Coaching News
Fish or Fowl?
Fish or fowl? Black or white? Day or night? We frequently find ourselves arguing whether human resources — as a function — is a true business partner in the strict financial sense or an employee advocate in the most liberal sense. We’re wasting our time arguing...
Inspired or Not, Here You Come!
“Leadership is about influence and inspiration.” – Everyone Who Knows Anything Who has the most influence on the mood in your workplace? If you’re part of the leadership – formal or informal – you do. Especially if your mood reveals your anxieties about the...
We Need Reinforcements… Send in the Leaders!
In my many years of experience growing, coaching and training leaders, I’ve discovered that it’s seldom talent... or training... or give-a-shit... that interferes with a leader’s success..., at all but the senior-most (the senior-most) level. It’s reinforcement. Or,...
You Want It When??!! …aka Artificial Deadlines are Useless
Another Monday morning and I’m looking at the list of things that had to be done last week but aren’t.
I guess they didn’t have to be done.
Some of us have boundary-setting challenges that make our lives more difficult when we start babysitting monkeys from other people’s circuses. And then some of us have deadline-setting challenges that make those around us stop taking our sense of urgency seriously.
Dinosaur Tails and Backpacks — Check Your Six
Warning: I intend to mix a bunch of metaphors in this article. If you’re an English teacher or just a self-appointed internet grammar snob, you may want to pass on by. Nothing to see here. These are not the metaphors you’re looking for… (waving my hand and using my...
Meetings Are For People Who Aren’t Too Busy
An old friend sent me a picture the other day of this blue ribbon that says, “I survived another meeting that should have been an email.” He obviously remembers how I feel about meetings. Turns out you can actually buy the ribbons here, and I know a lot of bosses who...
10 Client Lessons from 2021, PART DEUX
Those that know, do. Those that understand, teach. -- Aristotle This is Part 2 of a 2-Part series It’s interesting… this 2-part series has just ten client lessons learned from 2021. I could double that number with little effort. Helping and watching clients grow,...
I QUIT! …and I’m not going to tell you why
The coronavirus has really wreaked havoc in the workplace and the labor market, hasn’t it? No wonder almost all of the respondents to this year’s Triangle Performance Survey of Senior Leadership ranked leading in VUCA as the top leadership challenge in 2022. Today’s...
Best Boss Ever: Back to the Leadership Basics in 2022
Wow! Where the hell did 2021 go, and why did it leave us with so many work environment leadership challenges that none of us saw coming at the beginning of 2020? We’re struggling how to manage a blended (at home / at the office) workforce and either losing workers as...
10 Client Lessons from 2021, PART 1
Those that know, do. Those that understand, teach. -- Aristotle This is Part 1 of a 2-Part series I love the Aristotle quote. There’s plenty of successful leaders and organizations that “know,” and they do well with that knowledge. The next level folks, they...
Criticism and Feedback: NOT the same thing!
I had a mid-level manager ask me recently, “Is there a difference between giving feedback or giving criticism as a leader? Seems like the same thing to me.” The differences seems subtle, but in reality they’re pretty damned big. And from a results perspective, the...
Video: Leading with Influence — The ultimate Jedi Mind Trick
It’s like a Jedi Mind Trick… Leading with influence is real leadership. It’s the only leadership that matters. But how? It’s simpler than we sometimes think, so let’s just keep it that way. No need to complicate things unnecessarily. Three areas to focus on: Know your...
The Workplace of the Future
The Workplace of the Future Auntie Em, Uncle Henry...you're not in Kansas anymore! Coming out of the chaos of the last 18 months, I’ve noticed that the people I work with have changed somehow. They sound the same and look pretty much the same, but they seem different....
