It was a pleasant lunch. As usual in this business, the conversation was around leadership, organizations and culture. The point was made for the umpteenth time in my life that the federal government often promotes people into supervisory positions who are very skilled technically, but not very good in managing people. I invoked one ofRead… Read more »
It’s important to ensure that your inner circle is helping you to become the best you! When was the last time your assessed your inner circle. Check out my latest blog post: The Company You Keep to see how you can evaluate your inner circle with asking yourself only four key questions. Always Learning…
I hear this a lot: “I only do FFP, so I don’t need to know cost reimbursement contracts”. When I hear that, my stomach turns over. You may not need to know that now, but you don’t know where you’ll be in the future. (Plus I just like learning). I wouldn’t want to work forRead… Read more »
What’s not to like about a check-off? You know, that feeling you get when something is finished and with a satisfied stroke of the pen, you draw a checkmark through that empty box that you drew just so you could put the checkmark through it. The check-off is particularly satisfying for those whose last letterRead… Read more »
In the embarrassing-admissions department, I have to confess I sometimes watch Kitchen Nightmares, that show in which the acerbic Gordon Ramsay (poster child for Thinking versus Feeling in the MBTI) shreds a failing restaurant along the way to rebuilding it into something successful. The predictable sequence is: Gordon enters the disaster zone, dissects what isRead… Read more »
It was another rite of passage: Sitting in a high-school auditorium for the awards night before graduation. A parade of wonderful young people being honored for achievements and successes. It makes you optimistic for the future. But one thing really stood out – jumped out – as a counter-cultural, I would say practically subversive theme.Read… Read more »
I don’t know if it’s running anymore, but there used to be a great ad campaign for Duracell batteries that featured the Energizer Bunny. This wind-up rabbit would parade through the scene, beating a drum and just kept going and going and going. That was the point. The bunny, fueled by the batteries, kept goingRead… Read more »
The workplace has definitely changed in the last twenty-five years. You have probably noticed the changes in technology and the increase of Generation-X managers in your organization. But what you may not have noticed is the shift in employee expectations of management. They are no longer satisfied with the “command and control” mentality that dominatedRead… Read more »
Rachael Happe, groundbreaking co-founder of The Community Roundtable, has just written an incredibly important post entitled, Communities – The New Strategic Imperative. I urge you to read and consider it. Some managers and executives I know have expressed what I’ll characterize as desperation at the speed at which things are running, and the fact thatRead… Read more »
Readers of this blog know I like to play the electric guitar (I turn it up to 11), and I like Arlington Fretworks. http://arlingtonfretworks.com/home Proprietor and craftsman Daniel Carbone repairs and builds guitars there. I have written previously about his standards of excellence being off the charts. (One client wrote that he would trust himRead… Read more »