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
Heartfelt Encouragement for the M.B.A. Graduates of 2023
Congratulations, You Made It! Now What? Wrapping up your M.B.A. is a milestone. If you're like most M.B.A. students who pursue their degrees part-time, this work has been a significant part of your life for several years. In my prior teaching in the M.B.A. program at...
Heartfelt Encouragement for the M.B.A. Graduates of 2023
Here’s some hard-won and heartfelt guidance for MBA graduates as I strive not to sound like every other commencement address out there. Use the ideas in great life and career health.
Art of Managing—Don’t Set Artificial Limits on Employee Involvement
A firm’s senior leaders and managers are supposed to feel the weight of responsibility for the health of their organization. It comes with the job. However, no one suggested they bear the weight of the worries or the burden of finding the solutions in silence and without ample support from the broader employee population. Here are 6 ideas to help you jump-start improved employee involvement in strengthening your business:
Art of Managing—It’s Your Job to Bring Your Firm’s Values to Life
I’ve long been a student of the values that organizations espouse. They are after all an attempt to encapsulate the accepted and aspirational behaviors of the firm’s employees and officers. And while words on the wall or in the placard are typically interesting, noble and even somewhat predictable, what’s truly fascinating is to compare and contrast the behaviors of people in an organization to the values statements hanging on the wall. Sadly, in too many organizations, the values statements are corporate furniture. Here are some thoughts on how you can help bring your firm’s values to life and strengthen performance in the process:
Leadership Caffeine™—The Struggles Really Do Make Us Stronger
The world of leadership development lost a giant at the end of July this past summer, when Warren Bennis passed away. In tribute, I’m including his classic article, “Crucibles of Leadership” (HBR, fee required) with Robert Thomas in one of my leadership courses this year. Revisiting this article is always inspirational both for myself and for the students who share their own crucible experiences including: personal loss, business and career struggles, and being on the receiving end of discrimination, sexism and racism. A few years ago in a hiring role, I encountered two very compelling candidates. The one who had navigated her own very significant challenges got the job, in spite of her underdog position on paper. Here’s why:
It’s Your Career—When the Words, “Enjoy the Journey” Suddenly Make Sense
Almost all of us have heard some variation of Remember to Enjoy the Journey at some point in our lives. Whether it was our parents or grandparents offering hard won advice to our younger selves or, an experienced manager sharing perspective on a tumultuous period at work, these words likely bounced around and then exited our brains at the time, with little thought to their truth and significance. Here are 5 ideas to help you keep the days and challenges of your career in perspective:
New Leader Tuesday—The Hard Work of Leading Effectively
If you’re new to the role of guiding others, here’s the preface to your real job description. Use it in good health and in pursuit of greatness!
Leadership Caffeine™—Why Should Anyone Trust You to Lead?
Seriously, why is it that someone or some group should trust you to lead? From long experience and ample input from thousands of professionals, here are 5 big credibility killers and 5 big leadership credibility builders:
It’s Your Career—Resolve to Conquer Your Fear of Speaking
A frighteningly few number of people genuinely relish the idea of getting up in front of an audience at work and talking.That’s too bad, because there are few skills that will take you further and help you more in your career than developing your speaking skills.
Art of Managing—Managing Effectively is Hard, Good Work
For some reason, the work of management and of managers often is positioned as a poor second cousin to the richer, nobler tasks of leading. That’s a false perspective. Good managers with good leadership skills are incredibly valuable to today’s organizations. Here are a few reasons why you should be proud of your important role as a manager:
Art of Managing—Beware the Lure of Strategy in a Box Approaches
Strategy is one of those difficult topics that dog most management teams and most firms. The real work of strategy is challenging, time consuming and filled with hard-to-answer questions. Given the challenges of managing an effective, on-going strategy process, it’s no surprise “Strategy in a Box” approaches are often adopted by management teams looking to add a check mark to the strategy task on their annual goals. Here are some key reasons why there are no shortcuts when it comes to strategy: