I’m writing this post a few days before the historic presidential election of 2016. No matter who wins, an enormous number of people are going to feel horrified and upset. After all of the heated... Continue reading
Some of my clients go crazy with meetings. They schedule them back to back, invite a cast of thousands, start late and in disarray, drag on unproductively, and end late without closure. Suddenly, everyone is... Continue reading
Consensus sounds so nice: Everyone agrees and moves forward together. Kumbaya! Seems like a good thing, right? But here’s how one client described the way his company practices consensus (with my italics): “We have to... Continue reading
Has someone been on your team so long that their performance is tanking and they appear to have stopped engaging in the relationship? As one client described it to me: “I’m surprised to be feeling... Continue reading
Have you paid the price when a melodramatic, self-aggrandizing team member has hurt your organization by spreading unnecessary chaos and discontent? “Artistes” like this have never learned how to share top billing, glory, or status... Continue reading
Bringing a new person on to the team almost always takes more work than expected. No matter how senior your team is, it can take significant effort to get the new person integrated with the... Continue reading
When a business has to fight for every sale, the idea of intentionally turning customers away seems like sacrilege. In fact, taking advantage of customers is such a common societal trope that there’s a plethora... Continue reading
According to an old Swahili proverb: “When the elephants fight, it’s the grass that suffers.” That’s certainly true in organizations where executives have ongoing disagreements. Whether the situation involves explicit, pitched battles, or covert, passive-aggressive... Continue reading
On Sunday morning, Daughter and I went to a local diner where the food is always good, but the service is often iffy. Our waitress had been somewhat unhelpful in the past, so I studied... Continue reading
I hate to be in default or in the wrong, or to create a problem for someone. So I was quite distressed when I was scolded by a client’s administrator -- not someone I usually... Continue reading
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