BULLIES AT WORK: DON’T LET THEM WIN
Everywhere you turn these days there is a discussion about bullies. Most of the attention is on younger people. The notion that “it gets better” implies that by the time we are grown ups working in...
View ArticleTHE COLOMBO LEADERSHIP TRICK
Remember the Peter Falk detective from TV? He always seemed disorganized and bumbling and gave off the impression that he wasn’t all that smart. Ah, but he always got his man. Once he had put the...
View ArticleHITTING THE WALL ON THE EXEC TEAM
You are a member of the executive team, have respect for your peers, want to do the right thing for the company, care more about the greater good than your own lot in life…and you are ready to walk out...
View ArticleWHEN YOU LET THE BAD APPLE STAY
News flash. Senior leaders have a helluva a time firing people. Especially people who are seen as smart or loyal or critical to the business. I’ve seen executives twist themselves into pretzels to...
View ArticleTHE POWER OF STORY TELLING
When I was new to the consulting business I worked in a small firm. We were a tight group with different skills and points of view and styles. But we appreciated each other and did a lot of good work...
View ArticleHUMAN NATURE AT WORK
Lest you think we all walk into work each day plotting to do terrible and stupid things, here are some things to chew on. We are all flawed. No one, not even you, is perfect. Cut others (and...
View ArticleWHAT DO WOMEN REALLY WANT?
With the flurry of executive women stories in the news lately I am compelled to address the issue. I must admit I have been avoiding the topic. Not because I don’t have any experience or ideas about...
View ArticleYOUR LEADERSHIP TEAM NEEDS “OTHER”
Here we are in 2013 and the variety on most executive teams still leaves a great deal to be desired. White men continue to dominate and there is much more talk than action when it comes to shifting the...
View ArticleWHAT THE HELL IS AN EXECUTIVE COACH?
Hey, I am one of those and I couldn’t give you a clear definition! It seems that anyone can call themselves a coach these days…retired executives, out of work whatevers, “entrepreneurs”. And don’t even...
View ArticleDON’T OVER ENGINEER PEOPLE PROCESSES
I can’t tell you the number of times in any given week that the words “over engineered” come out of my mouth. It is a huge pet peeve of mine and I completely own my fervor. So let this be my rant...
View ArticleA MOMENT TO REFLECT
I live in Boston. And I lived in New York on 9/11. Both times I was 2 miles away from unimaginable attacks. I learned in 2001 that there is no way to make rational sense out of irrational actions of...
View ArticleARTICLE FOR BRIDGESPAN PUBLICATION
Here is the link to a piece I wrote about leaders self awareness and capacity to change their own behaviors....
View ArticleEXECUTIVE TEAMS: MOVING IN FOR THE HUG
Imagine my surprise…and delight…to hear about 2 executive teams planning off sites to “get to know each other”. I heard about this over the course of 2 days of work. And these are large corporations...
View ArticleWHAT WOMEN BRING TO THE EXECUTIVE TABLE: EMPATHY
As I have written previously, the issue is not “how to make women execs act more like men” but rather to have exec teams embrace the unique attributes that women bring to the conversation. These teams...
View ArticleLEADERS CAN BE INSECURE…JUST LIKE THE REST OF US
With rare exception, every time a leader oversteps or makes a wacky decision or behaves poorly there is a predictable choral response that follows. “S/he is just so insecure.” No emotion. No judgment....
View ArticleREDIRECT TRAFFIC: DON’T GET CAUGHT IN A JAM
When I was in charge of HR lots of people found their way to my door to plead their cases. By “plead their case” I mean tell me how bad someone else was and how the world would be right if only…. I...
View ArticleAPPRECIATIVE INQUIRY REDUX
I’ve been dipping back into David Cooperrider’s work on Appreciative Inquiry lately for many of my clients. In a nutshell his work focuses on developing great questions that lead to rich dialogues that...
View ArticleSO YOU HAVE A DIFFICULT BOSS
There is no such thing as moving through your career without getting stuck with a bad boss or five. It totally sucks and makes coming to work each day a challenge. Is he going to be sane today? Will...
View ArticleTALES FROM THE BLIND SIDE
These are all true stories. Identities have been modified to protect the (not so very) innocent. When asked what she makes of the fact that her staff hates working for her, a 36-year-old senior leader...
View ArticleNONPROFIT LEADERSHIP: A DIFFERENT THING ALTOGETHER
So far I have focused on leadership in the corporate setting in this blog. But today I’m going to address some leadership issues in the nonprofit space. I actually have a separate venture with some...
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