If you’re a leader in an organization with customers who rely on your communication skills to be successful with your product or service, this message is for you:Know who is playing in your ballpark!The old baseball-related idiom refers to the proximity of being correct, being understood, or being accurate.If someone is trying to say the

In 1905 an author named O. Henry published a short story called “The Gift of the Magi”.  Here’s the gist of it:Man and woman are in love, but poor.Man’s most valuable possession is his pocket watch, but not a chain on which to carry it.Woman’s most valuable possession is her long hair, but no combs with which to

“Oh, by the way … just one more thing …”Often, this last minute utterance at the end of a meeting, doctor’s visit or other parting-of-ways signals the beginning of authentic communication, not the end. Examples: Boss, nearing the end of a routine meeting:  “Oh, by the way … just one more thing … we are closing

Over 30+ years I’ve been fortunate to have gained a broad base of experience in several different industries in both in the private and public sectors.  For better or worse, I also noted that each industry presented its own strategy for developing emerging leaders. Within the tremendous diversity of these experiences and the highs and lows

Keeping people engaged in-person certainly has its challenges.  And as more and more meetings are conducted online, the need to improve engagement during virtual meetings has never been greater.In an in-person environment, we can greet attendees at the door, shake their hand, engage in small talk, and put read-ahead material in their seat.  During the

Building and maintaining a high-performing team is a fickle thing.  A dominant voice, talented team members, and a catchy mission statement are not enough.

Shakespearean reference aside, the question doth does beg answers to the questions:WHY don’t team members accept the why and/or the objective(s) from the leader?WHY do team members actively or passively resist on occasion?Let’s look at some examples:Example #1Boss: Go move that piece of paper from one side of your desk to the other side of

Simple definition, okay? Instruction – telling people what to do or how to do it. Learning is mostly pedagogical, which means that learning is directed by the teacher. Coaching and Mentoring – supporting the student’s journey to finding their own answer. Learning is mostly andragogical, which means that learning is directed by the student. Are

I occasionally prowl around social media.  Somewhere along the line, the advertising overlords discovered my self-employed, entrepreneur status. My web activity has, therefore, earned me a fair share of targeted ads by people with business and marketing solutions for problems I didn’t even know I had. Many of them have the same general theme: ‘follow, them, pay them

Imagine spilling your milk (or any other unplanned event). Unpleasant, right?Questions That Leaders AskTo move on, Crisis Leaders seek answers to two separate but complementary questions: WHY (insight) andWHAT (action) WHY did it happen? Seeks insight into the disruption but does little to actually clean up the milk.Why is backward facing – looks at cause, effect and origin. Why is historic