Why won't they listen?! It can be exasperating when you're trying to communicate with someone, but you know that what you are saying is "going in one ear and out the other." You might be offering advice, or giving instructions on how to complete a task, but the other person has made up their mind […]
I was looking forward to interviewing leading sustainability expert Wayne Visser for our Expert Interview podcast. The plan was to talk face-to-face but we ended up speaking via Skype instead. I’d like to say I chose technology over transport to reduce my carbon footprint, but actually the decision was more about timing. This got me […]
All Posts, Change Management, Expert Interview, Leadership, Strategy, Team Management
Boards govern, management teams lead. That's what Nancy Falls told me when we talked recently about her new book, "Corporate Concinnity in the Boardroom: 10 Imperatives to Drive High Performance Companies." It makes sense that boards and management teams should do different things. But where does corporate governance end and leading the company begin? According […]
All Posts, Expert Interview, Leadership, Strategy, Team Management
Justin Rosenstein, the co-founder of collaboration software company Asana, wondered, "Why do some teams march in unison and achieve big dreams, while others waste time, get stressed and lose steam? I've found that the answer is clarity." His first requirement is clarity of purpose. Abundant literature and research confirms the immediate need for clarity of […]
I was looking after my eight-year-old nephew last weekend, and I’d love to say it was a pleasure but it wasn't! His parents had gone out for the night on their own, trusting me and my partner to look after him for the evening. As non-parents, this was a big deal for us and we’d […]
I've never been a leader of an organization and I've always shied away from management roles in my journalism career, preferring to stay "at the coal face." Nor have I ever been overly interested in management theory or the structure of organizations. But I am really interested in concepts like purpose and meaning, in the […]
All Posts, Career Skills, Leadership, Team Management, Time Management
Have you ever found yourself in a situation where someone in your team is frequently less proactive or busy than you? Every time you look over at their computer screens, they’re surfing the web, catching up on the sports results, or sharing photos on social media. All the while, you’re frantically working on your own […]
All Posts, Communication, Problem Solving, Stress, Team Management
Motivation is the art of finding out what "makes people tick," and applying that to get the best from them. As such, it’s something that we all need to understand. There are many great models that help us do this. One of the fathers of motivation, Frederick Herzberg, said that the way to motivate people […]
Business jargon is made up of words and phrases which - out of context - don’t make a lot of sense. Anyone who has worked in a big company will know what I’m talking about! Honestly, I’ve heard it all. I’ve had to “think outside the box,” indulge in “blue-sky” and “helicopter” thinking, and “pick low-hanging fruit” […]
Life can be complex, but I am prone to complicating things. I tell myself to keep it simple, but I come up with all manner of scenarios and solutions for non-existing problems. So I found the message of "Six Simple Rules" by Yves Morieux and Peter Tollman relevant to me. It reminded me that the […]
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