5 Questions to End the Slow Painful Death of Death by Meetings

In a leadership training class on communication in the workplace, I had one participant tell the group that meetings at his company were the biggest waste of time. When probed as to why, the basic gist of it came down to two reasons: 1. No one knows why the heck a meeting has been called and/or why they need to be there 2. Nothing results from the meetings Because of this dialogue as well as other feedback we had received, we started incorporating a segment on effective meetings into our standard Communication Outline lineup. Whether you are dealing with these two

2 Steps to Keep People from Quitting

Do you know the number one reason why people quit a job? It’s not for more money or better benefits or advancement opportunities. People may cite these factors as a reason for leaving in an exit interview or casual conversation, but what most likely led them to look elsewhere in the first place is because of a bad boss. As a Harvard Business Review article stated, “Studies have consistently shown that having a bad manager or a poor relationship with one’s manager is a top reason an employee quits.” Yep, most likely your number one reason for turnover is bad

Leadership Tips for Teachers: Leading the Next Generation

Back to the classroom! As summer is coming to an end, teachers and students are gearing up for another school year. While school supplies and new sneakers are on the list for back to school, we encourage teachers to consider adding sharpening their leadership skills to the list. “Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence.” Sheryl Sanberg   What a great motto for teachers to consider! In your quest to lead the next generation, we recommend the following leadership tips: Build relationships with your students. Be

Leaders Focus on a Whole New World

I was going through my old email account one day and happened upon this gem of advice from my late mentor, Dr. Jim Cashman: Date: February 28, 2006 at 6:04:09 PM CST Mary Ila: Remember the last meeting of MGT 300. I went over the test and then played a segment of the Wizard of Oz, stressing the importance of leaving the university with a brain (scarecrow), the courage to present and defend your ideas (lion), and to be loved by getting involved in your community (tin man/it is not how much you love, but how much you are loved by others). Finally, you

3 STEPS TO BETTER LEADERSHIP

Leaders make more leaders. You aren’t a leader if you don’t. But how do you go about making more leaders? By acting as a career agent, you can successfully combat disengagement and serve the role that a leader is meant to serve- growing others. But how do you play the role of career agent? Here are three easy steps:   1. ASK & ASSESS: Asking simply involves deploying the question, “What do you want out of your career?” in individual meetings with your subordinates. You may want to break this down into what they want 1 year, 3 years, 5