What Not to Wear to Work

For me, a coach who specializes in executive communications, the topic of attire is like an unwelcome neighbor who keeps popping over. It’s a subject I’m not entirely comfortable talking about as it seems superficial and off-topic. (I’m a business coach not a style consultant, thank you very much.) But we all know it matters.…

Details

What Meghan Vogel Taught Us About Leadership

A good measure of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better. – Jim Rohn Chronicled in countless newspapers across the country including ESPN, we were all inspired by the recent act of kindness of high school junior Meghan…

Details

What March Madness Teaches Us About Leadership

Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships. – Michael Jordan March Madness is upon us. It’s the time of the year in college basketball where dreams come true and when hearts are broken depending on the final score. How’s your bracket looking? Regardless of how your team performs there are key leadership lessons…

Details

What Managers Tolerate Destructive Conflict

Stephen was the manager of a work-group in a company where he was held strictly accountable for the milestones, deliverables, and the overall performance of his work-group. But Stephen constantly struggled with destructive conflict between two individuals (Sal and Christy) who had radically different approaches to problem-solving on key projects that had high corporate visibility…

Details

What Makes Other People Tick?

Establishing a sense of congruence or similarity with other people is an important element of building rapport. When you understand other people, and are attuned to their needs and desires, they are more likely to feel as though you’re on the same wavelength.

What is Your Philosophy on Leadership?

phi·los·o·phy   [fi-los-uh-fee noun, plural -phies. -The rational investigation of the truths and principles of being, knowledge, or conduct. The setting is taken from the 2009 hit movie Invictus starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon. Freeman plays the role of South African President Nelson Mandela. Damon plays the role of Francois Pienaar, the captain of the…

Details

What if We Brought in a Facilitator?

Is your upcoming meeting a strategic planning session? A sales or project launch? A departmental communications day? Or, perhaps, teambuilding for an intact management or project team? Whichever it is, it undoubtedly involves a significant investment.

What Drives Leaders

I recently had the great pleasure of interviewing established business author Dan Pink. One of the questions I asked him was how important Empathy is to Leadership….to which he replied:  It’s hugely important. It’s very hard to lead without being able to see the world through the eyes of those your leading. That’s especially true…

Details

What Does Your Opportunity Look Like?

A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. – Winston Churchill A story is told some years ago about a young energetic man who began work as a clerk in a hardware store. Like many old-time hardware stores, the inventory included thousands of dollars’ worth of items…

Details

What Brings Your Team Back on Monday?

On Monday mornings I am dedicated to the proposition that all men are created jerks. -H. Allen Smith   In The 360° Leader, John Maxwell shares a humorous story about a turkey chatting with a bull. “I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree,” sighed the turkey, “but I…

Details

What Brings Your Team Back on Monday?

On Monday mornings I am dedicated to the proposition that all men are created jerks. – H. Allen Smith In The 360° Leader, John Maxwell shares a humorous story about a turkey chatting with a bull. “I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree,” sighed the turkey, “but I…

Details

What Are You Passionate About?

I love summer. The sound of singing birds, the early morning sun, and soft, gentle breezes fill me with energy and happiness. As a child I always welcomed summer as that wonderful transition time between graduating from one grade and entering the next; a time to refuel, re-energize, and try new things like camp, a…

Details

Want to Collaborate? Choose Your Level

We hear so much about collaboration these days. Our work is more complex. The best solutions require input from diverse perspectives. We at Fulcrum Associates have just started working with a fascinating simulation learning event, Friday Night at the ER. In it participants experience the challenge of working in a system where the unit managers…

Details