When coaching leaders about “trust,” I often find myself using the phrase “trust but verify.” It turns out to be a good way to hold people accountable as well. It’s the reason KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) exist– to verify and measure that things are getting … Read more
It’s always surprising when you hear a leader talking about some “unexpected” event as if it had just happened out of the blue when all the signs were there for some time. Or a scandal that has been brewing for a while and everyone, except … Read more
The annual Labor Day holiday weekend just ended, and the true meaning of this holiday is often lost as people now typically think of it more as a sign it’s the end of summer. The holiday was originally created to honor the Labor movement and … Read more
As a leader, you are always being watched. What you say, what you do, your reactions, your comments, your behavior, everything. Inadvertently passing someone without a “hello” or acknowledgment of their existence could be viewed as a slight by the receiver. Even though that was … Read more
Recently, I’ve had several conversations with leaders dealing with performance and behaviors that are out of alignment with the company’s culture and performance standards. The conversation usually starts with “I’m going to go ahead and make an exception this one time.” There are always valid … Read more
When I hear leaders say, “I have no choice,” I always remind them that in fact, they do. Everything we do in life is a choice, albeit sometimes the lesser of two evils, we always do have a choice. One of my favorite books called, … Read more
When leaders are uncertain, so are their followers. When a direction is not clear, or worse, a team is facing seemingly impossible odds, the natural reaction is fear. This is not a good combination because only through innovation can a solution be found, and fear … Read more
Although curiosity is one of my core values, I often find myself instantly going to “what I know to be true” in business and personal situations. The older we get, the more experience we get, the more sure we are that we “know” what the … Read more
When trying to define what our individual values are, there are three things I have found helpful. First, there are those pivotal stories that make up our foundation – the stories that “define” a moment for us. These stories are ones we remember as instrumental in shaping … Read more
Leadership is the hot topic these days – who should be the leader? How should they lead? What is leadership behavior? All good questions and depending on your perspective, there are multiple good answers. When someone asks me about “leadership” or what type of “leader” they … Read more