When I was a teacher, I learned certain responses annoyed students when they asked clarifying questions: “If you were paying attention, you’d know.” “As I said twelve minutes ago…” “I just told you that.” “It’s in the syllabus. Did you … Read more
We’ve all been there—a training session, a professional development day, or leadership workshop we enjoyed but never applied the concepts. Maybe it was good information, delivered decently, with acceptable materials. Yet something kept us from applying it. Perhaps we blame … Read more
I love systems. My bookshelf contains several books which show the importance of processes such as The E-Myth Revisited, Traction, and Good to Great. More recent reads, Atomic Habits, Yes to the Mess, and Inner Game of Work also stress the significance of systems. These books illustrate … Read more
In Atomic Habits, James Clear shares one method for working on a new, intimidating habit: the two-minute rule. Instead of picking an overly long or complex habit, choose one aspect of the habit which takes two minutes. Instead of “Do … Read more
“Normal” is such a relative term which encompasses a broad spectrum. Since the start of this pandemic, the phrase “new normal” has been used everywhere for just about every situation. The idea is that the pre-pandemic world was “normal,” and … Read more
I’m not the only one who has encountered this problem: We are told to keep online video sessions short.But…We need to cover a lot of material, and it can take several hours. Since mid-March, I’ve spent a lot of time … Read more
No team stays the same forever. In recent years Bob Iger, the Disney CEO, had a successor named only to decide that wasn’t the right direction. He stayed on longer until he recently named Bob Chapek as his successor. Disney … Read more
Curtis H. sent me a question via Linked-In: “As a previous leader in my fraternal organization at University, I found staying positive and bottling complaints overwhelming at times. If leaders shouldn’t show insecurity or vent around their followers, then is … Read more
New to conference calls? Intimidated by the video that went viral a while back? Seven tips for better conferencing. First, restrict small talk to the first few minutes and be ready to get down to business. Second, outline the agenda … Read more
Rubrics are such a nice way to organize and prioritize. But I’ve changed my mind about one thing since I wrote the first blog post on rubrics over four years ago. Now, I like a four-point rubric for most decision-making … Read more