Resources and insights
Dec 13, 2024
Pre-holiday Reflection
Wasn’t it just January? One moment we’re setting ambitious goals, and the next, we’re Googling last-minute New Year’s Eve recipes (spoiler: everyone loves deviled eggs). You may be feeling exhausted and overwhelmed by all the end of year pressures from budget deadlines to gift buying. The Grinch side of you just wants to get out town, eat too many cookies and drink a pitcher of your favorite cocktails. Take a breath. Time off is almost here.
Giving Thanks for Feedback
Exploring the benefits of effectively receiving feedback, highlighting the challenges posed by truth, relationship, and identity triggers, and offering strategies for overcoming these obstacles to improve personal and professional growth, relationships, and performance. The narrative encourages embracing a growth mindset and seeking out feedback to uncover blind spots and foster development.
Transform the Dreaded Drama Triangle
Introducing "The Power of TED*" by David Emerald as a guide to escaping the Drama Triangle of Victim, Rescuer, and Persecutor roles by adopting the empowering roles of Creator, Challenger, and Coach. The book provides a framework for taking responsibility for one's own actions and fostering positive, proactive change both internally and in interactions with others, aiming to replace dysfunction with empowerment and growth.
Charting Your Life Journey
Sharing a personal story of moving to a new home and the unexpected challenges encountered, emphasizing the importance of listening to candid feedback from friends and the invaluable support they offer during stressful transitions. The narrative also touches on the significance of having people who can provide honest feedback for leaders to avoid "CEO disease" and make informed decisions.
A New Beginning Part 2: You Got to Have Friends!
Sharing a personal story of moving to a new home and the unexpected challenges encountered, emphasizing the importance of listening to candid feedback from friends and the invaluable support they offer during stressful transitions. The narrative also touches on the significance of having people who can provide honest feedback for leaders to avoid "CEO disease" and make informed decisions.
A New Beginning!
Sharing a personal journey of reevaluating life goals and making a significant life change by moving to a new city, inspired by attending a transformative workshop and reigniting a long-held dream. The narrative highlights the importance of revisiting dreams and visions, especially at milestone moments, and taking actionable steps towards achieving them, while maintaining a commitment to professional endeavors and embracing new opportunities.
Growth Requires Persistence
Drawing inspiration from a persistent vine, this narrative explores the themes of growth, resilience, and the importance of a growth mindset. It emphasizes the value of self-awareness, the willingness to embrace challenges, and the necessity of support from others to overcome limitations and achieve personal and professional development.
The ROI of Executive Coaching
Explaining the evolution and value of executive coaching in corporate America, detailing how coaching serves as a personalized learning method to enhance leadership effectiveness, and illustrating how to quantify coaching benefits by linking leadership development goals with key business metrics for tangible organizational impact.
Make This Year Better Than the Last
Reflecting on the power of focusing on what we can control and the value of community, goal-setting, and self-reflection in achieving personal growth and fulfillment, while introducing "Life As Art" as a tool to help structure this process for a more meaningful and proactive life.
Be Free to Not Be Okay - A Pandemic Thanksgiving
Sharing a personal narrative about navigating the emotional highs and lows of the holiday season during a challenging year, highlighting the importance of acknowledging grief, embracing vulnerability, and finding joy in adjusted traditions, while emphasizing the value of supportive relationships and self-compassion in coping with adversity.
How Journaling Improves Performance
Discussing the benefits of journaling for leaders, such as enhanced self-awareness, increased creativity, and deeper connections, to combat emotional detachment and improve decision-making, employee engagement, and company culture.
Rituals of Highly Effective People
Highlighting the significance of establishing personal and professional rituals to maintain balance, prevent burnout, and enhance productivity, emphasizing the value of renewal and focused time for development and connection in both work and personal life.
Team Performance - How To Get Better Together
Emphasizing the importance of recognizing a team's strengths, focusing on key behavioral changes, and crafting a compelling vision for the future to achieve long-lasting improvements in team dynamics and productivity.
What Now?
Reflecting on the current societal turmoil and the potential for it to serve as a pivotal moment for racial justice, the author shares personal experiences and conversations with colleagues, emphasizing the importance of self-examination, education, and actionable steps towards eradicating racism, and highlighting various leaders and resources that are contributing to the movement.
Life As Art
Encouraging the practice of confronting reality and using it constructively to pursue one's dreams, emphasizing the importance of setting goals and integrating them into daily and weekly routines to enhance productivity and achieve long-term visions.
Team EQ = Higher Performance
Exploring the concept of group-level emotional intelligence (EI) as a key factor in team performance, highlighting how teams with high EI create trust, a shared identity, and a sense of efficacy, leading to significantly better outcomes compared to teams lacking in these emotional competencies.
Boundaries for Leaders
Outlining the crucial role of boundaries in effective leadership, emphasizing organizational clarity, the judicious use of "yes" and "no," and the skill of conducting constructive confrontational conversations to enhance performance and maintain a productive working environment.
People Fuel by John Townsend
Introducing the concept of "Relational Nutrients" as essential elements for mental and emotional health, divided into four quadrants—Be Present, Convey the Good, Provide Reality, and Call to Action—to highlight the importance of both giving and receiving support, affirmation, perspective, and advice in sustaining healthy relationships and overall wellbeing.
Learning: The Key to Sustainability
Illustrating the significance of continuous learning and self-improvement in working smarter, using the metaphor of sharpening the saw to emphasize the necessity of pausing to enhance one's skills for increased efficiency and effectiveness in leadership and overall work performance.
Storytelling Influences Change
Emphasizing the transformative power of storytelling within organizations to influence behavior change and foster deeper engagement by connecting team members' actions to their core values through vivid, emotionally resonant narratives.
How a Leader’s Style Influences Culture
Demonstrating the impact of emotional intelligence in leadership, specifically how empathy, self-awareness, and effective communication can transform potential conflict into a productive problem-solving session, thereby motivating and empowering team members.
Connect to Motivate Your Team: How a Leader’s Personal Concern Impacts Performance
Demonstrating the impact of emotional intelligence in leadership, specifically how empathy, self-awareness, and effective communication can transform potential conflict into a productive problem-solving session, thereby motivating and empowering team members.
Bringing Back the Glad Game
Encouraging the practice of gratitude and positive reflection even in the face of life's challenges, inspired by the "glad game" from Pollyanna, to foster hope, resilience, and meaningful connections during Thanksgiving and beyond, while also honoring and remembering loved ones who have passed.
Facing Pain, Gaining Strength
Offering guidance on navigating through life's adversities by embracing emotional expression, seeking supportive relationships, utilizing specific support groups, educating oneself on personal challenges, engaging in journaling and prayer for reflection and connection, and gradually reengaging in life activities to foster resilience and healing.
5 Tips for Your Next Strategy Session
Providing strategic planning retreat tips to transform meetings from unproductive to impactful, focusing on clear outcome visualization, meticulous agenda planning, thorough preparation, selecting an ideal location, and establishing a follow-through method for accountability and execution.
Life as Art
