Our most powerful but least leveraged leadership tool is . . . how we frame things. Let’s start with some background. A researcher did an experiment on the power of framing our work efforts around learning. In the study, three different teams were given different “framings” for solving a real problem within their organization. Framing One: Just fix it. The manager of…
Read More
I had just come home from a conference where one of the speakers, a noted psychologist, was asking the hypothetical question: If you could take a “happy” pill that would relieve you from the pain, suffering and sadness that can define our days . . . would you? I posed the same question to my…
Read More
There are nearly 100,000 books with leadership in the title. 1,000 new titles will emerge in 2022. We seem to have a huge appetite for the topic . . . but unfortunately . . . we only have incremental gains to show for it (a topic for a future newsletter). With the endless publishing and proliferation of…
Read More
Before Covid there was another crisis brewing in the work world . . . one of meaning. Covid just brought it into sharp reality with wholesale movements like the Great Resignation. When people leave jobs without having a new job lined up . . . we know something is up. Consider this: 1. True: We work hard to…
Read More
You are just three habits away from an entirely new life. I would use that provocative statement in leadership development sessions to get people thinking differently . . . and it worked. Here’s why: 1) It was simple. But not too simple. Doing three things differently felt like the right amount. (One would not be enough and five would start…
Read More
Do you smile more than 20 times a day? Before you answer . . . a little set-up is in order. I am always looking for ways to bring some simplicity and balance to our challenging work lives. The smile is one of them. The smile fits nicely into my Be Happy, Find Meaning daily mantra. It is my…
Read More
The pandemic revealed two kinds of leaders. The first saw the pandemic as a storm to weather. Mostly they “reacted” to the challenge. They did things like putting in new policies and procedures for working remotely. Basically, they did what good managers do. They stabilized the situation and did their best to maximize outcomes before things could return to…
Read More
Quick! What is the one thing when present represents one of the most enabling forces for employee engagement, productivity and meaning at work? Here’s a hint: When absent, it serves as the most significant barrier to employee engagement, productivity and meaning at work? It’s the relationship. We underestimate by some huge margin the importance of relationships in…
Read More
Be happy. Find meaning. I love the simple logic of this framing. It not only has powerful implications for our personal lives – but has the potential to reshape our work lives as well. In many ways this is the pathway we are already on. Here’s an example . . . Happiness is the first fifteen minutes in…
Read More