Articles
You Are Grounded, A Personal Reflection on #WFH
This is a personal reflection and not intended to reflect the views of any institution with which I am affiliated. I hope in this time of crisis, you are taking the time to take your mental temperature as well as your physical temperature.
Punishments for children when I was a child in the 1960’s ran a broad spectrum. It was an era before you could call child services if you were paddled. Physical punishment was always “on the table.” My mother, having grown up on a rural Minnesota farm, wielded a wicked wooden spoon, and although I am sure she never studied Pavlov, she knew after we had experienced the sting of the spoon a few times, the simple sound of the silverware drawer opening would check whatever unacceptable behavior we were exhibiting.
How to Screw Up Anything New a Tip from a Neanderthal
Happy New Year! Happy New Job! Happy New Project! Happy New Opportunity!
We celebrate New and rightfully so. It is a chance to mark progress. It is a chance to make a mark. It is a chance to leave old habits behind. It is a chance to wipe the slate clean. It is a new chance. So how can we screw up anything new? While there may be lots of answers, there is one sure way to screw up the New: Trash the Old. "Out with the Old in with the New?"
Work and Think Like a White Belt
Everybody wants to know how long it takes to get a black belt. As my main hobby, I own a martial arts dojo and that is the most common question we get. “How long does it take to get a black belt?” In the workplace as well as in our personal lives, we are conditioned to “get ahead,” to “get to the top” and to otherwise “advance beyond others.” Consistent with those objectives, we often seek external symbols of the advancement and we display them. Our attitudes and behaviors change with our advancement.
Be a Concierge Leader!
We think of leaders as people who talk, bark out orders and direct others because they are portrayed that way in movies and TV, and some are that way. But in my experience, great leaders don’t act like the stereotypes we see in movies and on TV. Leaders don’t bark out orders, in fact, great leaders serve. Great leaders act more like concierges at great hotels constantly solving problems, proactively making customers feel good, ensuring their employees have the resources they need and breaking through organizational obstacles. Great leaders even answer their phone and emails!
Getting Ahead, Due Dates v. “Best by” Dates
The most common thing we all share in the workplace is deadlines. Deadlines don’t know care what your industry is, what your business is or even what your assignment is. Deadlines don’t really care who you are. Sometimes we act like deadlines care about us. “Don’t they know who we are?” Business is very much focused on getting things done. You are given things to do. When you are given something to do, what is your first question? I would bet you it is, “When is it due?” Or it could be, “When do you need it?” What do successful folks do? What do those folks do who “get ahead” of others?
Lean on Me, Lucia, the buildings of Venice and Cooperative Engagement
It is the summer season and I hope you all are taking advantage of the physical and mental recharge that comes with vacation. Lessons come from so many different directions if we are in a state of receptivity and new environments and surroundings at least for me tend to put me in a learning state.
