Leadership

Anna McGrath from Godfrey Dadich Partners is one of the most enlightened people I've ever met. She's cool & wise which is a rare combo! Had the pleasure of attending a workshop she did called " Integrating Opposite Perspectives "...here are my notes from our time together... How can you ensure everyone is working towards a common goal when they all seem to be coming from so many different points of reference? Diverse ideas & perspectives can be a source of strength in your...

Gary Hamel says in his book The Future of Management , that the practice of management is to... "set & program objectives, motivate & align efforts, coordinate & control activities, develop & assign talent, gain & apply knowledge, amass & allocate resources, balance & meet stakeholders demands AND... build & nurture relationships." The companies that have survived crisis & thrived have leveraged the wisdom of all the members on their team. Companies where...

You don't have to look very hard these days to stumble on an article, video or interview about workplace culture. Here are a couple lists from Charlie Kim's company NextJump where employees (among many things) won't be fired ...they'll be coached . How are things going where you are? Top 12 Signals of LOW vs HIGH performing cultures LOW SIGNALS 1. Entitlement 2. Victim Mindset (everything is impossible, why bother?) 3. Death by 1,000 paper cuts (little things go wrong all the time) 4. No...

Three PM is the most awkward time...it's too late or too early to do anything. We've all been there...racing against time to get something finished or reluctantly putting off something we don't have time to start. Uhh! Yet we know time is like having to spend all your money every day, it's a precious commodity, we must spend it wisely. We also know failing to plan is planning to fail. Here's a sample plan to spend your time "money" wisely every day! *2 hours in the AM Do something productive...

Worrying is a habit. Do you have it? First, check out " Getting to the bottom of your worrying-and how to let it go " by Gordana Biernat for some great insights! We all have dreams, aspirations & goals. It's healthy to be in a growth mindset but not at the expense of getting meaningful things done today. Making zero progress toward your preferred vision of the future is demotivating. Focus on the task at hand, like the mantra of former NFL head coach Marty Schottenheimer. The main thing...

In a meeting a few years ago we were discussing the aspects of what we did that might be interesting to the general public. Pretty quickly it was suggested that we have a "rumor mill" button on our website. A little "behind the curtain" of what was going on. While this would probably peak visitors curiosity, the message it would send about our organization could be damaging. Is it your story to tell? Gossiping is one of, if not the most destructive actions anyone can take on another person.

At this time during a pandemic we find ourselves physically distanced & isolated from one another. However, it's been exciting to see so many creative ways to stay socially connected. These connection times are meaningful and are essential to our overall health. To help focus this time, one of the things you could do is interview your loved ones. Stay with me here... LOSS One of the things we all have in common is loss. It's maybe the only thing we all truly have in common. We've all...

If we stopped to think about how many decisions we make each & every day it would be a daunting task. If we wrote them all down... Would we be satisfied with the outcomes? What would we learn about ourselves? How do they affect others? In today's world, it seems we have learned how to be distracted by all the wonderful technology available. Being bombarded by information can derail our effectiveness in making meaningful decisions that positively affect those we are trusted with leading.

Leaders are always learning & that means reading. When we come across a person who shakes up our thinking & approach we get a bit starstruck. This happened to me when I started finding out about the work of Ricardo Semler. He's been a trailblazer for democratic management for over 30 years, a real catalyst. He has been very successful in implementing seemingly radical ideas that have unleashed human potential no matter their application. Here's his list with some of my own...

How long do you work continuously? Do you just go until you actually start to feel fatigue? If you're like most, you just go without thinking much about stopping until the end of the workday. Without much thought, we're setting ourselves up for underperformance...imagine that! And...its become a well ingrained habit. Every 16 words on average we reach for a metaphor so let's use one now! Race cars are built to go fast for a long time but they take pit stops to go faster for longer. We're a...

*Inspired by Andy Stanley TRUE or FALSE *The best leaders are good at everything *The best leaders focus on weaknesses & make them strengths These are 2 fairly common myths about leadership. How did you answer? At first glance, these seem to both be true. At closer examination, however, the best leaders actually spend more time on the things that bring the most value by using their core competencies. Focusing on weakness to bring it up to mediocre doesn't do anybody any good & can be...