In the last post I made a case that too many business leaders ignore the vitally important skill of teaching, coaching and guiding the development of future leaders. They may feel they lack the skill to teach others, or they feel that experience is after all the best teacher. Or they may simply be focused […]
In case you hadn’t noticed, the pace of change today is staggering. Businesses cannot survive using yesterday’s strategies and tactics. Heck, even today’s thinking will become obsolete very quickly. This does not mean you have to adopt every new fad that comes along. But if you are not regularly reinventing how you do business, you […]
My last post on weighing the assets and liabilities in each employee provoked this comment: This is very one-sided. Management has a lot to do with whether an employee is an asset or a liability. I think you should address that in a blog. You have to consider the “fatigue” component in employees who work […]
A client was recently complaining about a long-time employee. I asked him two questions that helped shed light on the employee’s value to the company: 1. If you were to estimate the revenue that this employee helped generate in the past year, would it be greater than her salary? 2. If this employee was to […]
‘Tis the season to give thanks. The attitude of gratitude is a powerful posture on both the personal and professional levels. I’ve known people who are very self-focused. The psychological term for this is narcissism. For such individuals, life is a play in which they are the Star. They see everyone else as supporting cast […]
Last post I admitted to a dislike for office politics. At the same time, I maintained that political acumen is essential for surviving, if not thriving, in most organizations. To figure out how to develop political skill, let’s start with my definition: Political Acumen – The ability to understand and influence others given real or […]
I’ve never liked what most people think of as office politics. I’m talking here about people getting jobs or promotions based on who they know. I’m talking about people getting special treatment because of their ability to suck up. I’m talking about people retaining their jobs despite uninspired, risk-averse, complacent, don’t-rock-the-boat behaviors. I’ve seen these […]
I recently worked with a group of senior executives who had concerns about how to develop the next generation of leaders in their companies. The organizational development speak for this is succession planning. In sports we call this bench strength. There are reasons that companies resist the investment of time and resources in developing future […]
When it comes to building a business or network it can be useful to arrange people on a series of concentric circles. The inner ring, ok, the “inner circle,” is comprised of people with whom we are the most intimate and honest. These people know our secrets, and love us anyway. With these folks we […]
Last post I claimed that humans live in different realities. It’s not just a particular event, like a basketball game, or perceptions of a particular person, like a boss. EVERYTHING we experience differs from another person’s reality because each person has lived through a completely unique blend of life experiences: family dynamics, education, religion, ethnic […]