Tag

Leadership
Desk calendar marked TBD, representing Two Bad Days and the decision to retire

“TBD” = Two Bad Days: What Retirement Teaches Us About Employee Retention

What happens when an employee is financially ready to retire but hasn't decided when to leave? Sometimes the answer is TBD: Two Bad Days. Here's what retirement, employee retention, and a full sales pipeline have in common.
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Microwave Add 30 Seconds button illustrating workplace efficiency and better ways of working

The “Add 30 Seconds” Problem: Is Your Team Working Harder Than It Needs To?

When leaders catch every problem their team throws at them, they may unintentionally train people to stop solving problems themselves. Learn how to build accountability, coach stronger problem-solvers, and stop becoming the Chief Problem Solver.
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Two newspapers labeled "Good News" and "Bad News" illustrating how the order of positive and negative feedback influences leadership communication and employee behavior.

The Feedback Sandwich Is Broken: What Leaders Should Do Instead

I was sitting in church this weekend when my pastor asked a question that stopped me mid-note-taking. “When you’re about to get good news and bad news,” he said, “which do you want first?” He asked the congregation to raise their hands. Overwhelmingly, people wanted the bad news first. Then he made a claim that...
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Orthodontic power chain demonstrating how connected pressure moves multiple teeth, illustrating organizational change leadership.

What a Power Chain Taught Me About Leading Organizational Change

Organizational change rarely fails because leaders choose the wrong strategy. More often, it fails because organizations mistake discomfort for failure. Every meaningful transformation creates resistance before it creates results. Ironically, I learned one of the best lessons about leading change while sitting in my orthodontist’s chair. Eight months into braces, I thought I knew what...
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A cheerful green frog eating a slice of strawberry cheesecake, illustrating the idea of "dessert before the frog" as a fresh approach to the Eat the Frog productivity method.

Why Eating Dessert First Might Beat Eating the Frog

There are many gurus out there who say “eat the frog” first thing in your day, especially in sales, getting the hardest thing or the thing you dread out of the way to ensure it gets done. I’ve taught this for years. I’ve tried it myself. It works, in the sense that the hard thing...
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A road sign reading “wisdom” over “perfectionism,” symbolizing high-achieving leaders choosing clarity and sustainable leadership over burnout.

Why High-Achieving Leaders Still Feel Behind (Even When They’re Winning)

“I Feel Like I’m Sucking as a Leader” Several high-performing leaders have said those exact words to me in coaching sessions this year. In retrospect, I recall saying the exact same words in my leadership roles! Sales are up. Teams are hitting targets. Peers are asking for their input. From the outside, these leaders look...
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Black letter blocks spelling TRUST on a blue background with the text ‘What’s Trust Got to Do With It?’ displayed above and below.

Why Trust Matters More Than Talent in High-Performing Teams

Your team is keeping score. Not on productivity metrics or quarterly goals, though they notice those too. They’re tracking something more fundamental: whether you do what you say you’ll do. Whether your words match your actions. Whether it’s safe to tell you the truth. You can see it in the small behaviors that shift when...
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From Conga Line to Cohesion: What a Dance Party Taught Me About Leadership and Human Behavior

When I step on stage as a keynote speaker, my goal isn’t just to motivate people; it’s to move them. Literally and figuratively. Sure, most keynote speakers aim to inspire reflection, and that’s important. But I want my audiences to experience something — to feel it in their bodies. Because what we feel, we remember....
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Leader coaching employee for performance improvement in workplace setting

Coaching, Not Correction: The Real Fix for Underperformance at Work

Underperformance Is a Symptom. Coaching Is the Cure. When performance dips, most leaders rush to look at the numbers. Revenue, KPIs, close rates – you name it. But here’s the twist: numbers don’t coach people. People coach people. And underperformance? It’s rarely about effort. It’s almost always a gap in clarity, consistency, or confidence. Research...
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Mid-level leader sketching a personalized leadership growth plan, representing the idea of designing your own leadership role for career advancement.

Design Your Leadership Path | Leadership Career Growth Tips

What’s your next move? It’s a question that stumps more mid-level leaders than you might expect, not for lack of ambition, but for lack of clarity. A McKinsey report found that only 40% of women and 52% of men in middle management feel confident navigating their leadership trajectory. At the same time, 86% of employees...
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