I’ve been asked to speak to a group of high school student leaders this week. I’m always open to almost any topic the organizers want me to cover that I have expertise in. In this case, what started off as a talk about communication skills morphed into talking about building confidence. The adult leader said that she felt as though this was a challenge for most youth of today. I see this point and also see where there are a variety of factors contributing to it. One factor that I see related to both challenges in communication skills and confidence is the
“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again.” During a recent conversation with a client, he raised a concern about his leadership team expecting him to make every decision. The previous leadership set that expectation, but he wants to empower his team to make decisions they are capable of making. The conversation reminded me of when my children were younger and learning new skills, like riding a bike. My youngest is very headstrong and lacks patience (he doesn’t take after his mother at all). If he doesn’t get it right the first time, he’s quick to say “I
“….But the most helpful advice is not a painting. It is instead a box of paints and a set of brushes. Here, the best team leaders seem to say, take these paints, those brushes, and see what you think you can do with them. What do you see, from your vantage point? What picture can you paint?” from Nine Lies About Work A few weeks ago, we talked about how neuro research shows us that for learning to happen, insights have to be created. We talk a lot about giving and receiving feedback in the workplace and how necessary it
The end of the school year brings final exams, award ceremonies, parties, and best of all, summer. My boys have been counting down the days. And with their countdown comes the usual question I face every year. “What are we doing this summer?” I always try to do fun things with them throughout the summer that they will each enjoy. But with three boys ranging from 9 to 15, that’s not always easy. Their interests don’t always match up. What my nine-year-old finds thrilling, my fifteen-year-old finds more boring than watching paint dry. So this year, I’m putting the decision
In our last post, we discussed strategies for retaining talent in a difficult labor market. Hopefully, you’ve focused efforts there, but most likely, you also need to figure out the best ways to recruit talent. Here are some ideas for doing so: 1. Expose Yourself! Exposure is a key problem in attracting talent, especially for B2B companies. Developing programs that expose people in the community to your company and jobs are important. We aren’t all Apple and Google. You can do this through partnership with schools in your area, marketing campaigns, involvement in community and charitable endeavors and by giving your