An execution mindset separates the best from the rest.  "I go through" is not just a song by O.A.R. but an attitude for success.

How does your office environment and community impact productivity?

Why hiring an executive coach is like hiring a personal trainer for your brain.

Assembling a personal board of directors (PBOD) is a great approach to gaining career insights and advice from a diverse group of trusted advisers.  Learn how to approach assembling your PBOD.

Having a development plan is an important step towards achieving career success, but too many people rely on their bosses and the company to develop the plan.  Take matters into your own hands and own your development plan.

We learn best when we step out of our comfort zone and into the learning zone.  Here are some tips on how to open yourself up to new learnings.

Unlike in sports where the competitions are scheduled, in business the competition never stops, unless your team calls a TIMEOUT.  When was the last time your team called a timeout.

Do you have a daily ritual?  Something you do every day just for you.  Forget servant leadership for a minute and understand that selfish leadership can be important at times too.

Companies and their needs evolve, they get acquired, they move their offices, they shift their business models and all too often their employees end up as casualties.  Career transition is nothing to be ashamed of.  It has become incredibly commonplace. 
 

Are you “always recruiting” for your company, and are you asking your team to do the same?  The best people can be found in the most unlikely places.

When working with senior leaders one of the biggest hurdles is to get them to see constructive feedback in a positive light. Too often leaders think feedback is an attack on them.   Referring to feedback as a gift opens their eyes to the positives.

Why does the word conflict get a bad rap and how to turn conflict into a tool for better decision making.

Earlier this year the image below was posted on Tumblr with the tag, “Is the dress white and gold or black and blue?”  That single post led to marital discontent, celebrity arguments, news channel mayhem and millions of views and shares on social media.  While the rough statistics showed that about 78% of people saw the dress as white and gold, the 22% who saw it as black and blue were actually correct.  The real dress is in fact black and blue.

here is a lesson here.  While we think we are all quite similar, we truly see the world through different lenses. 

As leaders it is the small actions that can have large impacts. Think about the last time you greeted your employees or customers in the office lobby or at the front door to your retail outlet. If you have never tried it, go for it. That small gesture will have a lasting positive impact. Learn how the actions of one school leader model the behaviors of a great leader.

The key to being a great actor is to be yourself.  Acting is not about impersonation, it is about originality.  The same concept holds true in the business world.  As a leader, the most important attribute you can bring to your job is your authenticity.  There is no one else like you in the world and that is what makes each of us special and different.  Too many people spend their working lives trying to be like someone else or adjusting their personality and approach to “fit in”. 

Stop trying to block the exit door. Instead, focus on getting your employees engaged in opening new doors within your organization.

 One helpful activity I ask my clients to do is to create a visual career timeline.  On the X axis I have them create a timeline listing years from the time they graduated from high school to the present.  On the Y axis I have them create a legend for career growth.  The next step is to plot points on the graph that show each job or pivotal career cross-roads that they have faced. 

"Life might be finite, but one's legacy can be eternal".  Dr. Fromme, or “grammpa” to me, was a psychologist, teacher and writer.  He taught at City College of New York, Sara Lawrence and Columbia University, wrote seven books and practiced psychology for over fifty years. He is also remembered for his popular lecture series at New York’s 92nd Street Y. A graduate of the City College of New York and Columbia University, Dr. Fromme was a life-long learner.  He firmly believed in the never-ending quest for knowledge, which is one of the most important leadership lessons he taught me. 

The toughest interview question I ever faced was frustrating at the time, but turned into one of my greatest career learnings.  

Most companies have come to recognize that there is a direct correlation between employee engagement and financial results.  Employees who are engaged give discretionary effort and do the right things for their employers.  That translates into better business results.  However, too many companies fail at effectively measuring employee engagement.  In working with several clients on their culture and employee engagement, we have found that companies often confuse employee satisfaction with employee engagement.  The two terms are used synonymously, yet their definitions are quite different.