Words of Wisdom – Page 26

Supporting People’s Strengths

This post comes from a quote in one of my favorite books about management and leadership, “The One Thing You Need to Know,” by Marcus Buckingham: “Mediocre managers play checkers with their people (vs. chess). In checkers the pieces all move in the same way, whereas in chess all ...

How Kind Words Make A Difference

This post comes from an e-mail that a client* sent to me. Please have a look: Friday, Aug. 25, began a week-long celebration of people being kind to others. Born in 1988, Be Kind to Humankind Week is now 18 years old. The week is made up of seven ...

The Importance of Being Earnest – an important lesson in how you treat your customer

This post is about the importance of being earnest particularly when you’re dealing with a customer. I remember having a terrible experience with the company that provided my broadband services. I tried to get my problems resolved with customer service agents located in the Philippines. They never fixed the issues. ...

The Advantage Of Seizing The Opportunity That Presents Itself

This post is about the advantage of seizing an opportunity that presents itself even if it was never apparent until it appeared. Here’s a relevant quote from famous author and statesman Mark Twain, who wrote about life’s realities in a way many people could appreciate: “A man may plan as ...

Salemanship And The Power Of Belief

Let’s explore the subjects of salesmanship and the power of belief. I once asked a client who is the CEO of a medium-sized company how he spent his time each day: what he actually did and what percentage of his time was spent directing, managing and leading. He replied, ...

Suggestions for Setting Healthy Boundaries

This post is about setting healthy boundaries with people at work. Professional boundaries are important because they define the limits and responsibilities of the people with whom you interact in the workplace. When workplace boundaries are clearly defined, the organization works more efficiently because redundant work assignments are eliminated ...

How To Make Yourself Happy In A Moment

This post addresses the importance of making yourself happy, even in small moments. Here’s a good example: Tuesday morning I had to take my car in for servicing. It was about 7 a.m., and the shuttle was supposed to take me back home. After waiting about 15 minutes, I learned ...

Taking Stock of the Past and Setting New Goals For the Future

This post is about the importance of reviewing the past year and setting goals for the new year. The fourth quarter is always the time that I meet with my accountant, and it’s always interesting to see what I’ve achieved, both professionally and personally. Now is a good time to ...

The Importance of a Plan and Knowing When to Ditch It

I often see that during the latter part of the year, my clients are actively involved in strategic planning sessions. What better time to think about how we want to position ourselves, the goals we want to achieve, and how much profit we want to make than in preparation ...

Within and Without – Leadership Integrity

Have you ever considered the tension that leaders experience when making decisions between following their inner compass and bowing to outside pressures? It is reasonable to question how successful a business leader can be who always follows his inner compass. How many CEOs would lose their jobs if they ...

Horse Sense #4 – Forgiveness

Once upon a time, I learned a lot about forgiveness from an unlikely friend: a beautiful horse I’d been spending time with. This lovely horse was named Ileeah. She was a lovely Arabian horse trained in the horsemanship method I was learning. My lessons were frustrating at first, but ...

All the News That Fits – We Print

This advice comes from a previous client of mine, Michael Kane. Michael was the chief of staff for Move Inc. and the general manager of one of its subsidiaries, TigerLead. He had a gift for eloquently expressing himself, both verbally and in writing. Many thanks to Michael for sharing ...

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