Doing change work there always comes a point early on, when structural changes have been announced and are almost complete, that someone will say, “Okay, the change is done. Now let’s get back to business.” This is the moment when I tell them (after … [Read more...]
Don’t Empower. Lead.
In our work we hear the word ‘empowerment’ a lot. I have to confess I’m not a big fan of this word. It is over-used and perpetuates a hierarchical, “I have power and if you’re good I’ll share some with you” view of leadership. In a business … [Read more...]
Change Leadership
I had an exchange with a leader a while back in which he stated, “I can’t wait until things get back to normal around here.” I asked him what he meant. He said, “Well, once we get done with all this ‘change stuff’ and get back to our jobs.” If there … [Read more...]
Cultivating Leadership
There are flowers blooming all around us at the moment so I had a thought. (Always dangerous!). We can’t make a flower; but we can create the conditions in which a flower will grow. We can cultivate the soil, provide water, air, and sunlight and over … [Read more...]
Planning To Do and “To Don’t”
In my last post , I wrote about how we can approach planning in a way that allows for greater reflection, collaboration, and dialogue that invites creativity and innovation to the process. I know many teams that have become quite good at slowing … [Read more...]
Planning Season Approaches
It's planning season for many organizations. How can you ensure that you aren't missing anything as you build your plans for FY12? We are reminding our clients that as they work to decide what they will do to drive the business from A to B, they … [Read more...]
Leadership 24/7
Words have power; and we are never not leading. Let me explain. At a multi-day leadership team meeting, one of the leaders in attendance was becoming frustrated with the direction of the conversation so he said, “This makes no sense to me.” The … [Read more...]
Is Your Race Pace Sustainable?
I run road and trail races from time to time. When the starting gun goes off, I take off with everyone else, usually going faster than I normally run. I eventually settle in and find my pace. If I don’t, I hit a wall and have a very bad day. It … [Read more...]
EI Benefits Strategic Thinking
We are in the midst of an LD process with a number of leaders. In a recent conversation on emotional intelligence, we put forth that all decisions involve emotion and that growing our own EI is foundational to effective leadership that drives … [Read more...]
Listen Up: The Key to Unlocking Success
Listening is one of the fundamental and essential skills for a leader. Active and full listening is non-judgmental, unconditionally constructive, and totally for the person to whom we are listening. Active and full listening provides the clues a … [Read more...]