I believe in, and so I asked him to share his philosophy, much of which I’ve actually practiced.

Alan Mulally was the president and chief executive officer of the Ford Motor Company from 2006-2014. At Ford, he led one of the most successful corporate turnarounds in history, with Ford becoming the No. 1 automobile brand in the United States. Prior to that, he worked for Boeing for 37 years, rising to become president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, where he led the development of the world-class 777 airplane.

It was at Boeing that Alan first developed his “Working Together” principles, practices and management system culture, in which people flourish and develop a sense of meaning and purpose in their work. In short, his philosophy is “to serve is to live.”

Here is his leadership and management system:

People first. Everyone is worthy of respect at all levels of your organization. Appreciate your people, thank them, celebrate them for their work and contributions. Alan often ate lunch in the employee cafeteria and asked employees what they needed to do their jobs better.

Everyone is included. In the past, management in public companies focused on shareholders. Alan’s philosophy is that all stakeholders must be included -- employees, suppliers, unions, partners, leasing companies, bankers, investors, governments and all the communities where you do business. He calls this stakeholder-centered leadership.

Compelling vision, comprehensive strategy and positive, relentless implementation. The plan must be clear, concise and shared with all of the stakeholders. It must then be carried out with determination and transparency.

Clear performance goals. Alan believes any plan should create long-term value and profitable growth for all the stakeholders, with products and services that people want and value.

One plan. Most companies have multiple plans for achievement. Alan focuses on just one comprehensive plan and makes sure that everyone in the organization knows what it is and its current status.

Facts and data. Alan said: “As leaders, we really care what people think and what their opinions are, and we also really appreciate the facts and data. When we have an issue, knowing the facts and data allows us to move forward confidently to solve the issues together.”

Everyone knows the plan, the status and areas that need special attention. When everyone knows the plan and status, with no secrets, we can find a solution in a timely manner.

Adopt a positive, “find-a-way” attitude. Alan would hold special attention meetings to solve challenges. He said: “Positive, find-a-way attitudes are so important as we work together to address our challenges. It is important to let the team see that having a problem is not a reflection on them personally. It is a chance for the team to work together.”

Respect, listen, help, and appreciate each other. Treating each other well can only lead to a healthy and successful organization where everyone works together on solutions to an improved plan. Alan made sure every employee was part of the team. All opinions were respected.

Emotional resilience -- trust the process. Few things go smoothly. You must expect the unexpected and deal with it positively. Review the vision, strategy and plan and work together as a team, making sure everyone is included.

Have fun -- enjoy the journey and each other. Alan said: “(E)njoy working together with so many talented people who are dedicating their lives and talent to create and deliver their great products and services for all our stakeholders and the greater good.”

Alan believes that the leaders of the future need to continue to move forward to a stakeholder-centered leadership model by “facilitating and coaching with humility, love and service.”

With a philosophy like that, a leader can’t help but succeed!

Mackay’s Moral: A good leader inspires others with confidence in him or her. A great leader inspires them with confidence in themselves.

One day, a wise monk was walking through a village. A very angry and rude young man came up and began insulting him. The monk continued his walk, paying no attention to the insults, and the young man grew enraged at being ignored.

“Why don’t you say something?” he demanded. “How can you keep walking as if I were silent?”

The monk stopped and asked the young man, “Tell me, if you buy a gift for someone, and that person does not take it, to whom does the gift belong?”

“It would belong to me, because I brought the gift,” the young man said.

The monk smiled. “That is correct. And it is the same with your anger. If you become angry with me and I do not get insulted, then the anger falls back on you. You are then the only one who becomes unhappy, not me. All you have done is hurt yourself.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “For every minute you remain angry, you give up 60 seconds of peace of mind.”

An angry person is seldom reasonable; a reasonable person is seldom angry.

We all feel angry at times. It’s a normal emotion when we feel frustrated, attacked or unfairly treated. Feeling anger can help people identify problems and motivate people to create change, achieve goals and just stay safe.

The problem with anger comes from how people deal with it. Anger in business situations is especially tricky. As damaging as an angry response can be, family and friends tend to be more forgiving. In business dealings, it often spells the end of the relationship.

The natural way to express anger is to respond aggressively and defend yourself when attacked, even becoming verbally abusive toward others or physically threatening. Others prefer to sulk and ignore people or refuse to do work or do a poor job. Then there are those who internalize anger, start hating themselves and cut themselves off from the world.

Some view anger as an emotion that triggers part of the fight-or-flight response. Anger becomes the predominant feeling behaviorally, cognitively and physiologically when a person opts to take action to immediately stop a threat.

The American Psychological Association (APA) lists three main approaches to dealing with anger: expressing, suppressing and calming. It states that “expressing your angry feelings in an assertive -- not aggressive -- manner is the healthiest way to express anger. Being assertive doesn’t mean being pushy or demanding; it means being respectful of yourself and others.”

The APA describes the suppression of anger as holding it in, not thinking about it or focusing on something positive. The problem with this approach is that anger can turn inward and cause hypertension, high blood pressure or depression.

The third way is to calm yourself, control your outward behavior and let your feelings subside. I have always found that the greatest remedy for anger is delay, which is why U.S. President Thomas Jefferson said, “When angry, count 10 before you speak. If very angry, 100.”

Other ways to manage anger include getting enough sleep, because sleep deprivation makes it harder to control angry impulses. Take deep breaths, or go for a walk or get some other exercise. Distance yourself while you think about how to solve or improve the situation.

Here’s a final story to illustrate my point. A young lion and a cougar, both thirsty, arrived at their usual water hole at the same time. They immediately began to argue about who should satisfy their thirst first. The argument became heated, and each decided he would rather die than give up the privilege of being the first to quench his thirst. As they stubbornly confronted each other, their emotions turned to rage. Their cruel attacks on each other were suddenly interrupted. They both looked up. Circling overhead was a flock of vultures waiting for the loser to fall. Quietly, the two beasts turned and walked away. The thought of being devoured was all they needed to end their quarrel.

Don’t let your anger devour you. Instead, take the bite out of your anger.

Mackay’s Moral: It is better to choose what you say than say what you choose.

Business lessons come from many sources. I am particularly fond of stories that feature animals -- perhaps because they strip away the politics and focus on the practical. (Also, I don’t need to change names to protect the innocent!)

Here are a few of my favorite stories, along with the lessons we can learn from them:

No bull -- Legend has it that once upon a time, a tiger ate a bull. The tiger was so satisfied with his feast that he growled and growled. A big-game hunter heard the growling, tracked it to the tiger and shot the tiger dead.

Moral: When you are full of bull, keep your mouth shut.

Be dependable -- A farmer had been plowing with an ox and a mule teamed together. One day, the ox said to the mule, “Let's play sick today and take it easy.”

But the mule said, “No, we need to get our work done.”

The ox played sick anyway. The farmer brought it fresh hay and corn and tried to make it comfortable.

When the mule came in from plowing, the ox asked how it went. “We didn't get quite as much done,” the mule said, “But we did a fair stretch.”

Then the ox asked, “What did the farmer say about me?”

“Nothing,” the mule replied.

The ox played sick again the next day. He asked the mule about the day’s progress.

“All right,” the mule said, “but we didn't get much done.”

“Well,” the ox continued, “what did the farmer say about me?”

“Nothing to me,” the mule answered, “but he did have a long talk with the butcher.”

Moral: If you cut out on your job, expect to be cut from your job.

Practice makes perfect -- Bringing a giraffe into the world is a tall order. First the baby falls six feet or so and usually lands on its back. Mom lowers her head, takes a quick look and then delivers the newborn's first lesson. She positions herself over her newborn and kicks her baby so that it is sprawling head over heels. This process is repeated until the baby stands for the first time on its wobbly legs.

In the wild, baby giraffes must be able to get up quickly to stay with the herd, where there is safety. Lions, hyenas, leopards and wild hunting dogs all enjoy eating young giraffes, and they'd be licking their chops if mother didn't teach her calf to stand quickly.

Moral: The future belongs to those who are prepared for it.

Competition makes you better -- In Africa, a gazelle gets up every morning and knows that it must outrun the fastest lion, or it will get eaten. And every morning, a lion gets up and knows that it must outrun the slowest gazelle, or it will starve to death. So, whether you are a gazelle or a lion, every morning when you get up, you'd better start running.

Moral: If you can’t win, make the person ahead of you break the record.

Constructive criticism should build people up -- Major League Baseball umpire Bill Guthrie was sharing the space behind the plate with a catcher from the visiting team who protested many ball and strike calls.

In the fourth inning, when the heckling started up again, Guthrie stopped him. “Son,” he said to the catcher, “you've been a big help to me calling balls and strikes, and I appreciate it. But I think I've got the hang of it now. So I'm going to ask you to go to the clubhouse and show them how to take a shower.”

Moral: The goal of criticism is to leave the person better than he or she was before.

Everyone is important -- A professor gave a pop quiz. The questions were easy, until the last one: “What is the first name of the person who cleans the school?” The students had seen the cleaning person, but how would they know janitor’s name?

The students had to leave the last question blank. One student asked if that question counted toward the quiz grade.

“Absolutely,” said the professor. “In your careers, you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say ‘Hello.’”

Moral: Take the time to meet the people who are taking care of you.

Mackay’s Moral: Business and life lessons aren’t always taught in school.