Blog

It truly is a humungous compliment when someone thinks this about you . Imagine if most or all of your team members regularly had the “I like me more when I’m around you” thought about you… The positive impacts of creating the sort of relationship that generates this thinking are huge: First there are theRead more

I’m going to cut right to the chase here… The primary cause of most of your discomfort with tough conversations is that you’re avoiding saying what needs to be said. Think about a tough conversation that you need to have: Are you trying to not say something?   Let’s Look At Andrew’s (Lack Of) CommunicationRead more

I can hear you saying “Why on earth would I want to do that?” Before answering this question, let me quickly do a bit of important framing… Most leaders are quite nervous about “airing their emotions”. About 75% of the leaders I’ve coached have indicated that they’re apprehensive about disclosing how they feel. So, ifRead more

Throughout 2011 your responses to my twice-monthly Leadership Bulletins have been truly heart warming… Each publication has triggered a “That’s exactly what I needed to hear” email or comment from leaders. And many of you have regularly circulated your Leadership Bulletins widely throughout your teams or organisations. Thank you. The following seven bulletins have elicitedRead more

  A number of people, including many leaders, are frustrated with their boss. Doug, a leader I coach, is typical of those who experienced this dissatisfaction. Doug is exceptionally intelligent, good at his job, well liked and, overall, has pretty high emotional intelligence. But when he spoke about his boss, his eyes rolled, his faceRead more

The Finger Pointing Syndrome—It’s A Bad Look For Leaders! Many of my perceptions and observations about how leaders behave are formed as a result of the 360-degree feedback discussions I have with the team members of leaders I coach. After all, it’s in these safe, intimate and candid interactions that team members’ perceptions are genuinelyRead more

Synchronistically, during the last couple of weeks this “leadership ripples” topic has arisen in many, many of the conversations I’ve had with line managers, HR leaders and leaders I’m currently coaching… So, what are “leadership ripples” and why all this interest in them?   What Are Leadership Ripples? We know that a stone dropped intoRead more

I can hear you saying “Why on earth would I want to do that?” Before answering this question, let me quickly do a bit of important framing… Most leaders are quite nervous about “airing their emotions”. About 75% of the leaders I’ve coached have indicated that they’re apprehensive about disclosing how they feel. So, ifRead more

Letting your team know that you’ve heard will help you, their leader, create a better bottom line, and then some It’s all very well to listen to a team member—but you’re actually in a minefield if you’re not also having them feel heard. Let’s just back up for a minute though and do some importantRead more

“Now that there are more jobs available, I’ve started to look out for new career options.” “This year will probably be the time for me to move jobs. I’m looking for more responsibility… to make a greater contribution.”   We’re hearing these sorts of comments more frequently now aren’t we, either over a coffee withRead more

The bulletin of December 02, 2009 discussed how most leaders don’t balk too much when I encourage them to put their thoughts on the table—and how they often struggle when it comes to tabling their feelings. Remember, there are serious and significant consequences when you don’t “cough up” about how you feel about a burningRead more

When working with leaders to help them become even more influential, I notice that our discussions frequently turn to how important it is, especially when they are experiencing those stronger thoughts and emotions, for them to be candid about what it is they’re thinking and how they’re feeling. Most leaders don’t balk too much whenRead more

Let me get straight to the point. The primary cause of most of your discomfort, when it comes to what makes a “tough” communication tough, is… …not being prepared to say what needs to be said. Usually when you’re putting off initiating a discussion, or when you’re having trouble in a conversation, it’s because you’reRead more

With great regularity, team members tell me they’re not receiving enough feedback from their leaders—which, in itself, means that the team member’s not getting the support or encouragement they need to do a great job. Most people are working somewhat in the dark when it comes to knowing enough about where they’re right on trackRead more

Here’s how you, as a leader, can add significantly to your organisation’s bottom line. Your last bulletin looked at the major determinant of whether or not your people are putting in that extra bit of effort—that “discretionary effort”. And what is that determinant? It’s the characteristics and behaviours of you, their leader! Both the GlobalRead more

The most critical mistake leaders make is that they don’t give their team members nearly enough feedback! Hmmm, I’m wondering…if this is the most critical mistake leaders make, is it a trap that you fall in to? During 360-degree feedback interviews, when I ask “Where could your leader be better aligned with an exemplary leader?”Read more