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Kindness Needs Boundaries: Why a Clear “No” Builds Trust
In my previous article, Nice May Feel Better. Kind Builds Better Leaders, I explored the difference between being nice and being kind. Nice often focuses on keeping people comfortable in the moment, while kindness is sometimes willing to have the hard conversation...
Don’t Lead in an Echo Chamber
One of the less obvious risks of becoming more experienced, successful, or advancing into senior leadership is that fewer people are willing to tell you what they really think. It’s not necessarily because people want to avoid you; it’s often because, on the way up,...
How to Generate New Business Without Feeling “Salesy”
For many professionals, the words sales and business development create an almost immediate sense of discomfort. What I’ve heard from “professionals” such as engineers, architects, accountants, and other technical professionals, and even from those running companies,...
You’re Better Than You Think You Are… Really!
Have you ever looked at where you are in your career and wondered whether your results or current position really reflect what you are capable of? Perhaps you have been passed over (again) for a role, your career seems to have plateaued, or you’ve reached a season...
September Is the Second New Year. Getting Back to Growth Through Learning!
There is something about September that feels like a fresh start like January at the beginning of the new year. Summer vacations come to an end, children return to school, calendars become more structured, and organizations begin turning their attention toward how...
What Is Your Leadership Plumb Line?
Every organization has foundational beliefs. We may call them core values, founding principles, cornerstones, or standards of conduct. Whatever language we use, they are meant to guide how an organization and its people make decisions and behave. They influence how we...
Story Selling: Engaging Your Clients’ Imagination
It was my third week of waking up feverish, heavy headed, out of breath, exhausted. Originally the doctors thought I had pneumonia, but after further observation it was determined that my immune system was overreacting to tree pollen. I was put on powerful steroids...
Apply the FIRE Leadership Model to Assess Your Plans (Part 2)
In the previous newsletter, Leadership Framework: Build What Can Withstand the FIRE, I presented a six-step framework to help you lead with greater purpose and clarity. In part two, I provide you with some ways to help you stay on track. Apply the FIRE model as a...
Leadership Framework: Build What Can Withstand the FIRE (Part One)
Great leadership is not ultimately measured by appearance, activity, or short-term applause. It is measured by what remains when your work goes through the FIRE test. Every leader is building something, whether it be a team, a culture, a reputation, a business, or a...
Nice May Feel Better. Kind Builds Better Leaders.
Do you care enough to be honest with those around you? Let’s get started by watching this short video. There is a significant difference between being nice and being kind. Nice often tells people what they want to hear. Kind tells people what they need to hear. Nice...
True Sales Success Is Effective Matchmaking: It Starts with Genuine Care for the Person Before You
I have a strong dislike for prospecting. I’ve never enjoyed it, but there was a time in my career when my job depended on me cold calling. For a young man raised in a pacifist community, I felt like an invasive intruder making uninvited calls to people who could be...
Leadership That Reaches Beyond the Workplace
I recently listened to Simon Sinek’s A Bit of Optimism podcast episode, “Remembering Bob Chapman: The Mentor Who Changed My Life.” It deeply resonated and moved me because Bob’s message reflects so much of what I have believed and tried to practice throughout my work...
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