Problem solving and leading are important skills every executive or manager needs to continuously hone. This is the interesting and fun part of the work. The less desirable aspect is what I call the “Five Things Your Boss Never Wants to Hear.”
What do these behaviors look like? [Read more…]
Sometimes it erupts, other times it rumbles and still again, it might flow in gently. However it arrives, workplace culture shifts can impact your workload, relationships, and job satisfaction.
In its most basic form, accountability is holding yourself, another person or group, to the promises they made to do or not do something. Sounds simple enough. So why are most people hesitant to do so and why isn’t it more successful?
One of the first action items I suggest when coaching leaders is to assess the team they manage. We look at the members from every aspect — experience, technical skills, people and thought leadership, potential, and risk. From this comes a strategy on how to retain, advance, and enhance the individuals and the team. [Read more…]
What if I told you that as a manager / leader / boss / group head, you have enormous power and influence over whether your employees stay or quit. What if I said you could prevent employees from quitting? What would you say?
My guess is it would be something like, “The budget is the budget and I have no way of giving someone more money.” Or, “I don’t make the rules or set the strategy — it’s beyond my control.” You might be right about your lack of influence but where you are mistaken is thinking that the company mission or employee compensation are the reasons most people quit their jobs. [Read more…]
More than a few times this month an executive coaching client of mine said, “I wish I knew where I stood with my boss and how I am viewed by other decision makers.” I’m sure a number of other people were seeking feedback and thinking the same thing, though they may not have expressed it so specifically.
My simple answer is, “ask.”
The question that follows is, “How?” and “When?” [Read more…]
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did but people will never forget how you made them feel.” —Maya Angelou
Stumbled upon this quote and almost immediately had a visceral reaction. I contemplated the question, “How do you deal with your feelings?” I flashed back to experiences in grade school, high school, my first job, my last corporate job and everything in-between. While I have many wonderful memories of good people doing right by me, what makes my chest tighten are the times I was made to feel, worthless, different, incompetent, and unwanted. [Read more…]
“At higher levels (of an organization) all leadership problems are behavioral.” This is the belief of well-known and highly recognized, executive coach and coaching leader, Marshall Goldsmith. He is the author of the best seller, “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There.” Marshall and I agree that at leadership levels everyone is smart, educated, and experienced. They may be a leader; however, it’s the way they act and treat others that can get them into trouble and compromises their leadership abilities. This might be you. [Read more…]
There is no better time than the present to assess, re-evaluate, and change some metrics and ways of getting things done in your work life. Here is a mid-year career checklist that covers some areas you might want to consider. [Read more…]
Over past decades the issue of diversity has taken a very visible place in the growth and structuring of the workplace population. Whether it was caused by mandates or natural shifts in population, the job sites look quite different.
The challenge, as I see it, is not only to continue to push for more diversity in the two major categories — gender and race/ethnicity — but also in less obvious areas such as education, energy, and temperament. It is these less noticeable areas where, I believe, the most opportunity and riches exists. [Read more…]