Last night, my husband fed the dog. I usually do this, but I was busy, so I delegated. With a certain amount of anxiety. Because, as all of us who delegate know, there are many potential pitfalls. After all, we’re the ones who know how to do the task correctly – right? And sure enough, there were plenty of missteps. He didn’t …
Do you welcome feedback?
This is a guest post from Will Bontrager, the software wizard and writer par excellence behind Will Bontrager Software, LLC. His website and his newsletters are treasure troves of straightforward, reliable software tools, tips, tricks, and techniques. As someone who uses several of his software tools, I’m delighted to include links to his site in this article, and highly recommend …
The problem with promotions
Promotions are great. They acknowledge the quality of your hard work, they represent progress and feel like success, and hey, who can argue with a bigger paycheck? So why am I suggesting that there’s a problem with them? In general – there isn’t. As an individual contributor diligently climbing the promotions ladder, you typically (and, let’s face it, often very frustratingly) …
The key to receiving feedback is…
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about giving feedback (you can read it here). A reader wisely observed, “This is helpful not only for giving, but also for being open to receiving feedback.” Absolutely true, and since I hadn’t thought of that, I was especially grateful she took the time to email me. (I hope it’s no surprise that I …
How do you ask?
How you ask affects the answer you receive. Latin allows us to be explicit in this formation, as I learned many years ago when reading the classic British mysteries by Dorothy L. Sayers. This line appears in the next-to-last book of the series, Gaudy Night: “One First of April, the question had arrived from Paris in a single Latin sentence, starting …
Corrective feedback: are you making one of these 3 mistakes?
As a leader, giving feedback to your people is part of your job. And while we all enjoy giving “yay, you!” feedback, it’s safe to say that no one likes having to deliver correction. That said, it’s still part of the job of developing your people and ensuring they deliver top-quality results. Here, then, are three mistakes and myths you …
Feeling uncomfortable? Good!
Over the last few days, I’ve had an extended conversation with one of my clients about what it takes to learn and grow. We started talking about one of his employees, moved into a more general discussion, and then came back to his employee … and him. The essence of the conversation centered around this reality: if you’re feeling uncomfortable, …
It’s not personal (or is it?)
It’s not personal. The employee who resists doing what you ask. The boss who “borrowed” your idea. The customer who won’t sign off on the project. It’s not personal. After all, emotional reactions don’t belong in the workplace, right? That, at least, is what a lot of career and leadership advice says. But guess what: it IS personal. We can’t …
Do you like people?
Seriously. Do you like people? Not just your friends. People, in general. Humanity, as a whole. Of course there are specific people you don’t like, people who rub you the wrong way, people whose values, attitudes, or philosophies you don’t agree with. But if you want to be a good leader, someone who inspires and motivates your team, you need …
What are you doing?
Directly across from my computer is a bulletin board. On the board, right in my line of sight, is a five-inch by eight-inch index card with three short lines on it. The top line reads: When I look up and see it, I’m reminded to check in with myself. Is what I’m doing worthwhile? That doesn’t mean it has to …