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How To Define Your Corporate Culture

Posted by on April 16, 2018

Organizational culture is a hot topic because it’s the secret sauce that allows all of your people and process to work together for maximum effectiveness. It is that unique combination of core values, vision, purpose, mission and stories. When it is working well almost no one notices but when it is not everyone knows and it drains the trust out of your teams. This Forbes Council post was very helpful:

“With employee engagement on the decline, your company’s corporate culture may be at risk. You may find that you are losing the loyalty of your team and that the vision you have for your company is in jeopardy. But, what if you are a new organization looking to create a corporate culture from scratch?

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Blind Spots That Plague Even The Best Leaders

Posted by on April 14, 2018

The ongoing tension between innovation and execution have never been a bigger issue for leaders. Competition and even Disruption demand leaders always watch the bottom line while looking out the window to see which way the wind is blowing. The failure to do both can quickly doom your entire organization. This Fast Company post is excellent:

“There’s a mythology around great leaders. They’re visionary. They’re inspirational. They seem to know what their organizations and teams need intuitively. But make no mistake: No one is perfect—and most leaders have blind spots, says Robert Bruce Shaw of Princeton Management Consulting Groupin Princeton, New Jersey, and author of Leadership Blind Spots: How Successful Leaders Identify and Overcome the Weaknesses That Matter.”

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The Two Traits Of The Best Problem Solving Teams

Posted by on April 4, 2018

Team collaboration is one of the most misunderstood concepts within many organizations. The old axiom of the sum is greater than the contribution of the individual parts it not working. Too much feedback from the wrong people and not enough from others creates predictable patterns of frustration. Teams need real leadership or they cannot be successful. This HBR post will help:

“Imagine you are a fly on the wall in a corporate training center where a management team of 12 is participating in a session on executing strategy. The team is midway through attempting to solve a new, uncertain, and complex problem. The facilitators look on as at first the exercise follows its usual path.”

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How To Train Yourself To Take Feedback

Posted by on March 30, 2018

One of the major weaknesses I find through my executive coaching is many leaders avoid or even hate conflict. This inevitably leads to even more conflict because the situation was not dealt with before it escalated into a crisis. The only way to avoid this is effective ongoing feedback. This Fast Company post is excellent:

“But let’s get real: Sometimes the only way to get perspective about what needs to change comes from an outside perspective. Yes, believe it or not, there is often a gap between who we desire and think we are presenting to the world, and the way others see us. Turns out that when you ask the people around you–the ones who see you in action every day and are impacted by the choices you make–where you can grow, their ideas might be a little different than your own.”

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5 Ways To Counteract Your Smartphone Addiction

Posted by on March 28, 2018

This problem has been a hard one for me to admit. I rationalize like everyone else that its related to work and keeping up with friends. However, when you start trolling all the latest news and watching those cute dog videos for two hours per day, something is desperately wrong. This HBR post helped me reframe the issue:

“We are living in an era of technology obsession and smartphone addiction. I hear it all the time: “I can’t go anywhere without my phone” or “I feel anxious when I’m not able to check email” or “If I’m not on my social feeds, I feel like I’m missing out.” Not surprisingly, research shows that too much technology use diminishes our mental and physical health, our relationships and more.”

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Five Signs You're Running Yourself Into The Ground

Posted by on March 26, 2018

I have this nagging conviction that many days I am simply doing the wrong things faster. My personal productivity far exceeds the development of my personal character. Weekends away from the daily grind feels like catching up instead of slowing down. This Forbes post confirmed a lot for me:

“Time in your workday to protect your time, energy and stress levels. If your calendar is constantly crammed with appointments from the time you wake until the time you turn out the lights, you are on your way to burnout. Working around the clock is not only ineffective, it’s unnecessary. Because we live at such a manic pace, there are five signs you just may be ignoring to protect the most precious asset there is: yourself.”

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Why Your Inner Circle Should Stay Small

Posted by on March 16, 2018

This idea is the exact opposites of what most people are advising today. The larger your network the better, which means the more people you are connected with on social media the better, right? Actually, wrong because they in reality are virtual connections and not real people who are committed to helping you reach your potential. This HBR post is a great read:

“When it comes to networks, the bigger the better, right? Not necessarily. Carefully curate your most trusted, inner circle and you’ll be surprised at how much more valuable you’ll become to the larger community of people in the world who care about the same things you do.

We live in a time when “bigger is better” is the prevailing assumption when it comes to, well, just about anything. So it’s only natural for us to want to supersize our network of connections — both online and off — because the more people we know, the greater our chances of being exposed to opportunities that may lead to professional advancement, potential mentors, material success, and so on.”

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The Power Of No

Posted by on March 14, 2018

This idea changed my approach to personal leadership, which eventually changed everything I do and don’t do in life. The concept was first introduced by Stephen Covey in 7 Habits when he demonstrated just because something is urgent does not mean its important. I eventually became very efficient in doing all the wrong things faster. The only way to stop the madness was to identify those major Yes’s in my life. This Forbes post will help:

“Here, though, I will focus on one of the key things I have seen these influential leaders do very well, and it’s something that others struggle with. It may indeed be one of the biggest difference makers in the number of lives an influencer impacts and the results they achieve.”

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Creating The Right Organizational Culture

Posted by on March 12, 2018

I find myself in working with executives debating whether prioritizing results or activities is the best approach to building a healthy organizational culture. The activities approach is more directive and seeks to define what things should be done well that will give the greatest return. When you use results as the most important metic, you are choosing delegation that seeks to empower your team to create the best process. This HBR post is a great read:

“Here’s the dilemma: In a competitive, complex, and volatile business environment, companies need more from their employees than ever. But the same forces rocking businesses are also overwhelming employees, driving up their fear, and compromising their capacity.

It’s no wonder that so many C-Suite leaders are focused on how to build higher performance cultures. The irony, we’ve found, is that building a culture focused on performance may not be the best, healthiest, or most sustainable way to fuel results.”

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Defining The Elusive Work-Life Balance

Posted by on March 9, 2018

Every coaching client I have worked with in the last 3 years has this item on their list for improvement. I am personally convinced that shifting the focus from balance to integration is the key to gaining margin. This allows for shifts in certain seasons in time without feeling we are failing across the board. Life Planning is critical to success. Karl Sun has a great post:

“At Lucid, we try to offer the flexibility that allows employees to balance work and personal life in their own way. We can do that because we trust them. We hire people who we trust to put in the time necessary to do their absolute best without us babysitting them—and if that happens outside your typical 9-5 workday, that’s okay.”

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