We are quickly approaching a new decade. The year 2010 is just around the corner, and I don’t know why, but I always feel like a new decade brings about thoughts of change, growth and improvement.

Over the last two years, I have been speaking to both large and small groups about Generation Y and the new face of leadership development. My question continues to be this “Are you making the changes necessary to lead your organization and people in the direction of tumultuous change?”

Last week, I had the opportunity to interview Chuck Hester, the Corporate Communications Director for i-Contact. You can listen to the interview here. Chuck is of my generation…he and I are about the same age, and he is of the Boomer Generation, and he is out talking to business leaders every day about both i-Contact (a Gen-Y led company) and also about how to use Linked-in to get connected and to build a brand. Here is a man who could have just thrown up his hands and said “To heck with technology…I’m done!” But instead, he embraced a younger generation of workers, his boss (Ryan Allis) is half his age (and he loves this!), and he is now a Linked-in Guru. He got with the times and is now using his expertise with new technology to lead others.

As you are reading this blog, I would ask you to consider how you might be able to use the following as leadership development tools.

Blogging: Do you have a stand, and are you willing to give that stand a voice? Some of the top business leaders are now blogging, and they are using their voice and opinion as a way to engage their customers and employees. Just check out Jonathan Schwart’z blog if you want to get a few ideas on the topic.

Facebook: I guess you have probably figured out by now that Facebook is not just for social reasons anymore. It is now being used as a business tool, and the majority of young, hot talent will want to know if you are using Facebook in your company to connect, share and brainstorm.

Twitter: Did you know that Twitter is now being used to gather research, ask compelling business questions, as a recruiting tool and to alert people of impending crises? It is also being used to bump up company rankings on Google, so don’t take this little tool for granted…it’s powerful! Read this article on Business Week by the topic of Why Twitter Matters.

The Long Tail: (If you have not read this book, it’s time to read it!) Everyone knows about top keywords, but what about the “little keywords”…you know…those little words that people search for every day that might not seem important but that can give you huge insight into how to develop out your next generation of leaders. Just go to http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com and type in the words “leadership development.” Look down the list of words…look down to the bottom and ask yourself how those “tiny searches” can provide you insight into your next leadership development opportunity.