In the book, Leading with Vision, the authors shared a story that has been stuck in my mind for weeks. Co-author Simon Vetter tells the story of how, when he was 12 years old, he played soccer every week with his friends. He loved playing soccer and would often play until the sun went down. But on Wednesdays, no matter what the score was, he left his friends on the field promptly at 6pm and sprinted home. There was only one thing that could tear him away from soccer with his friends- apricot pie. His mother’s apricot pie was his … Read More
Tips for an Uneventful Holiday Party
Love it or hate it, the company holiday party is just around the corner. Human Resource Managers are simultaneously trying to plan the party, handle end-of-year compensation/performance review talks, tie up loose ends from open enrollment and saying a little prayer your employees will conduct themselves professionally at this social event. Of course, HR will send out a list of guidelines for proper behavior, but don’t make HR be the heavy on this one. You may assume your employees know how to behave themselves at a work social event, but in the Year of the Weinstein, it’s not worth the … Read More
Team Members We’re Thankful For
Last week, as I sent out personal thank you messages to each of my team members for their hard work this year, I started thinking about exactly what I was thankful for. Realistically, not every team member is a top performer. But that doesn’t mean they don’t serve a necessary purpose and make a positive impact on the team. Each person contributes something unique that should be acknowledged and appreciated. These are the key team members I’m thankful for this year:
Leaning Into Conflict
The word conflict implicitly carries a negative connotation. When we think of conflict, we often have a physical as well as emotional response. Heart rate, breathing, and perspiration increase while our fight or flight response engages. Certainly, approaching conflict as an all-or-none equation by either reacting aggressively (fight) or avoiding the conflict entirely (flight) results in a net-negative. There is value, however, in embracing conflict. Through conflict, we challenge assumptions, establish priorities, identify weaknesses, and generate ideas. We should be open to conflict that can create better business outcomes. This doesn’t mean we hand out a set of boxing gloves … Read More
Investing with a Guaranteed Return
Fourth quarter is well underway and as you prepare for annual reviews, budget setting, and forecasts, it’s also time to reflect on where you spent time this year. How much of your time did you spend putting out fires and chasing solutions to problems? How much time did you spend making strategic moves that will pay dividends for years to come? How often did you devote time to mindfulness and reflection? Lastly, how much of your time did you spend building new skills? Training and coaching for leaders is often overlooked when most of a company’s development budget is spent … Read More
The Five Team Members You Need the Most
As today’s workplace becomes more complex, the challenges we experience are more demanding and novel than ever before. To overcome these unique circumstances, it is now critically important that leaders make diversity a number one priority when creating teams. Diversity comes in all shapes and forms from age, race, culture, and gender identification to experience and skill level. But the one form of diversity that is often overlooked is psychological diversity. A team that thinks, behaves, and acts the same will march in the same direction. While there will be little conflict, there will also be little innovation and many … Read More