Many business owners prefer to make all their decisions on a case-by-case basis, as determined by their deep understanding of individual circumstances and well-developed gut instinct. They resist creating formal policy, believing that each situation... Continue reading
I’m very lucky to experience much less disagreement or outright conflict on the job than most people. Although my clients’ views may differ from mine in many ways, it’s implicit in our relationship that we’re... Continue reading
Why would you ever consider hiring someone whose behavior you disrespect? Eventually, the relationship will end in tears -- and if you’re not the one crying, you’ll be handing out the Kleenex. But it can... Continue reading
One very practical way to move forward is to review past successes and expand on them. So I checked to see which Workplace Wisdom blog posts attracted the most attention in 2016 to learn which... Continue reading
“Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right / Here I am, stuck in the middle with you.” The Stealers Wheels song wasn’t explicitly addressing middle management, but “stuck” is what it often... Continue reading
Think about every boss you’ve had since you were a kid, including the parents of the kids you babysat, the owner of the greasy spoon where you waited tables, and the director of the camp... Continue reading
I recently surprised a COO by giving him very different advice about a business problem from what he had heard from others. Here’s the situation: Through the grapevine, a bunch of junior R&D folks expressed... Continue reading
“Nothing’s happening! Why isn’t anything happening?” Strategy, planning, and communication are all crucial parts of leadership and organizational life. But it’s execution that most people really notice, from the CEO to the most junior frontline... Continue reading
When leaders make decisions skillfully, everyone on the team wins. But when leaders are poor decision-makers, the team’s performance and culture suffer, and individual team members can lose confidence and become disengaged. Unfortunately, though, team... Continue reading
Smart, effective decision-making is one of the most important and complex parts of team or organizational leadership. Leaders make up their minds based on what they already believe and the way they operate; then they... Continue reading
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