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
Reaching for the Executive Ranks, Part Three—Developing as an Integrative Thinker
Earlier articles in this series focused on 'Developing as a strategist' and 'Strengthening Executive Presence.' This is the first of a two-part series on 'Strengthening as an integrative thinker.' -- Solving for the problems of direction, choice, and approach The...
Reaching for the Executive Ranks, Part Three—Developing as an Integrative Thinker
The essence of your role as a senior manager is problem-solving through decision-making. Cultivating your critical thinking skills is right up there with the need to lead effectively at scale, project the presence essential to building credibility, and galvanizing support In this article, I share a case study and some resources for strengthening as an integrative thinker.
Who’s Your Leadership Role Model?
In case you ever wondered if you were making a difference, know that someone is paying attention. The example you set today may very well steer the lives of the people around you for decades to come. Make your example count!
Six Areas Managers Must Focus On to Level-Up
While we spend most of our time commiserating over bad managers and thinking and writing about seemingly super-human leaders, it’s most often the quiet, hard-working managers operating below the top-levels who make our organizations go and grow.
Leadership Caffeine™—Show Them You’re Not a Machine
It turns out that successful, effective leadership is much more than a focus on results. Here are some valuable leadership lessons learned the hard way.
How to Keep Communication Quality High When Things Head in the Wrong Direction at Work
It’s not-surprisingly easy to engage with coworkers and project team member when things are going great. The real question is how do you keep communication quality high when the train rolls off the tracks and the you-know-what hits the fan?
Leadership Caffeine™—How Did I Affect You?
Great leaders understand a key indicator of their effectiveness is found in the answer to the question: How did I affect you?
Free Mini-Course: How to Deal with 5 Difficult Characters
We all know these challenging characters. They’re present in every workplace. The question is, how do you deal with them and get your job done? In my free mini-course, I share 5 videos with ideas and approaches you can put to work immediately with your versions of these challenging characters.
Solving for Unproductive Workplace Conversations
How many conversations at work have you participated in or observed that went nowhere? Chances are, you can think of more than a few. The best workplace communicators understand these situations offer ripe opportunities to level-up discussion quality and improve outcomes. Here are ideas to help you do the same in your workplace:
Where Leaders Misfire on Culture and Strategy
There’s a loud ring of truth to the old saw: “Culture eats strategy for lunch.” However, sometimes, the culture needs to evolve, or everyone is at risk of ending up hungry at lunchtime.
The Promise Behind First-Time Manager Academy
I created our online/on-demand program, First-Time Manager Academy, to fill a gaping hole in the market for practical, actionable new manager development, and, to fulfill a career-long promise to myself.