One of the things I often hear after facilitating a leadership workshop or retreat is, will you come back in six months to refresh all this that is so vital and positive? Of course, I would love to, but that sends the message that they need someone or something outside themselves to keep at their…
DetailsWe’re always in a state of change, but we find ourselves now witnessing some catastrophic changes in the history of man. First of all, technology has become a major part of our everyday lives and through it, we have witnessed the introduction of mass media bringing group consciousness into our homes. We are now connected…
DetailsGabor Mate in his book The Myth of Normal makes a case for reciprocity as being a basic need of humans. It helps people feel seen, acknowledged, heard and alive. You know that urge you have when you are eye to eye with an infant to mimic the same funny faces they make? That begins…
DetailsWhat would your guess be? What do you think that quality might be? To be organized, vision-oriented, profit motivated, generous with bonuses? Maybe authoritative, consistent, bold, good listener? According to a recent study, 68% of people surveyed said the quality they most desired to see in their leaders, which was predominantly missing, was the ability…
DetailsWorking with companies who are challenged, I often see people in key positions express leadership in different ways. One of the most impressive and effective ways is when the leader takes responsibility for the running of the place, no matter what came before or who did what. Think of any organization as a garden and…
DetailsDo you love that dopamine rush you get with the high of saving someone from a ‘bad’ situation or solving someone’s problems for them, but loathe the feeling of being thrown under the perpetual bus when they blame you if it doesn’t work out they way they expected? Yeah, we’ve all been there. It’s a…
DetailsEveryone sees the world through their own perspectives, ever notice that? For example, two people sit together looking at the same sun on snow capped mountains in the distance. One person is wearing pink glasses and the other green. The one wearing pink glasses may see the mountains with a beautiful alpine glow and feel…
DetailsMany people report that after a year and a half of isolation due to a world pandemic, working at home in the safety, warmth, quiet and comfort of their home, returning to the office or to the tradeshows or customers in person has been very challenging. What happened to the comfy stretchy pants and slippers?…
DetailsSince the invention of the telephone, we have been communicating virtually, which means not in the same space as the person we are connecting with. It was a big deal getting the answering machine, you didn’t ever miss a call. Now beeps, texts, tweets, faxes, emails, whatsapps, Zooms, Teams, Facetimes, to name only a few,…
DetailsWhat is actually happening to the human race en masse? Setting the virus aside. Pandemonium. Let’s look at that. It means a wild uproar. It was the capital of Hell in Milton’s Paradise Lost. Take the word apart for closer examination of what is really going on. Pan (Greek god) and demonium or demonic. A…
DetailsOne of the things I totally enjoy is leading workshops on communication styles. You should see the looks on people’s faces when I explain simple things like, “that cake she baked for you was a message of love.” “Or the more you raise your voice to feeling communicators, the more they tune you out!” (Fiery…
DetailsDuring a casual interview with a young employee, I noticed the surroundings of his office. Nothing on the walls, only a pale yellow beckoning a painting, poster or calendar at least. No personal picture of a girl or a dog. Even the desk calendar had not been written on, not one doodle or appointment. I…
DetailsI finally had to put the book down. I never looked, but it must have been well over 1000 pages. I was on pg 397 and was still not to the half way point. It was a book about Lincoln and the situation in the United States in the years leading up to the Civil…
DetailsThere comes a time in the evolution of every individual when they can no longer experience themselves without dignity. Without the sense of being worthy and honored. But this does not come from someone suddenly starting to treat a person with honor. It begins like this: A middle aged man comes into the…
DetailsInspired by a Ted Talk that was shared on Linked in recently called How to be a Great Leader (Simon Sinek) and a story I heard yesterday about two roosters, I felt compelled to share. Part of my job is leadership training and there are only so many bullet points that will inspire someone…
DetailsDo you ever wonder if we are using the correct yardstick to measure our success? Have you gotten to that place in life yet where you have done all the ‘right’ things and yet you don’t feel fulfilled? Did you ever hit that dead end wall at the end of a long driven journey? If…
DetailsDealing with entry level employees in a production line environment often means high rates of turnover, which means higher costs of doing business through hiring, training and investing in new employees. In general, the people available for these production line jobs, extremely vital to our economy, are often lacking in education, positive role models, skills,…
DetailsThese two characters are creeping into the awareness of business owners, HR people, investment groups and anyone involved in the post-merger integration process. Why? I recently spoke with an investment group individual about some of their recent acquisitions. They invested in a survey of the employees of the new companies. Theoretically, they could then see…
DetailsWhy don’t people say what they mean and mean what they say? Many people believe life would be far easier if they did. We tend to give a lot of slack for miscommunication in personal relationships because we know there are insecurities, expectations and emotions, but in business we often expect people to set aside…
DetailsOne out of four marriages ends in divorce. It’s the same startling statistic for business mergers and acquisitions. Three quarters of them fail. What do you think accounts for this high failure rate? The reasons look pretty much the same. · They’re a bad match ~ they don’t really have anything in common, they…
DetailsAs a leader, whether of a family, team, organization or country, you are in a position of influence. And whether you are conscious of what sort of influence you are having or not, you are still influencing. For example, a manager who always is quick to scold, criticize or belittle has used her influence to…
DetailsEach new anything gives us a chance to clean the slate, start anew and fuel a whole new venture, but a new year with a brand spanking new calendar feels so inviting, doesn’t it? It is ripe with potential, fertile with undiscovered ideas, ready for you to write your story onto the unwritten form. Before…
DetailsMany years ago I was a manager for a company in the midst of change. Not only did the digital revolution deeply affect our business, but then the internet came along and changed the way people bought things and that turned our company upside down. One day, the owner and the CFO asked if they…
DetailsFollowing our Practical Communicator story about Doug, let’s look at another type of communicator~ the Fiery Communicator. If you are old enough, you may remember the story of the Soviet (now present day Russia) Premier Nikita Khrushchev. Apparently, present day Americans aren’t the only ones cringing under the flying ash of an erupting volcano. On…
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