One of my favorite parts of being a dad was attending my kids’ sporting events. Both of my sons, Taylor and Carter, played baseball from T-ball at age four through high school. Early on, I helped coach both boys’ teams. Then I settled on just being an active (sometimes overly active) spectator. The high school Read more about The Most Frustrating Sporting Event of My Life[…]
“I think we’re just going to tell them all to come to the office every day. I’m tired of thinking about this decision.” This was my client Bill Wilkins speaking to me recently in a coaching session. Bill is the CEO of a third-generation widget manufacturing company in Smyrna, Georgia. He recently took over the Read more about You’re Asking the Wrong Question![…]
I guess that over the past 20 years, I have facilitated over 1,000 meetings. Some went better than others. My favorite book until just recently was Patrick Lencioni’s Death by Meetings. I now have a new favorite book on the topic of meetings. The Surprising Science of Meetings by Steven G. Rogelberg offers a comprehensive Read more about Book Review: The Surprising Science of Meetings[…]
How often are you conducting 1-2-1 meetings with your employees? How would you rate the effectiveness of those meetings? How would your employees rate the effectiveness of those meetings? I calculated recently that I have conducted over 7500 1-2-1 meetings with clients in the past 25 years. One day, I expect to hit 10,000 meetings. Read more about Five Best Practices for Conducting Better 1-2-1 Meetings[…]
As a child, I pursued several dreams. I dreamed of going to Princeton University and becoming a famous attorney. I dreamed of making my high school basketball team and then moving my athletic talents to the collegiate level. I also dreamed of joining a rock band and traveling the world playing concerts in front of Read more about Book Review: Hidden Potential[…]
(You are welcome to sing along) On the first day of Entrepreneurial Bliss-mas Small Business Matters gave to me; A Huge New Order from my best customer to start the new year (with a large upfront deposit) On the second day of Entrepreneurial Bliss-mas Small Business Matters gave to me; 2 Great New Salespeople Read more about The Twelve Days of Entrepreneurial Bliss-mas[…]
Imagine you are the richest person in the world under the age of 30. You have catapulted onto the Forbes billionaires list. CEOs, celebrities, and leaders of small countries are all vying for your time and your money. And then, you lose it all—almost overnight. This is the story of Sam Bankman-Fried as told in Read more about Book Review: Going Infinite[…]
This time of year, I am prone to reflect on the gifts of life for which I am most thankful. I hope that sharing my list might prompt you to share your own list with those you care about the most. I am thankful for the clients I work with who challenge me in ways Read more about It’s the Season of Thanksgiving[…]
What motivates your employees? Authors of The Progress Principle, Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer, conducted a rigorous analysis of nearly 12,000 diary entries provided by hundreds of employees in multiple companies. What they found is that the best leaders can build teams of employees who have satisfying “inner work lives”. They have consistently positive emotions, Read more about Book Review: The Progress Principle[…]
It depends. A year ago, I wrote an article about terrorists. You may recall that according to the Welch Grid, a terrorist employee gives you above-average job performance and below-average employee behavior. The question then was whether you should fire them. The easy answer was “Of course”. The reality is it’s typically a very tough Read more about Should You Fire Your Cheerleader?[…]