As a first-time leader, it is critical that you understand that you can’t “make” a change happen. While you can initiate a change, and make it easier for employees to stomach and execute, you need them to do the work, change their behaviors, and, ultimately, make the change happen. If you want them to do all that, you need to

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One of the questions we are often asked in both our Bud to Boss and Remarkable Communicator workshops is: “How do you get people to listen when they are set in their ways?” Like so many questions related to leadership and communication, there’s a short answer and a more complete answer. The short answer is:

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In a previous post, I shared a tip for how to quickly capture the attention of someone who tends to jump ahead and make assumptions about what you are attempting to communicate. In this post, I’m taking my answer to the original question about dealing with interruptions one step farther to share a technique you

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The biggest problem with collaborative problem solving is the collaborative part. Many new leaders became leaders because they know how to get things done. That individual ability to solve problems, applied in a team environment, can become a weakness as the new leader pushes strongly for a solution that others resist. I have been that

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One day Hypothetical John, a newly promoted supervisor with Fictional Products, met with his boss, Bill, to discuss a new procedure recently mandated by a change to company policy. John was not happy with the change because he knew that his team would not like it. The new procedure added two documentation steps to an

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Whether you are trying to resolve a conflict, coach an employee, or correct your child’s behavior; you have to wrestle with your real goals. You have to ask yourself, “Do I want compliance or commitment?” Many people might say, “As long as they do what I asked them to do, I don’t really care whether people

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