Hi, my name is Larry, and I’m an addict. I’ve been clean and sober for three years, two months, and eight days. My drug of choice was not alcohol, narcotics, or even nicotine. For decades, I was addicted to fake work. I spent hours formatting spreadsheets. I immersed myself in fact finding excursions, spending huge […]
How to Shut Down Annoying Meeting Behaviors
Tips for Dealing with 8 Common Disruptors
As a young leader, I was excited to attend the annual gathering of my professional organization. It promised three days of learning and networking, plus a few business sessions. During the first session, one of my elder colleagues, a man wearing bright red suspenders, rose to ask a question, something about whether a point of […]
End Your Fear of Power Sharing
4 Reasons to Relax That Grip
It started with my first day on the job. I’d just been named senior leader at a growing organization with a generously-sized staff. Yet there were problems, as there are in any institution, and I was determined to solve them. All of them. Right away. Communications was a weak point, so I decided to personally […]
The Downside of Drivenness
Why High Achievers Struggle to Celebrate and What to Do About It
Good leaders practice the fine art of celebration. Recognizing both team achievement and individual contribution is rocket fuel for morale. Yet for many high achievers, the need to celebrate is a blind spot. Often, they cannot see their own accomplishments or are reluctant to commemorate them. I know this because that was my experience until […]
Hiring Diversity Makes You Smarter
How Your Organization Can Thrive by Gathering a Team of Rivals
“How could we have been so stupid?” The question was posed by none other than John F. Kennedy in the aftermath of the 1961 Bay of Pigs fiasco, the a failed invasion of Cuba by CIA-backed Cuban exiles. The disastrous plan, strongly recommended by top advisors and approved the President himself, resulted in over three […]
6 Ways to Transform Conflict
Conflict is inevitable, but fallout from that conflict can be avoided. In this guest post, Lawrence Wilson six ways for doing so.