Why should people want to work for you? At one time in the company’s history, Zappos had a wild feature they used to ensure engagement of new recruits. They called it, “The Offer.” Following the four-week training period, they offered new employees a $2,000 check to quit. You read that right. The late Tony Hsieh,…
The mess the United States is in right now began over 500 years ago, with the invention of the printing press. If you let me explain (this is a long one!), you’ll gain a profound metaperspective that makes sense of what appears crazy, but isn’t. I find great peace in that and perhaps you will,…
Happy New Year! I hope your holidays were joyous. I’ve got an article today that will help you level up your power. Related, I want to first announce the upcoming live course, Claiming Self-Authority: Access to Authentic Power, which begins January 7, 2021. If you’ve considered becoming a member and want to start 2021 powerfully, this is an opportunity.…
A while back I wrote about the Backfire Effect. The effect, in short, is that when we receive information that doesn’t support what we want to believe, we tend to double down on the false belief. Recently about 70 million people in the U.S. voted for Donald Trump and many suffer from the Backfire Effect. It’s…
I was bullied a lot as a kid, and I want to tell you a story about power. Seventh grade had just ended. Even more than the summer sun, freedom and excitement filled the air, but not for me. I quietly sat on the bus home, harassed yet again by who we’ll call Z. Z…
This article is about management, racism, and change. I once had a client who complained that his people couldn’t be trusted to perform. “What happens when they make mistakes?” I asked. “We retrain them,” he answered. “What does that mean?” I persisted. “Their manager goes over the process with them,” he said. “But don’t they already…
We think the word “apocalypse” means the end of the world, but this isn’t its original meaning. It comes from Greek meaning “uncovering.” That’s what I see happening now: a great revealing of truth. I know these are hard times, harder for some than others. It’s with great compassion and a wide heart that I…
First, I want to say that if you or someone you know are directly affected by the COVID-19 virus, my heart goes out to you. It’s causing a lot of pain in the world and part of that we can’t do anything about. There are precautions we can take, and I’m all for those. What’s…
Is there such a thing as being too nice? I once coached five members of an executive team in an online retail business. The CEO complained of “communication issues” and some people not pulling their weight. Three of the members were co-founders of the company and long-time friends. To sit in a room with them,…
What do leaders and lottery winners have in common? Hint: it’s not luck. We’ll get there, I promise, but first, a more relevant question: Why is management so difficult? If you understand the answer to this question, you can become a great leader. If you don’t, you can only become less bad. Management is like…