Thoughts on people, teams, organizations, communities, effectiveness and success
Most of the times a “no” means “no” and a “yes” means “yes.”
Then there are times though when that “yes” can mean “no.”
As I discovered recently, I should learn how to use that yes when I mean no more often.
If you haven’t, you might do well to learn it too.… Read the rest
I had coffee with a colleague I’ll call Andy; he’s got a problem.
You might have the same problem too.
Subject? How to (finally) get an offer from a firm that’s been courting him for 10 months. Position scope change, multiple lunches and interviews, headcount freezes and freeze liftings have all come and gone without “the offer we’ll be giving you” actually happening.… Read the rest
Politics aside, are there times when not getting the job – but making an otherwise strong showing – is the better result for you and your career?
After all, isn’t work and life really as Henry “Red” Sanders (and later Vince Lombardi) observed, “Winning isn’t everything. It’s the only thing“.
Maybe. And maybe not.
Here’s why.… Read the rest
While the Twittersphere exploded with Presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s “binders full of women” it shouldn’t have been any surprise.
Guess what? Romney has lot of company. Many, many organizations lack decent diversity at the leadership level of one sort or another, whether it be racial/ethnic diversity or male/female diversity.
What’s “decent” diversity? Enough of something to have a critical mass and not the one token person of color or one female (or male) on an otherwise homogeneous executive team or board of trustees.… Read the rest
Executive, career, and team coaches come in all flavors. How do you know who you should hire?
Daniel Coyle, author of the best seller The Talent Code, has a new book out, The Little Book of Talent: 52 Tips for Improving Your Skills.
Read it.
Coyle’s work has lots of great, research-based ideas on boosting talent, and even picking a coach to help you get where you want to go.… Read the rest
Optics – whatever they might be – count. A lot.
Just ask Big Bird.
Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney announced that he’d stop funding PBS – effectively sacking Big Bird and the Sesame Street crew that generations of kids and their parents have grown to love – as one of the first steps to lower the multi-trillion Federal debt. It was a rare misstep in a sterling first debate performance against President Obama in Denver.… Read the rest