To Be Honest 3 of 3

A few years ago, I wrote a piece dedicated to the dangers of starting sentences with “to be honest,” and I still think it’s not the best choice. However, there’s a point I’d like to emphasize, because it’s buried at … Read More

Calling Out Violently Polite: Does it hold up?

A few years ago, I shared a vivid phrase to describe being passive-aggressive: “Violently polite.”  I think it holds up, but I had forgotten about it. I’m glad for the chance to revisit this. In the years since then, I’ve … Read More

Behavioral Accountability: More than Metrics

A few years ago in a post titled “Strong Team Members Hold Each Other Accountable,” I wrote that once people get in the habit of holding each other accountable without making it personal, teams hum with productivity and gossip is … Read More

Commitment needs buy-in and clarity.

A few years ago, I wrote in Healthy Conflict Leads to Commitment that great teams can expect commitment when trust is solid and conflict is productive. Today, I want to emphasize that commitment has two other important components: clarity and … Read More

Make Sure Results Match the Mission

In a post I wrote called “Leaders Make Sure Results Match the Mission,” I shared Gino Wickman’s approach, presented clearly in the book Traction, called the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS). I noted that measuring results against the mission is important … Read More

Healthy Conflict: Does it hold up?

A few years ago, I wrote that great teams embrace healthy conflict. Does it hold up? Yes, the “healthy conflict” approach holds up. Teams still suffer from lack of productive conflict and healthy debate. There’s a lot of “sparing feelings,” … Read More

Dialing Back the Hasty Email – Does it hold up?

Seven years ago I wrote about what to do when you hit “send” on an email while in an agitated or emotional state, and then immediately regret it: How to Dial Back the Hasty Email Does this still happen? Unfortunately, … Read More

Vote One to Five – Does it hold up?

~ Alan Seven years ago I shared the technique of conducting a “Vote One to Five” in situations where you’re short on time but need to check a team’s response to an idea, action item or new direction. You can … Read More

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