Tag: leadership and management

Book is Published!

I wanted you — my long-time blog subscribers — to be the first to know that the book I’ve co-authored with former colleague, Kelly McCleary, You Are Born to Lead: Reflect, Adapt, and Make an Impact Right Now, is now published and available for purchase in print and Kindle formats on Amazon.com! This has been ...

Big Questions, Simple Answer

Publishing update: We are currently working on the Kindle (eBook) conversion of the printed book, You Are Born to Lead. Stay tuned! The below might be helpful to you in the meantime. Often when I was an HR lead, managers and executives would ask big questions like, “How do I get people to change more quickly?” ...

“They Just Get It” Method of Putting the Right People on the Bus

One time while interviewing with an executive leader, I referenced meeting next with X leader on his team. The executive’s reply was, “Oh, good. He gets it.” Later in a more casual setting, I asked this executive what he meant by, “X gets it.” Actually, I did see what he meant after meeting with this person. ...

The Best Change Management Lessons From an Unlikely Source

Becky Rom, National Campaign Chair for the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters, would not call what she does courage. That was my original intent in contacting her regarding her years-long quest to create a permanent ban on sulfide-ore copper mining in the watershed of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. With the campaign’s 18 million followers ...

Three Steps to Jump-Start Any Team

The beginning of a newly formed team represents such a big opportunity. New teams could include situations like: New leader to an established team. An existing team is asked to take on more responsibility. Leader wants to redirect an existing team. New team and leader for enterprise process or other change. Department team assembled to ...

Be Shocked By What You Accomplish With This Simple Method

There isn’t a lot more you can say about the New Year holiday that hasn’t already been said. However, one concept is worth repeating every year: choose some goals. We are in a constant state of contradiction. There is a part of our brain that strives for homeostasis, to have things stay the same, tied to ...

Go Light Your World, Part II — What Inspires You?

In my last post, I asked you to spend a few minutes capturing what were Peak Moments from your past. This exercise gets to the heart of when you were at the top of your game. Each week in this series builds on the next, so a theme starts to emerge. The very tangible result ...

Take Your Candle, And Go Light Your World: Part 1

In my last post, “Find Your Inner Japan Grab,” I promised to kick off a series of posts that ask simple questions of you, so that you find that spark of inspiration that sets you apart from everyone else. To follow the metaphor theme, my hope is that through this series of self-exploration you’ll find ...

Find Your Inner Japan Grab

I’m always amazed by how you can find inspiration unsuspectingly in everyday life. That happened this past weekend watching the Olympics. I don’t necessarily assume a gold medal recipient is a leader, per se. However, once in a while how someone got the gold can teach us a lot about our own lives. Take Sage ...

I’m Wide Awake

The kids and I were listening to a U2 playlist in the car recently. When the live version of “Bad” was over, one of my eight-year-olds said, “I don’t get this song. What does he mean, ‘I’m wide awake, I’m wide awake?'” I have heard this song no less than 1000 times since high school ...