Key Takeaways Successfully managing a polarized workforce–including deciding whether to take public stances–requires a crucial mindset shift: move away from trying to align personal beliefs and instead focus on aligning teams around shared professional objectives and the organization's overarching...
Emotional Intelligence at Work
Do You Confuse Emotions with Emotional Intelligence (EQ?)
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...
What If The Glass Ceiling Isn’t What We Think It Is?
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,...
The Upside of Office Politics
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...
Feedback Coaching: How to Get Results with “Tough Love”
Key Takeaways: Balance empathy with clarity: While empathy is crucial, over-empathizing can prevent leaders from delivering clear feedback. Leaders need to ensure their feedback is understood without being overly soft or accommodating. Effective leaders use a spectrum of management styles: Great...
Does Women’s Emotional Intelligence Help Us Get Into Leadership?
Is women's emotional intelligence (EQ) likely to help you or hurt you when you're on the leadership track? How well do you handle your emotions at work? Too many women and men read that question as a damnation of women who can’t control their emotions in the office. In fact, it’s more important...
3 Things My Dog Reminded Me About Employee Performance and Employee Engagement
I rescued a pup last Fall. His name is Loki and he's a Pomeranian and something-or-other mix. One thing I didn't know about a rescue dog is that they've often been traumatized (e.g., abusive owners, time on the streets etc.) and it takes a while for their real personalities to become apparent....
Cultural Change: An Update on Workforce Diversity
As I’ve begun to explore the interpersonal dynamics of workplace discrimination more closely, I have gone back to update my own understanding of workforce diversity data and what it tells us about the the demographic makeup of the modern workforce. I have been disappointed to find that the racial...
5 Employee Development Trends in Human Capital Management
As a business leader, you want to stay on top of the latest trends in employee development and retention. The rapidly evolving human capital management (“HCM”) field is full of innovation and change, and there are some great ideas out there you can adapt to your own team’s development. But since...
Lighten Your Soul at Work: How to Declutter Your ToDo List
How do you plan to lighten your soul in the new year? Do you look forward to a new year with anticipation and hope? Or is it more like dread? My clients often tell me that even if they’re excited about the challenges on the horizon in the coming year, they’re overwhelmed with what’s currently on...