Is your team singing it or winging it?
While I was walking my dog, Riley, yesterday morning along the sidewalks of our subdivision, I heard a mockingbird singing just ahead of us. She was boldly singing her large repertoire of beautiful songs. I admired the way that she sang out and so we slowed our pace while we listened to her. As Riley and…
Most Overlooked Leadership Skill
What type of leader do you love to follow? Some people will list traits like honesty or integrity. Others might want one that is competent and knowledgeable. There seems to be a countless number of attributes and characteristics that leaders need. If you are an aspiring great leader, this task can look daunting. However, there…
How to Toot Your Own Horn Without Being a Jerk
Is it possible to “toot your own horn” without looking like “that guy”? Isn’t all self-promotion, well, too self-promoting (and annoying)? At a recent workshop that I conducted, I started the day by asking the folks to introduce themselves and let me know something UNIQUE about them and what they wanted to learn most from…
Gain More Power & Control through W.A.I.Ting
Where did the summer go?!? What is going on? How did we miss 3 months?? Is it just me or does everyone seem to be distracted these days? Everyone is in such a hurry! I was driving to the airport and someone drove right up behind me. I moved over so that he could pass.…
What kind of leaders ask for help? Only the…
There he sat at the end of the day with his head down on his desk. It wasn’t 5 PM, no it wasn’t 7PM. It was 11:30 PM and he was hoping to get home by midnight. Just another day at the office… putting out ‘fires’, handling difficult issues, managing the budget, living the dream.…
Is Trust a skill or an emotion?
In my last article we talked about the importance of self-trust in your ability to lead others. If you don’t trust yourself, how can you expect others to trust you? Now we’ll change our focus to trusting relationships. Has this ever happened to you? You trust someone to watch your kids but you wouldn’t trust them to…
The Hidden Truth about Trust
Have you ever said “Starting tomorrow I’m gonna ________” and then you didn’t do it? Have you ever promised yourself that you were going to lose weight, exercise, eat healthier… save for retirement, save for college, start a business… learn another language, learn to dance or play guitar… spend more time with your team members,…
How Emotion Can Stifle Your Leadership & Kill Your Projects
Have you heard these statements before? “There’s no room for emotions in business.” “Never let them see you cry.” “You can’t get emotional about business.” “Business is business. Business isn’t personal.” Argh!! Emotions. Leaders are always talking about the lack of accountability and responsibility in their teams. They wish their team members would take more…
That One Cultural Bias that is Sabotaging Your Career
You’ve probably said it more than once. It comes up often when I’m consulting with executives and organizational leaders. They love their job except for this one thing… or… Their job would be perfect except for just one thing… “I hate the politics!” It is so frustrating! Politics. No, I’m not talking about governmental politics…
Sick & Tired of Boring Meetings?!
Has this ever happened to you? You get into work early and crank out your documents, emails and other work products and then it happens. You know what I’m talking about, right? That time comes when you have to go to your first meeting and all of the brightness, energy, and productivity of your morning…