Leadership Blog
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Crisis: The six-month wall
Our author today is Kassie Hauenstein. She is on the marketing team at SalesPage Technologies and is a tour guide for West Michigan Beer Tours. Kassie is finishing her MBA at Western Michigan...
Staying hopeful
Hope can be hard to find (or keep) during challenging, unpredictable times. Understanding the components of hope helps us see and believe in the light at the end of the tunnel. Goals - Have a...
Emotional alignment in a pandemic
The current reality of COVID-19 means that most of us are physically separated from others, including teammates, colleagues and customers. When we are in the same vicinity, we're wearing face...
Feed your mind, body and spirit
The pandemic has created more discretionary time in some people's calendars, as virtual work eliminates commute time and travel is less common. To be clear, we know that for essential workers the...
Being an ally
Ever been in a conversation or situation when a racist remark or joke was shared which hit you in your gut, so you felt the need to say something...but couldn’t? Maybe it felt risky, and the right...
Your “to-don’t” list
We've often given advice not only to focus on what you will do to meet your goals, but also decide what NOT to do. This advice becomes concrete and easy to do using the methods described in Harvard...
Keep your positive mojo
I thought I was pretty immune to secondhand stress. Then came the coronavirus and massive change, economic pressure and working remotely. A Management Tip of the Day from Harvard Business Review...
An alternative to exit interviews
Ah, the exit interview. For the organization, this is seen as a good opportunity to get some insight and feedback before the person leaves. For the interviewee, the exit interview can be a quandary....
Working with someone you dislike
Bernard is a real pain. So says Beth, one of Bernard's teammates. There's been bad blood between these two for years, and Beth has no patience for dealing with Bernard, even when she has to partner...
Live into new ways of thinking
“We do not think ourselves into new ways of living, we live ourselves into new ways of thinking.” ― Richard Rohr Mind. Blown. Richard Rohr continues to upend my long-held beliefs, and this certainly...
Do you have 3D alignment?
I was driving back from visiting my parents late one night (pre-pandemic, when visiting my parents was safe). I realized I had to work to keep the car in the lane, as it was drifting slightly to the...
Navigating tough team conversations
Teams across the world are engaged in conversations around race, racism, white privilege and equity. These issues are complex and deeply emotional. That's why: Organizations need to remain committed...
Become an agile organization/team
You're probably hearing the term "agile" more frequently. "Agile" is more than the new buzzword of the day when describing organizations and teams. It can be a transformational way of looking at...
Three tips for moving from buddy to boss
Sally is thrilled that she is now managing the team she has worked with for five years. She is worried a bit about Seth, though. Sally and Seth have had a great working relationship as peers for...
Curiosity as a foundation for dialogue
It is a time of great sorrow, rage, hope and many other emotions around systemic racism and police brutality. Our country and its institutions are engaged in a time of protest and counter-protest....
3 strategies to get the most out of time
Now more than ever, the need to spend time wisely really matters. For that reason, it is important to use proven and practical strategies for managing time and making the most of every minute. One...
Four ways to create superior meetings
Do you look forward to meetings? (Yes, we know you just spit up your coffee when you read that.) Most people find meetings to be overly long, boring, repetitive and lacking concrete outcomes. Given...
When purging is a very good thing
Let's be clear we are talking about stuff - paper, gadgets, broken equipment and the like. As Humanergy has transitioned from a large office (equivalent to 3-bedroom home with full basement, plus...
3 Ways to Show Appreciation at Work
Janet is grateful for the fine Board presentation her direct report, Joe, created. She hasn't shared that with Joe yet, but plans to when his review comes up next month. Joe feels great that he was...
What Great Teams Do Great: Choice spaces
Susanna is a firefighter and willingly rushes into dangerous situations with her teammates to save others. Asim is a nurse, working on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. These examples of...
Organizational success: Remote working
The COVID-19 pandemic means that many workers are now remote. (And, lest we ignore the brutal reality, a great many others are not working at all.) Maintaining a shared focus on organizational/team...