Last week, we talked about how I attempt to gather all my “parts” before I enter into a high-stakes conversation, especially if there’s potential for hurt feelings or nuance that might be missed. I do that because I need my analytical mind, spidey-sense, bridge-builder people skills, and hard-nosed business skills; I need all of them…
I like to think of myself as being a coherent whole person, but that description isn’t fully accurate. I’ve got some parts. (I’m betting you have some too.) On the one hand, I’ve got a very analytical, rational, and logical side—that part of me that loved calculus and engineering, who turns everything into a puzzle…
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a leader.” ~ John Quincy Adams Reading this made me wonder, by Adams’ definition, how am I doing as a leader? Dream More Learn more Do more Become More There’s nothing more valuable to a company, or that…
You are responsible for your second thought and your first action. My son and I were having some Father-Son banter a few days ago, and he said something that felt like it crossed a line. It stung, and I didn’t like it. It was one of those quick back-and-forth things, and I didn’t catch my…
I got a call from one of our family’s medical providers this week. I hadn’t paid their bill, and they were assessing us a late charge and threatening to withhold services… I felt irresponsible, careless, foolish, and sloppy when I listened to that message. I could hear myself in my head, “You idiot. You know…
I’ve been thinking and reading about leadership lately. Specifically, I’m trying to more clearly articulate what I mean when I say, “Better humans make better leaders.” What does “better” mean in that sentence? Mature? Enlightened? Capable? These words have the same problem. What do they mean? How do you measure them? So, I’ve started to…
“I tried having a bad day once. I didn’t like it, so I decided not to do it again! ~ My Therapist Imagine you woke up on the wrong side of the bed, your toast fell on the floor (butter side down), the traffic was terrible, the client was a no-show for your meeting, and…
Every calculus problem was like a brain teaser. There was always a trick or method that could simplify this big, messy equation — I just had to find it. As the class progressed, I learned more and more “tricks” to solve “messier” equations. It felt like magic and I was becoming a wizzard! But here’s…
During a recent coaching conversation, I saw more clearly than ever before what needed to change in my life. My behavior, a way of thinking and acting, was holding me back professionally and creating friction in the relationships with those I care for most. My response was to want to change it immediately. But, as…
To have hope requires bravery and vulnerability. To hope is to risk disappointment. Giving up hope protects you from disappointment, from being let down, and from looking like a fool who believes in such poppycock. But when you are doing something new, something exciting and potentially spectacular, there will be plenty of voices telling you…