The most effective leaders are aware of how they impact their teams with their actions, reactions, words, and decisions. In other words, the more self-aware we are, the better chance we have of leading effectively. Unfortunately, everyone (including leaders) has blind spots, unconscious biases, and habits that keep us from being as successful as we

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Have you ever tried pushing a string across a table? It’s an exercise in futility. Similarly, many of us struggle with focus. We know we need to be more focused and less distracted, but the harder we try, the more it seems like our efforts fall short. It’s as if we’re pushing that string, resulting

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You know what I am talking about. You must deliver a message to a group or individual that they aren’t going to love. This isn’t likely one of your favorite parts of being a leader, but it comes with the territory. Messages about organizational change, process change, individual feedback, or something surprising in any way.

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What is the best approach for learning new skills when you don’t work in the same place as your boss and colleagues? Should I rely on e-learning and asynchronous tools? As a leader, is it worth the expense of pulling people together for training events? Are lunch-and-learn webinars more cost effective than instructor-led training, or

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Our beliefs are among the most powerful things in our lives. Many help us get through our day. Some support our moods and productivity. Others, what we’ll call our limiting beliefs, aren’t so wonderful. It is those limiting beliefs I want to help you think about now. Before we get to the list though, I want

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As a leader, one of the most challenging situations you can face is being asked a question for which you don’t have the answer. It’s natural to feel pressure to know everything and be the expert in your field. However, the truth is, none of us can know everything, and it’s okay not to have

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I’ve been working with, observing, and coaching leaders for many years. I‘ve thought about it, and if I could only dispense one piece of advice to every leader I encountered from now on, based on my experience and observation, it might be this: You’re talking too much. While this affliction doesn’t include every leader, it includes most,

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As you move into or consider moving into a leadership role, you have likely noticed that it can be both rewarding and difficult. Rewarding in that you get to make a difference for people and get things done. Difficult in that it is a never-ending problem-solving effort. As soon as you resolve one problem, another

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We often talk about the transitions that happen when people get promoted to a leadership role. We most commonly talk about the transitions of needed skills, and the transitions of the relationships with those around us. These transitions are real, important and challenging.  There are other transitions new leaders face, and some realities they aren’t

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Today, I want to talk about a topic that affects all of us at some point: FOPO, or Fear of Other People’s Opinions. Do you care what other people think? Of course you do. We all care about the opinions of those closest to us and whose opinions we value the most. But the question is,

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