Good day, team, This week’s challenge is about the power of storytelling. Consider these two scenarios. In the first, a group of people arrive at a business meeting to talk about the company’s results in the last quarter. One of the managers stands up and introduces the subject by clicking through a PowerPoint presentation showing […]
Good day, team, Here’s a challenge written last year that a client asked to see again. In a recent off-site meeting, I was working with a team that made a commitment to each other. The commitment comes from an old Italian proverb that we translated to say: Honor when present. Praise when absent. Assist when […]
Good day, team, Your challenge this week is about innovation. In a recent meeting, the guest speaker quoted a well-known retailer in Great Britain: “If you do something first, your customer thinks you do it for them. If you do something second, they think you do it for yourself.” The speaker went on to say […]
Good day, team, A quote from Pema Chodron, a Buddhist nun, has stayed with me over the past week. She writes, “The essence of bravery is being without self-deception.” The quote reminded me of a situation in which I had greatly deceived myself. I was working for a high-tech company in Silicon Valley as a […]
Good day, team, I received some requests last week to re-send this challenge that was originally sent out in January of 2006. It seems timely. Kathleen Good day, team, The challenge this week is about realizing that we are not indispensable and working to cultivate backup and support. At this time of year, we are […]
Good day, team, This week’s challenge is about forgiveness. This subject came up for me just this weekend. My husband and I attended a large family celebration, and I was given opportunities to forgive some family members with whom I have had difficult relationships in the past. In one case, one of my in-laws and […]
Good day, team, Albert Einstein was a Nobel Prize-winning scientist whose theory of relativity changed Western concepts of time and space forever: No small accomplishment by any means. Einstein remains one of the greatest scientists who ever lived. However, many people do not know what a sensitive man he was and how, as he aged, […]
Good day, team, This week’s challenge comes from the book “The Man Who Listens to Horses” by Monty Roberts. Roberts is a real-life horse whisperer, an American original whose gentle training methods reveal the depth of communication possible between people and animals. A few years ago, my fellow coach Kate Dwyer (who’s also an avid […]
Good day, team, Each Labor Day reminds me that there are just a few months left until the year is up. It’s a good time to review what I’ve accomplished in the past eight months and what’s left to do. It’s a curious time of year. We are in full harvest, reaping the benefits of […]
Good day, team, This week I am reminded of the importance of celebration and ceremony. Summer is the time of year when the ceremony of marriage often takes place. We mark this new beginning for the bride and groom by creating an event that sanctifies and celebrates their union. Many other types of ceremonies and […]