Tag: teamwork
When Being Strategic Is a Weakness
During a recent visit to a client company, I spent time with two different leaders whose initiatives weren’t progressing satisfactorily. The first leader was chatty and made sweeping motivational statements. Her team was deeply committed,... Continue reading
Look for Ways to Create These Four Conditions Required for Motivation
A successful sales manager was feeling demoralized and out of sorts. When we met for coffee, she sat knee to knee, radiating intensity. “Of course, motivating the team is one of my biggest responsibilities,” she... Continue reading
How Missed Signals Show When We Don’t Understand Each Other
One day last week after lunch, while walking back to my office, I noticed a man parking in the last of four curbside spots in front of the Post Office. He maneuvered a bit and... Continue reading
How to Raise Uncomfortable News with Your Boss Successfully
In most jobs, you have to learn how to integrate your leader into your plans. Unless you own or run the place yourself, part of your job is to help leadership be successful while you’re... Continue reading
The Surprising Truth about Consensus
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
Do You Need to Stop a Passive-Aggressive Person from Slowing Down Your Team?
“I’m at my wits’ end,” my client said during our monthly call, and he explained how frustrating interpersonal dynamics were hobbling his team, making them work smaller and less creatively. Mostly, he said, the problem... Continue reading
How to Survive Working with a Prima Donna
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
The Leadership Styles of The Princess Bride
The slyly comic cult classic The Princess Bride has been in the news lately thanks to Republican presidential politics. It’s struck me that many of the leading roles show up from time to time in... Continue reading