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
From Manager to Strategist: How to Use Strategy Tools to See Your Situation Clearly
One of the hit topics, according to the students in my recent capstone on strategy, was a comment from a guest speaker suggesting strategy isn’t reserved for those at the top of the organization chart. As mid-level managers and contributors, you can think...
From Manager to Strategist: How to Use Strategy Tools to See Your Situation Clearly
Regardless of your level, you can start to familiarize yourself with the tools of strategy. They are tools for thinking. Choose your tools carefully, practice with them diligently, and remember that they are only as good as the hands wielding them.
Ten Questions to Support Continuous Career Growth
During our recent Leadership Caffeine Jam Session (recording and session materials/#18), I shared the ten questions I ask myself (and answer) about my career at least twice yearly. The late, great management thinker Peter Drucker suggested five questions; the other five are my add-ons.
Chronos or Kairos—Is it Your Moment for a Career Change?
I discovered recently that the ancient Greeks had two different words to explain the idea of time: Chronos and Kairos. The difference between the two is meaningful, especially if you feel the time of your life and career flying by.
A Manager’s Operating System and How it Guides Them
We’re at an all-hands, and all brains required time in our world, and the pressure is on those who manage to tap into the potential of their team members and teams. The Manager’s Operating System is a powerful tool to help create engagement and build high-performance.
It Takes Leadership Courage to Kick Conventional Wisdom to the Curb
Resilience, according to one dictionary definition, is the capacity to absorb a shock or a punch and return quickly to original form.
Life and business are filled with shocks and punches. We’ve lived this story for the past few years. And the shocks and punches keep coming, just in different forms and from unexpected places. It takes resilience and leadership courage to absorb the hits and come out stronger.
Six Big Insights from the Global Challenging Conversations Workshops
In a recent global workshop series, two groups of individuals added their international flavor to the challenging conversations, topics, and guidance. I share the highlights below.
Treat Your Career Pivot as an Agile Project to Make Progress Faster
Using a disciplined, agile project management approach might be the most important thing you can do to succeed in identifying the right “next” in your career. Here are ideas to help.
A Focus on Bringing Your Purpose to Life (and work)—Insights from the Jam Session
In the latest Leadership Caffeine Jam Session, we explored the issue of purpose in the workplace. Here are some key insights from the group:
March 2023 Leadership Development Carnival
For many years, I've had the pleasure and honor of submitting my Leadership Caffeine articles to the monthly Leadership Development Carnival coordinated by the great team at Weaving Influence. This monthly collection of ideas, inspiration, and guidance for all of us...
Finding Purpose at Work—Ideas to Help
In my experience, those professionals driven by a sense of purpose enjoy what they are doing, are more resilient in the face of organizational and personal challenges, and, frankly, excel. So, what’s your professional purpose at this stage of your career? Ideas to help.