Key Takeaways: Different Boss, Different Lens: Soft skills like listening are tough to measure, and what one boss sees as strength, another might view as a growth area. That doesn’t mean anyone was lying—it just means expectations and perceptions vary. Promotions Raise the Bar: With more...
The bigger the organization you work in, the greater the likelihood that you’ll meet your demise in death-by-meeting. What a horrible way to go! And the worst part? All that pain and suffering – and it’s usually a crap shoot as to whether you’ll get through all the items on the agenda.
No. Actually, the worst part is when you end up running those meetings yourself!
Agendas are often useful for thinking through what you want to cover. But – having an agenda does not mean having a meeting worth everyone’s time to attend. How to avoid death-by-meeting when you’re in charge? Agenda or not, take the time to think through your intended outcome for the meeting.
I just read a great article by Richard Boyatzis detailing the brain science behind “emotional contagion.” I find this particularly interesting in the context of corporate culture, having observed some pretty toxic bosses “infect” their staffs and encourage cultures where competition, backstabbing, emotional abuse and just plain incompetence were so rampant that you could feel the powerlessness and despair when you walked in the door.
The good news is that the ability to emotionally infect your staff and teams can be used for good by leaders who understand their responsibility to foster a positive environment and culture where others are in their power and able to perform at their best. To be a good leader, then, you need to…
Key Takeaways: Work-life balance is evolving into work-life partnership. Many successful women are thriving not because they’ve mastered a solo juggle, but because they’ve built supportive partnerships—especially at home—with men who share the load, often in ways that reverse traditional roles....
Key Takeaways: Emotional intelligence isn’t about suppressing feelings—it’s about understanding them. EQ isn’t the absence of emotion; it’s the skill of recognizing emotions (yours and others’) and responding to them in a way that’s constructive, not reactive. Strong emotions don’t mean someone’s...
Key Takeaways Coaching vs. Mentoring: Key Differences: Coaches focus on personalized growth, offering tools and strategies for skill and leadership development, while mentors share their experience, providing industry-specific insights and helping expand professional networks. Diverse Career...
Key Takeaways: Women often build great networks but hesitate to use them—and that hesitation comes from deep, gendered wiring. Many women feel “icky” about leveraging relationships for professional gain, confusing authenticity with self-sacrifice. It’s time to rewrite that internal script and own...
It’s time for another installment of the Leadership Development Carnival! Thanks to Weaving Influence and the Lead Change for organizing some great posts from some remarkable leadership writers. If you're new to blog Carnivals, these represent a collection of posts from a variety of writers,...
Key Takeaways: The traditional view of the glass ceiling as a boys’ club barrier still holds truth, but it’s not the whole story—gender bias exists, yet it’s no longer just about women being excluded. Simply getting more women to the top won’t automatically change toxic leadership cultures,...
Key Takeaways: Feeling like a victim of office politics is more common than you think—but staying stuck in that mindset keeps you from recognizing your power and learning the rules of the game. Office politics isn’t evil; it’s just human dynamics in action—who gets to decide what, how praise is...
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