During a review of my book I received some pretty harsh feedback about my writing skills. When I reviewed my writing, I had to agree they were right. I installed Grammarly and it made a huge difference in my accuracy. But what I really love are the stats it cranks out....
How to Get Naked with Your Team
I want to come across as professional and authoritative. They feel like a good suit, projecting important elements of my self-image. But, the very times I’ve been unprofessional and less than impressive are critical learning points in my career. By sharing them I save my team and those I mentor...
It’s Time to Terminate
"They never pick up when I call and frequently skip my meetings.""Why is everyone so quiet in my meetings?? They're intimidated by Terry.""It's never gross misconduct, just constant surliness and finding ways to go around me." Lately I'm hearing more and more about bad behavior at work. My clients complain...
Why Keith Richards Should Run your Succession Planning
In 1988 I was working in a department store and scored a huge poster of Keith Richards' new solo album: Talk is Cheap. Fantastic album! I was amazed to read that they cut most of the songs in one take, live in studio. It was raw rock n' roll, with huge...
Catch them right-handed!
Let me guess. I bet you are dealing with a whole host of difficult problems at work: absenteeism, poor quality work, toxic personalities, disconnection, abuse of power, and abuse of privilege. We’ve gotten better at calling out bad behaviors, but the bad behaviors continue to persist. What do we do about...
Hiring is hard, so stop hiring!
A recent US survey from Kantata indicates that 53% of leaders are having trouble hiring full-time employees and are spending 40% of their day dealing with employee turnover. FORTY PERCENT! We’ve been here before. Markets expand and contract. Layoffs have already begun in some areas. In the meantime, the labor pool is...
Have you seen your stakeholders lately?
Alan Weiss and Lisa Larter recently launched the book Masterful Marketing. These two incredibly successful individuals reveal their secrets to success in marketing a business. But before reading a single page of their book, an insight sprang from their promo material: Now replace “buyer” with “employees” or “stakeholders.” How does...
You Need a Symbiote
Shopkeepers take note! Always place your beer near the diapers. A research analyst noticed a correlation between sales of beer and diapers at the grocery store and hypothesized that when men zipped out to grab more diapers, they couldn’t resist stocking up on beer at the same time. A marketing opportunity was...
The Easiest Thing to do is Nothing
As my friend rounded the track, the car entered a long straightaway and accelerated to “ludicrous speed,” I felt a rush in the passenger seat - the kind that tempts you to put your hands up in the air on a roller coaster and whoop for joy! But that next...
You Need to be Two-Faced to Lead Change
Is your glass half empty or half full? We’ve all heard that phrase used to identify optimism and pessimism. Of course, any good consultant knows that dichotomies can be dangerous. There are always shades of grey for good reason. I was just reading how those with a positive mindset have...
