Build a great company on a powerful foundation!
We’ve all been there, and we’ve seen it happen to others.
You’re doing fine for a while, working super hard in a stressful environment, and then something inside you senses that you’ve hit a limit. It might be a feeling of crushing overwhelm, or a more general lack of energy and direction.
We’re human. We have limits.
Read the rest of this entry »I’d love to participate, but I’m too busy right now.
It seems like busy-ness is the universally acceptable excuse for anything. We’re all busy, busy is good, and it’s the way we’ve defined life.
As a result, I’m finding it fascinating to be in a place of having more time to be intentional. I took a break from marketing my coaching business this year, and as a result I created a bunch of time to focus on my other priorities.
It’s a bit disorienting, honestly.
Read the rest of this entry »22 years ago, the world came to a halt.
I expect that almost all of us remember where we were that morning, even those of outside the US. We had no words.
The important question, though, is: What did we learn about ourselves?
Read the rest of this entry »That quote is attributed to Peter Drucker, the amazing leader who helped redefine business in Japan and then around the world.
It’s good to remind ourselves that plans and strategies are fine – even necessary. But the real foundation of getting anything done is the culture of the organization.
This brings to mind a year in an organization I worked for about twenty years ago. The company was getting into serious financial trouble, and it was noted that growth in the number of employees was getting out of hand while the economy was headed the wrong direction.
Read the rest of this entry »Every human needs to be connected to other people.
Unfortunately, people are all flawed and make mistakes. Compounded with the messiness of communication, you end up with chaos. That’s what it means to be human.
But we know all that. What I’m focusing on today is that connecting with others is an act of becoming vulnerable. It’s risky.
Read the rest of this entry »There are just some questions that just might be too scary to put out there.
This can be especially true if you’re a worker with relatively little power. When something looks just a little bit “off”, are you willing to ask to find out more?
Instead, we might deflect with “I guess that’s just the way it’s done” or “It’s above my pay grade.” Now, I get that – why risk a harsh response to a question that you may not be able to do much about anyway?
Read the rest of this entry »We’d like to think that the relationship between manager and employee is very transactional. The employee does the required work, and the manager pays them. Then everybody goes home and has their Real Life.
But we’re all human. We have ups and downs, triumphs and challenges.
In the work setting, we like to ignore all that. It’s just about “doing the work”. If we were all automatons, that might make it even easier. But there’s so much more.
Read the rest of this entry »I was having a conversation the other day about responsibility, accountability, and authority.
Accountability seems to be the term that people struggle with the most, because it feels like it’s nothing but bad consequences. If everything goes right, then we look for people to credit. If things go wrong, then we look for who’s accountable.
Who to blame.
Read the rest of this entry »Our work is SO serious! SO important!
So can we allow ourselves a little fun in our work? Why not?
OK, so sometimes the work really is super serious. I want my surgeon to know as much as she can and not play around with my life. But even in this example, you’ll find that medical professionals often develop a wicked sense of humor, to take the sting out of the weight of their work.
Read the rest of this entry »Even if your workers are working for a paycheck, it’s wise to learn from those who are leading volunteers.
I’ve learned a whole lot from volunteer-driven organizations, and am currently involved with several myself. In that environment, if people aren’t getting their needs met, they can simply walk away. This is one of the natural things about leading these kinds of groups.
When you’re giving someone their pay every week or two, it’s easy to fall into the trap that their loyalty will continue as long as the pay and benefits are good.
Not true.
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The Values-Based Business 