If you’ve been with me the last several weeks, you know I’m writing about the importance and power of listening. Now I want to talk about how to improve listening skills. I use the word “skill” because listening is something we can practice and develop. But, truthfully, I’m not sure “skill” is the best word […]

Resistance is common, whether at home or work. You propose an idea and someone pushes back. It’s a good idea, even in their best self-interest and yet they resist. It’s easy to get frustrated and end up entangled in a power struggle that demoralizes everyone and harms the relationship. So, what do you do? Here’s […]

In a past article, I suggested that listening is at the heart of all healthy relationships, whether at home or on the job. In this article, I want to illustrate the power of listening at work. Here’s a story for you. From excitement to endurance Mitchell worked for a large manufacturing company for 18 years. […]

Hi my friend, I have just launched my new course entitled “Leadership to Engage Hearts and Minds: 17 Tools to Improve Your Team Management and Build Employee Engagement.” As a thank you to my email subscribers, I’m offering the course to you free (full price $99) if you enroll in the next three days. The course […]

Research tells us that 70-80% of leaders spend a good deal of their time in a reactive mode. You probably know what I mean. They’re down in the weeds, sometimes fighting fires or dealing with the crisis of the moment or handling day-to-day issues to keep an organization running smoothly. And, I get that some […]

In my last blog post, I shared my personal bias that most employees want to succeed. They want to contribute and make a difference. Furthermore, it’s our job as leaders to make this possible by creating a culture which empowers people; a culture in which everyone wants to give their best. Yet so often this […]

In my transition from practicing psychology to full-time consulting, I was asked to serve as a director of Human Resources for a 2000-person electronics firm in the Pacific Northwest. My initial reaction was “No. I have no training in HR and am not qualified.” However, after some back and forth with the company president, I […]

If I’m really honest with myself I feel pretty dismayed by the political debate in the country (USA) today. We have become so polarized and tribal, even in our local communities, that we can’t carry on a sincere conversation without people being offended and either shutting down or attacking those with differing opinions. How unfortunate […]

Stop over-managing and over-indulging your children and learn parenting skills to build trust, self-worth and personal responsibility.

By confronting a disruptive student I was able to help change his behavior so he became a positive influence within the classroom.