We are in a feedback and coaching boom. Most people agree that if your goal is to change behavior, feedback and coaching are more useful than screaming and criticizing. Indeed, some managers have become so committed to feedback and coaching that they avoid giving directions at all. Their rationale is that they don’t want to […]
Punishing mistakes can be risky business
When you realize you’ve made a mistake or that you are heading toward one, how do you react? My work with organizations often incorporates concepts and tools with roots in action research and positive psychology. Action research is a methodology for bringing the power of the scientific method and collaborative learning to the workplace. Positive psychology explores […]
Grit = Perseverance + Passion x Purpose
Are you keeping your nose to the grindstone? Most people know the value of hard work, so it’s not surprising that when achievement-oriented people are dissatisfied with their performance, they usually ask themselves, ”Could I be working harder?” The answer, of course, is usually ”Yes.” There’s always another hour to carve out of sleeping time, […]
Quality Time
When was the last time you took a little break, got away from it all and spent a little quality time with your work? The amount of time we devote to work is truly impressive, but how much quality do we get with the quantity? If you have ever multi-tasked your way through a long, […]
Making waves in an inter-connected world
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it’s the only thing that ever has. – Margaret Mead A defining characteristic of modern existence is the degree to which our work and lives are embedded in systems that seem too large and complex for any one individual […]
Self-Interest doesn’t equal selfishness – The biological roots of “enlightened” self-interest
If you are like me, you probably have a list of things you think you ought to do something about. I’m not talking about the big things like world peace or eradicating hunger. Maybe you’d just like contribute to creating a more human-friendly workplace or reduce the environmental impact of your business. If you are […]
Transit time
For as long as I can remember, I have always enjoyed transit. On some level, I think I enjoy it even more than arrival. There is something appealing about this interim state when you have left one place but not yet arrived at the next. There may be things to do and you may even […]
When the going gets tough, the tough get playing:)
I recently picked up ‘Play’ by Stuart Brown. Brown give a long list of reasons why we should all take care to include play and playfulness in our lives. It would seem that play is essential for brain development as well as for problem solving, in adults as well as children. Indeed, the returns we […]
Are you a human in a professional suit?
Sometimes when I walk into an office, I feel like I’m walking into an alien world, inhabited by a race of beings that are clearly anthropoid, but don’t somehow seem to be human. There are all these creatures sitting in cubicles, staring at screens, moving their fingers, but many of them only rarely seem to […]
Enough with teams; you need colleagues!
Have you gotten tired of the words team and teamwork? These are two of the most used and abused words in the corporate world. We often have only a vague idea what people mean when they say team. The term is used to describe project teams, work groups, divisions and even whole companies. We often […]