Please Don’t Make the Mess Your Manager Made
Everybody’s had at least one boss they didn’t trust and desperately wanted to escape. But you probably learned invaluable lessons from that boss about how people should and shouldn’t be treated. You might even have... Continue reading
Who Defines Your Service Rules?
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
When to Stop Trying So Hard
Some executives are too hard on themselves. They anticipate failure or disaster when all they’re really facing is the relentless, ongoing effort that’s necessary for leadership and management success. They let fear and anxiety take... Continue reading
You Know You Can’t Motivate Anyone, Right?
Executives often ask me how to motivate employees who don’t carry out the things they’re asked to do, from behavioral requirements like showing up on time to work quality requirements like capturing customer source codes... Continue reading
How to Keep From Drowning in Your Own Thoughts
Are you stuck somewhere inside your head, talking to yourself about things you want to change? Are you stressing over how stalled you feel, or fixating on why the situation is so awful? No wonder... Continue reading
Who Should Be Responsible for Career Plans?
Not everyone wants to be a manager or should be one. Lots of people are more comfortable as subject matter experts, sole contributors, or administrators than as implementers. Not everyone needs multiple promotions to feel... Continue reading
Why This is the Time to Reassess the Annual Review
If you can’t draw a direct line from performance appraisal to performance improvement, then, seriously, what’s the point? Yet in many organizations, the definitions, criteria, and explanations for the annual review aren’t specifically pertinent to... Continue reading
Stretch Goals May Be Popular But Can Damage Your People
It’s demoralizing when you can’t seem to hit your targets -- even if your company’s still making money. In some companies, the compulsion to commit to stretch goals, unprecedented innovation, or drastic and immediate turnaround... Continue reading