Too often, we let holidays come and go without really commemorating anything, and MLK Day is no exception. Many of us see this Monday off simply as a break for the kids or an opportunity for a quick ski trip. But Martin Luther King Jr. was a great leader, and one well worth remembering. So…
Shopping for Engagement: Cyber Monday’s Management Lessons
For decades, Black Friday has been a hot media topic every November. The biggest shopping day of the year has evolved into a weekend of jaw-dropping sales, shoppers camped out in sleeping bags, and crowds shoving their way to deeply discounted wares. I won’t even go there. But what about Cyber Monday, Black Friday’s younger…
When I Used to Be a Guy
As a leadership coach, the conversations I have with professionals aren’t often strictly work related, because the lines between our personal and professional lives aren’t always as bold as we might choose to believe. After all, leadership, like life, comes down to understanding ourselves and others. So it seems appropriate that a leadership blog should…
Impact in Leadership: Try Less, Watch for More
“The one who knows much says little.” – Proverbs 17:27 I was watching my grandson play a video game the other day, and I noticed that periodically, in anticipation of whatever trouble his player is about to confront, he will pause the game and select a new batch of appropriate weapons. Good leaders function in…
BooHoo to Yahoo!: The Pros and Cons of Telecommuting
Recently, Yahoo! announced a major policy change that will de-authorize working remotely. Apparent reason: the struggling tech giant thinks it’s missing out on the positive results of face time among their people, forfeiting the creativity and other benefits encouraged by in-person interaction. A quick and widespread outcry has followed this move—not surprising in today’s constant-breaking-news-fanned-by-social-media…
Crisis, Change, and Fiscal Cliffs: What Congress Isn’t Doing Wrong
The fiscal cliff. The sequester. The continuing resolution. Whatever name we’re using to describe Congress’s budget predicament of the moment, the media’s tone of consternation remains consistent and seems tinged with a sort of looming dread. As if these “crises” are like asteroid collisions or threatening weather events—things that are about to happen to us.…