Intentionality is the key to shaping our experience of life. It is the conscious act of making choices and taking deliberate actions that align with our goals and values. When we approach life with intention, we fill the space around us by design, creating an environment that reflects our desires and aspirations. Intentionality amplifies our focus on what truly matters…
Sometimes we forget the meaning and importance behind what we’re doing. When that happens, things erode. It can be as simple as preparing for a meeting. When I remind the leaders I work with about the facts – what it costs them to host a meeting with their leadership team for an hour or an offsite, the time they’re investing,…
You can learn a lot watching people. When travel fails, service is slow, people make mistakes, you wait in line, or stay on hold too long. Name the situation and you’ll see another side of people emerge. Sometimes grace is the greatest gift in the situation. Great opportunities occur during the collisions between our expectations and reality. Would you respond…
Teamwork = team work. On a great team, if one person is struggling, challenged, receiving constructive feedback, or not performing well in any regard, it’s OUR job to help. Team implies we are one. Team means I will lock arms with you to win – even when it’s tough. Especially when it’s tough. When we’re challenged, we’re vulnerable. When we’re…
Questions are a leader’s most powerful tool. When you lead well, you learn to ask more than tell. There’s a distinction between teaching and leading. For the team, they can become blurred when the leader blurs those lines. Teaching means showing, telling, correcting, learning, and generating. Leading is involved, but the outcome is clear: transition competencies and accountability. For many…
In many ways, I rely on reframing my mindset to do hard things. When a cardinal shows up outside my window, I know Mahtab is with me and all is well. When good things happen amidst challenges, I focus on them rather than the challenge and it fuels me forward. When I’d rather stay home because it’s easier, I show…
When I wake up early, fully rested, without an alarm and the day greets me with a beautiful sunrise, peace and quiet, I am winning the day. My time of day is the morning. My energy is high, my thinking is clear, and my excitement for what’s possible is high. The enthusiasm and focus available to me are at my…
When things are meant to be, there is an ease to it all. Sometimes, I forget this and whether by habit or stubbornness, I get attached to how I think it’s supposed to happen. There’s the challenge. When I attach myself to how, it often leads to frustration, irritation, disappointment, and perceived problems. When I attach myself to the outcome,…
I don’t like being told what to do. In fact, I have a visceral reaction when I feel like someone is offering the “only” option and there are others available to me. When I take a breath and evaluate, it prompts me to action. The kind of action which expands my options, possibilities, and choices. As soon as that happens,…
Business is challenging. Peter Drucker said “Only three things happen naturally in organizations: friction, confusion, and underperformance. EVERYTHING else requires leadership.” I find this quote empowering. When you accept that it will be rough, little will go well, and the bar is low, you can rise to the challenge. Leadership is that scarce commodity available to those who realize the…