In workshop discussions concerning conflict management, inevitably the subject of dealing with “toxic” individuals comes up. I maintain that if you have toxic individuals on your team, you normally don’t have a conflict problem, you have a values problem. We’ve talked about workplace culture before but, in my experience, few… Read More »Dealing with Toxic Team Members
Employee engagement is a concept that gets a lot of press these days. Leaders wring their hands about low levels of engagement and experts offer all kinds of actions and formulas that will fix the problem. All that angst isn’t really necessary, as engagement is a pretty simple concept. Few… Read More »I Want to be on That Team
In my free time I enjoy powered paragliding. I have a unique perspective while moving slowly across the landscape from a couple hundred feet up that is quite illuminating. I’ve seen coyotes lying in long grasses waiting for prey, jackrabbits actually forming small “herds†for mutual protection, how antelope seem… Read More »Do They See What You See? Great Leaders Share the Vision
We want and appreciate comments to this blog. We really do want to know what you’re thinking. But, there are those who see an invite to comment as an opportunity to advertise their products and services. Most annoying are those who want us to use their content generation services. They… Read More »Three Steps to Ease Your Transition to Your New Team
My wife gave me a DNA kit for Christmas. It’s pretty simple. You spit into a tube and mail it in. In a few weeks your results come back telling you where your ancestral roots most likely trace. I found that my roots are solidly in the British Isles with… Read More »Know Thy Team: Why Leaders Should Learn Who Their Team Members Really Are
Your teenage daughter walks in to the house after school looking sullen and without her characteristic after school greeting. You ask, “How was school?†“Fine†is the answer. But a few seconds later the slam of a bedroom door indicates to you that everything, indeed, is not fine. The silent treatment continues into dinner despite your efforts to find out what the problem is. Thank goodness at work you get to deal with mature adults where nothing like this ever happens, right? Right.
You’ve noticed that Bill, one of your team members, isn’t his usual self. In fact, it seems like he is being downright rude. He’s doing the work, mostly, but he’s not being as punctual and you are finding more than the usual number of errors in his stuff. He also has been kind of sarcastic in meetings. Not to the point of open insubordination, but still, it’s getting annoying. You finally ask, “Bill, everything OK?†“It’s fine.†Sound familiar?Read More »That cold shoulder just might be feedback…Are you listening?
January 13, 1982 was a cold day in Washington DC. The temperature hovered at 24 degrees and heavy snow was falling. At 4:00 PM, after waiting 1 hour and 45 minutes for Washington National Airport to reopen, Air Florida Flight 90 took off bound for Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Boeing… Read More »How to Prevent a Team Disaster
Hope is not a strategy. You’ve probably heard that before and it’s certainly true. We can’t hope success into existence. Hoping will not accomplish goals. Hoping bills get paid doesn’t pay the bills. Those accomplishments require positive action. To be successful, we must actually do something. Hope is not a… Read More »Hope is Not a Strategy: But it is Important
One of the most common sources of information on how to be a leader comes from observation of previous leaders. For many this is often the only source and it is very natural to emulate what we see. An exercise we use in our leadership development workshops is creating a… Read More »Are You Doing to Your Team What Drives You Crazy?
Over the last few weeks you have probably become tired of watching politicians stumping for a job. Well, it’s over now and we’ll have a short, merciful reprieve before it all starts again. Even though the incessant political posturing wears us out, there is something to learn from it. Whether… Read More »Five Ways to Project Confidence When You Speak