Leadership Matters: Our Blog
Just say “No” to New Year’s resolutions
January 3, 2012
I’m sure it’s no surprise that the vast majority of New Year’s resolutions are tossed aside long before the end of January. That alone should be a good enough reason to avoid making a promise you know you won’t keep. Most resolutions are of the ‘lose weight’ variety; we hope they will make us a [...]
Read PostWhat managers need to know about small wins
December 12, 2011
Ever heard of the concept of small wins? I’m willing to bet that you regularly use this approach to tackle big challenges or change deeply ingrained habits. If you want to lose weight, you start with a small goal like forgoing sugar in your coffee or you take the stairs instead of the elevator to [...]
Read PostWhat’s taking up your team’s bandwidth
October 28, 2011
You might not be familiar with the public service announcement from the 60s that said “Parents, it’s 9 o’clock. Do you know where your kids are?” It created the benchmark for my parents and to my chagrin that’s how they set my curfew. What if I asked you “Leaders, it’s 10 am – what is [...]
Read PostMy top 5 favorite podcasts
October 5, 2011
I love listening to podcasts to get ideas, learn new things and generally get inspired. Because I mostly listen while walking the dog, my favourites are between 30 minutes and an hour long. Here’s my go-to list of podcasts that consistently hit the mark with interesting content that keeps my attention. Freakanomics Radio: A look [...]
Read PostWhen should great leaders hold back?
September 29, 2011
My mother was notorious for never preparing enough food, especially for parties. To ensure there was enough for guests, my siblings and I used to remind each other “family hold back”. It’s an approach leaders might also want to consider – holding back their opinions to encourage good team discussions. Team performance is heavily influenced [...]
Read PostMake it right when things go wrong
September 24, 2011
I recently attended an event and was seated in an area where the presenters were unintelligible. As it was impossible to change my seat once the program started I toughed it out while the rest of the audience laughed in obvious delight to the witticisms of the well-known speaker. The next day I [...]
Read PostJust say no to performance reviews
September 21, 2011
Most companies use annual performance assessments and I’m willing to bet that no one in the company enjoys them. They take precious time to complete, divert resources from important work and cause needless anxiety. One manager I know spends almost a full month each year on performance reviews, doing almost nothing else during that time. [...]
Read PostDon’t kill the project too late in the day
August 24, 2011
Timing is everything. In a recent New York Times article John Tierney paints a convincing picture of the impact of timing on decisions, even those decisions with significant impact, such as the ones made by parole boards. We all know the importance of a good night’s rest to doing our best work. Drawing on extensive [...]
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