Wake-Up Calls for Managers
For the hard parts no one prepares you for
When the path isn’t clear, the stakes are high, and the answers aren’t obvious—this is where managers struggle most.
Wake-Up Calls for Managers delivers practical, real-world guidance for navigating:
- Tough conversations
- Leading through uncertainty
- Building influence without authority
- Driving results through others
The Leadership Caffeine Blog
Designing A Bug-Free Operating System for Great Managers
Rethinking the Operating System Needed for Manager Success Late last year, I shared an article at SmartBrief on Leadership, introducing the idea of the Manager's Operating System—a set of core programs or instructions that must be present to create a healthy working...
Designing A Bug-Free Operating System for Great Managers
Rethinking the Operating System Needed for Manager Success Late last year, I shared an article at SmartBrief on Leadership, introducing the idea of the Manager's Operating System—a set of core programs or instructions that must be present to create a healthy working...
August Leadership Development Carnival and Reading List
This month’s excellent edition of the Leadership Development Carnival is being hosted by Sharlyn Lauby, aka the H.R. Bartender! In addition to a great variety of posts, Sharlyn asked each contributor to share what they are reading this summer, and the results make for a great reading list for the final weeks of pre-Labor Day book consumption.
Let’s Go Curiosity! The Olympics of Human Ingenuity
Against the backdrop of the world’s greatest athletes competing in London, there is an equally exciting and very other-worldly event occurring on a red planet somewhere near earth.
Management Excellence Recap for the Week Ending August 4, 2012
An extended weekend and then some productive business travel reduced the writing and posting time to a dull roar. Nonetheless, these two posts reflect my current reading…from Drucker to neuroscience. Your thoughts and ideas are always appreciated her
Just One Thing: Learn to Fight Your Negativity Bias
We all know people who seem to thrive on the negatives in life. They can look at what is perceived by others as a beautiful picture and spot the flaws, almost taking pride in their role as watchdogs against perfection. Here are 4 ideas and several resources to help reduce your negative self-talk and improve your effectiveness and happiness as a leader and person:
Leadership Caffeine™-To Grow as a Leader, Master a Second Discipline
Of the many important themes espoused by the late and arguably pre-eminent management thinker of the latter part of the twentieth century, Peter Drucker, perhaps the most valuable to us as individuals, is his constant reminder that we are responsible for our own self-development. One of Drucker’s more provocative suggestions as described in William A. Cohen’s enjoyable read, “A Class with Drucker-The Lost Lessons of the World’s Greatest Management Teacher,” is for managers to actively work at developing expertise outside of their chosen field as a tool to preparing to become a senior or strategic leader. (Read More…)
Management Excellence Recap for the Week Ending July 28, 2012
Here’s a quick recap of my Management Excellence blog and other writings during the past week. Enjoy the reading and enjoy your weekend!
Leadership Caffeine™ Podcast-Become the CEO of You, Inc. with Susan Butler
One of the many pleasures of this podcast project is the opportunity it affords to connect with remarkable people. While Susan Butler’s excellent book, Become the CEO of You, Inc., offers great insight, wisdom and guidance for all of us (with an emphasis on aspiring female executives), it is her fascinating, trailblazing biography that serves as true inspiration.
New Leader Tuesday-Your Responsibility for Leading the Tough Discussions
One of the biggest derailment factors for early career or first-time leaders is the issue of conducting tough performance discussions. Here are 4 critical mistakes of first-time or newer leaders when it comes to dealing with tough discussions, and 6 ideas to help strengthen performance.
New Online Program Release: Learning to Master Feedback
With this post, I’m announcing the availability of a new online program to help professionals at all levels develop and strengthen their feedback communication skills. This is a practical, powerful program based on a great deal of live-session and prior version(online) participant input. Best of all, there’s a low cost of entry to put this on-demand and guided self-development program it in easy reach of motivated professionals at all levels.