Micromanagement: 7 Signs You’re a Micromanager and What to Do About It
Could you be guilty of micromanagement? The micromanager has been called the bully of the business world, and micromanagement is responsible for killing motivation, eroding trust, and leading to waste and inefficiency. Yet the last person to recognize that they are a micromanager is the micromanager themselves. Could you be one of them and not […]
Demotivation: 7 Ways You Might Be Killing Your Team’s Spirit
Could your efforts to lead actually lead to demotivation? A team’s spirit means everything when it comes to productivity, engagement, and satisfaction. But sometimes, despite our best intentions, the way we lead can become a source of demotivation. Here are seven things you might be doing that deplete your team’s morale, and what you can […]
Leadership Mistakes: 3 Things to Do When You Really Step In It
What should a leader do when they make a mistake? Nobody likes to “step in it,” but leadership mistakes will happen. What you do when they occur makes all the difference. Do these three things well, and you may end up with a stronger team than you started with.
Skills for the Introverted Leader: 6 Ways to Expand Your Comfort Zone
What skills does an introverted leader need to develop? Statistically, about half of us tend towards introversion (I’m definitely one of them). That fact doesn’t exclude us from being effective leaders. In fact, many of the traits associated with introversion are actually strengths for someone who wants to lead well. Often, we can lead very […]
How to Be a Great Boss: 9 Ways to Get a 5-Star Rating From Your Team
What does it take to be a great boss? Some bosses are more memorable than others, and some perhaps you’d like to forget. But what does it take to be a great boss? What distinguishes the one that people remember years later as the leader who made a difference? I was fortunate to work for […]
How to Tell if You Are Sinking or Swimming as a Leader
How can 80% of people believe themselves to be above average leaders? One of the many challenges of being a leader is knowing how well we are doing. Are we sinking or swimming? It can be hard to really know, and yet knowing is the key to becoming better at it. As I was surprised […]
The Role of Fear in Leadership: Is it Better to be Feared or Loved as a Leader?
Is it better to be feared or loved as a leader? It’s an age-old question that seems to keep cropping up. Authoritative writers talk about how leaders need to be open, transparent, empathetic, and willing to listen. Yet like the Humble Leader Paradox, if that’s the way you act, great, but what’s to keep people […]
Sharpen Your Thinking: 25 Ways to Hone Your Thinking Skills
Leaders should be independant thinkers. Whether you are trying to develop a vision statement, solve a problem at work, or influence the team, leaders have to think about where they are going and how they are going to get there. The good news is that thinking is a skill, and it’s one that we can […]
Space to Think: 8 Ways to Find Quiet in a Noisy World
How do you find the space to think in a noisy world? We are bombarded all day long by messages telling us what to do, and what to think. Someone else is always trying to put their thoughts into our heads. Whether it’s friends, family, media, or the boss, all of them want our eyes, […]
Book Notes – Originals by Adam Grant
What does it take to question the status quo and produce something original? That’s the question that author Adam Grant poses in his 2016 book Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World. The answer he reaches might surprise you. Grant takes us on a journey through recent history, into the psychology lab, and behind the doors […]
How to Stay Optimistic: 3 Questions to Ask Before You Give Up
How can you stay optimistic in the face of failure? Failure is a natural part of doing business, of being human, and of attempting to do things you haven’t done before. And when we fail, there’s a natural tendency to want to give up. It’s hard to stay optimistic. But before you pull the plug […]
Answering the Call of Leadership
When the call of leadership comes, what will you do? Often what makes leaders stand out are not the great deeds but the small acts. Many of these actions may even go unnoticed by most. But cumulatively they demonstrate where the leader’s heart lies, and they build the kind of loyalty that makes teams strong […]
