“I” is a very powerful pronoun, but it has two distinct personalities – no doubt you have observed both. “I” can be used to convey power and significance to the subject at hand – the speaker is going all in as the poker players would say – infusing their knowledge, experience, and reputation into theRead… Read more »
Even when he was a little guy, my son had picked up some mannerisms and used some phrases that mirrored mine. I first made this discovery when he had a vocabulary of only three ‘words’: ma, da, chit – he learned the latter term when I got to the bank after the drive-in window hadRead… Read more »
We truly appreciate the organizations and departments – our “customers” – that depend on us for their materials, goods, and services. Each agency, each division, each department has others relying on us for resources they need to complete their tasks – in the truest sense of the word, they are our customers. Customers can provideRead… Read more »
A while back, I collaborated on a project to produce a document suitable for public dissemination. I noticed that when collaborators sent back edits and improvements to the draft’s author, each received a comment like: ‘Awesome Changes!’, or ‘This will really make our document Awesome!’, or ‘The new formatting is Totally Awesome!’. In reality, theRead… Read more »
Players learn the commands for the video game and run up the score. Doers learn how to do something to get results. Players value image – being in the right place, knowing the right people, being included in the right projects. Doers value completion – collaboration moving the project forward, process improvement to gain efficiency,Read… Read more »
Ah…the department picnic. Fond memories of fried chicken, hard dry burgers, 15 varieties of potato salad, a dish with melted marshmallows on top, a mystery casserole, and some wrinkled burned hotdogs. And lots of employees with their families. Sometimes leaders are reluctant to attend this traditional summer event (also the holiday party close to theRead… Read more »
Everyone has a tribe – family and friends, other people with whom you have a relationship. This tribe is primarily involved with you in social, support, and general activities. People you’ve invited (or inherited) to participate in your life. Taking it to a higher level, Seth Godin wrote about tribes, seeing them as the confluenceRead… Read more »
A commercial on TV: the young boy walked up to home plate on an empty ball field with his bat, a ball, and a smile as he was prattling on about the world’s best hitter. He settles in at the plate and, with one more verse of world’s best hitter, tosses the ball into theRead… Read more »
The trend toward self reliance is growing in velocity and scope. This post is highlights of the shift that is becoming increasingly clear. As I recall, we were taught at a young age to rely on others instead of ourselves – back in the old days: parents set our limits and standards teachers enforced theRead… Read more »
The other day I realized it is unusual for people to be told they are appreciated. The revelation came about from my offering a compliment to the person responsible for the logistics of my meetings and events. The comment was: people do not appreciate the effort required to have a perfect meeting – if itRead… Read more »