There are many people out there that think positive thinking is the holy grail. There's nothing wrong with that per se, but we can't live up to the ideal of not thinking negatively can we? We all have negative thoughts, judgments, and feelings from time to time; some more than others....
Recently I was able to do something that I have never done before: speak to 1200 people over 2 days up on the big stage. I was asked to speak to the incoming new students about managing anxiety at Keene State College. The experience and collaboration with the student affairs folks was truly amazing, totally went ...
I have been hearing lately in many places this notion of the economy of motion, that is making each movement as efficient as possible. So if you are weight lifting for instance, or running, you don't want to waste energy in inefficient body movements. Not only do you not get the benefit of the gains you want,...
I am supporting a manager in a company currently who was on the rocks with his team. He was even on the track to be fired until I was called in to facilitate a transformation in his leadership. Now before I make it all about me, I tell you it takes two to make a transformation happen: my support...
In a recent session with a middle manager we struck something pretty profound. Now I get paid to listen to people, help them see their motivations, goals, and then support them to get what they want. In this particular case I had gotten some feedback from his team that at times he can be defensive and talk...
I have been hearing lately in many places this notion of the economy of motion, that is making each movement as efficient as possible. So if you are weight lifting for instance, or running, you don't want to waste energy in inefficient body movements. Not only do you not get the benefit of the gains you want,...
It is a well-kept secret for some reason that love and business can be synonymous. Before you judge me as woo-woo or too touchy feely you need to know the facts: 30% of workers in the US are engaged in their jobs for many reasons. One of those reasons is that they don't feel appreciated by their immediate...
In my work I have discovered that there are two general areas for celebration and improvement with each employee. I call these two key areas performance and attitude and I have created a matrix of four possibilities that may be helpful to managers and leaders when thinking through the current reality of their...
The organizational chart is a wonderful visioning and management tool. Unfortunately too few people use it. The org chart is a visual chart/graph/spreadsheet of who reports to who in the business or organization. If people don't know who reports to who it causes confusion and inefficiencies. People do...
I just read (twice) a 200-page article entitled 'The State of the American Workplace' and it was fascinating. It talks about the metrics associated with engaging workers and that it is largely the direct supervisor's responsibility to engender engagement in the organization. A dismal 33% of employees are engaged, meaning they feel connected to the mission, feel that they are working in their strengths zone,...
