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…
Bill was the busiest person I ever coached, and his life was cut tragically short. His business thrived, but he was worn thin. Bill loved his work, but he was exhausted by the pressures of the market and his endless people problems. At first, I taught him how to manage, but very little was sticking.…
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…
“Why aren’t my people just honest with me?” my client lamented. “I keep finding out what’s going wrong far too late!” It’s a common and serious issue. The larger the organization, the more important it is for key information to travel quickly from the front line to management. But if that cycle takes too long,…
Jim was raw, I could tell. He spoke with hesitation, as if he might cry if he wasn’t careful. Something big was up. He had my full attention. “You know I’ve been a rebel for a long time,” he said, “You used to coach me about it. It’s changed a little, but apparently not enough.”…
Managers hear a lot of excuses. I know because they tell me. I also know the reason is because they make a lot of excuses, only they do it more subtly. One of my martial arts teachers once said to a group of black belts, “Watch the white belts very carefully. They make the same…
Mary, a manager in a manufacturing company, recently told me about a very stressful performance review she conducted. She gave her employee, John, some challenging feedback about how poorly he did his job. John was aghast. Not only did he think he was doing well, but he had been expecting a raise. He left the…
Control is overrated. Your unconscious need for it could be holding you back. Nate was a CEO and partner in a manufacturing startup who contacted me to help him improve his management team’s communication and help them become more efficient. Poor communication and inefficiency were symptoms, but they weren’t the real problems. The eight-person management team…