Knowledge has always been distributed, usually unevenly, across organizations. Senior leaders were the ones to pull the strands together to formulate key decisions. Today, the availability of information and resources span the globe and demand more meetings and collaboration. This need is …
The Benefits of Being a Gracious Leader
The joyful heart sees and reads the world with a sense of freedom and graciousness. - John O'Donohue Experience: A Prerequisite for Graciousness? David Brooks recently wrote an opinion piece in the New York Times entitled "The Art of Gracious Leadership". In it he was lamenting the somewhat …
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8 Ways to Enhance Your Creativity
I recently came across an interesting article, "8 Bad Habits That Destroy Your Creativity" by Lolly Daskal, President and CEO of Lead From Within. Daskal indicated that the biggest impediment to being creative were often the following eight habits: Premature Judgment: judging ideas too early in …
Authenticity in the Workplace: Why “I’ve Gotta Be Me” Might Not Be the Best Plan for Success
There was a major hit in the late '60s by Sammy Davis, Jr., "I've Gotta Be Me", which was an anthem to individuality and self-expression and the perfect reflection of that turbulent time. Today, according to Adam Grant, a professor of management and psychology at the Wharton School of the University …
Motivating Millennials in the Workplace
I was recently conducting an interview as part of a 360° feedback exercise for a client who is the CEO of a one-year-old startup business incubator with a focus on healthcare. The organization is off to a good start with a solid Board, a wide variety of funding partners, a great media buzz, and …
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6 Tips for Becoming a Compelling Conversationalist
It was impossible to get a conversation going, everybody was talking too much. - Yogi Berra I recently came across an interesting article: "Six Habits of the Best Conversationalists", by Stephanie Vozza, and it contains many excellent insights. It started me thinking about some of the very best …
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Don’t Bother With Those New Year’s Resolutions, Unless…
Did you know that the second week of January is the busiest week of the year in US health clubs and gyms? Much of this increase is related to New Year's resolutions to "get in shape this year" but 80% of these new members drop off by the second month. That means there's only a 20% chance that you'll …
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Practicing Empathy: The Key to Connections
When you show deep empathy toward others, their defensive energy goes down, and positive energy replaces it. That's when you can get more creative in solving problems. - Stephen Covey I speak to all my clients about the importance of empathy, the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes to …
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How to Solicit Employee Feedback for Awareness, Accountability and Action
Mary Barra was named the first female CEO of General Motors in 2014. Two months into her tenure, Barra announced the recall of 1.6 million GM cars with faulty ignition switches responsible for the deaths of 12 people—a mechanical flaw that GM knew about for a decade before issuing the massive …
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The 5 New Rules of Work
In our most recent post we discussed how the transactional nature of work today reduces the opportunity to develop longer-term relationships, and much less friendships, with our coworkers. This post reflects some additional material about the new "rules" of work and the impacts on each of us. In a …
Friends at Work: The Importance of Investing in Relationships
Early in my career, I enjoyed a really plum assignment. I managed 27 sales compensation plans for the multiple channels of sales our organization had globally. This job afforded me the chance to work with people in the field and to travel with them to their events. I was also rather popular when I …
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Being Fully Present: Improving Our Connectedness With Others
When Morrie was with you, he was really with you. He looked you straight in the eye, and he listened as if you were the only person in the world. How much better would people get along if their first encounter each day were like this – instead of a grumble from a waitress or a bus driver or a …
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