Yelling Doesn’t Work
An oldie but still gold.
In the early 1960′s, when Tom Watson Jr. was CEO of IBM he discovered that one of his executives made a mistake costing the company $10 million. He called the man into his office asking him “Do you know why I called you here?” The man replied “I assume you’re going to fire me.”“Fire you?” Watson replied. “I spent $10 million educating you. I just want to be sure you learned the right ...
You need to first unlearn
A great story and lesson.
There was a great Taoist master who was holding an audience when one of his students came to him and said, “Master, can you teach me about the Tao, teach me about the way. What do I need to know?” And the master said, “Oh, certainly, I can.”
As he poured the student some tea and the master started chatting to him and he said, “Well, there’s much you must know before you start to learn.”
And the master continued to pour the ...
You need to first unlearn
A great story and lesson.
There was a great Taoist master who was holding an audience when one of his students came to him and said, “Master, can you teach me about the Tao, teach me about the way. What do I need to know?” And the master said, “Oh, certainly, I can.”
As he poured the student some tea and the master started chatting to him and he said, “Well, there’s much you must know before you start to learn.”
And the master continued to pour the ...
The Importance of Random Acts of Kindness
Take a moment and write down how many people you’ve come into contact today. How many people you have connected with. How many you have spoken with (even for a moment) looked at, stood or sat near, emailed, or in some way communicated with.
Then think about this.
Every single one of those moments was an opportunity to make a difference to that person.
Every single one of those moments was a chance to not only make their day a little better, but to increase your own happiness.
Human ...
The importance of a growth mindset
At the Neuroleadership Summit in San Francisco last week, neuroscientists and business leaders connected to share ideas around the theme “Adaptive Organisations.”
Carol Dweck’s conversation on the beliefs organisations should hold was particularly important as it illuminated one of the essential components of success: a growth mindset.
Organisations that are willing to learn will be more adaptive and innovative, making them more ready to deal with the increasing ...
A Journey to Truth
As a leader, it is imperative that you ground yourself in your personal values and stay true to your talents and interests. It’s what gives you power and purpose in your daily interactions internally and as a representative of your organisation. It also contributes to your own emotional maturity as a leader and adult.
However, some people aren’t in any way connected to their truth so don’t even know where to start to bring congruence to their work and life. That’s okay. ...
Imagine there’s no blame
Over the next few weeks I welcome Jeroen De Flander from Brussels to our first round of blogging tennis. He’ll pick up this conversation in his blog and then send one back to me.
Today is about integrity and how it enables us to learn and grow.
What would it be like if you took the words blame and fault out of your language?
Imagine reviewing a situation and being able to learn from it without blaming anyone. Without someone or something having to be wrong and someone else having to ...
10 Ways Work/Life Balance Leads to Greater Success
There is often a general perception that, while the notion of a balance of work and life is a good idea, it is contradictory to maximising your value to your company, or it’s a luxury in today’s high-pressure marketplace.
However, consider that a balance between your work and personal time actually increases a your productivity and performance. Here’s how:
1) Increase your perception of control – when you are able to engage in needed personal time, you experience a ...
What mindset do you foster?
Nigel Holmes’ diagram illustrates what happens when a manger or leader fosters a culture of growth and learning.
A growth mindset is developed through praise of a person’s efforts as well as achievements, by treating challenges and obstacles as opportunities for learning and by letting your people know that you support their efforts to fulfil their potential.
You’ll get the best out of them, build a culture of innovation and maximise your company’s investment. ...
