Do you run a compassionate workplace?  You don’t often hear the word compassion and work in the same breath because, at some point, some brilliant leader decided that work should be constraining and repetitive instead of uplifting and fulfilling.  This is the same genius who decided that people are just there to help make money and that it doesn’t matter what kind of hardships they have to endure or how unpleasant the work is as long as they’re making the machine run. The practice of using people solely as robots creates .....

I’ve met many leaders who don’t trust their employees.  They hover endlessly around any given employee and offer “helpful” tips or constantly correct whatever the person is doing.  They allow no independence and don’t delegate tasks. .....

Leaders spend a lot of time trying to be productive or interact effectively with their staff without first building a foundation for success.  They read vast quantities of material or try many leadership approaches only to find that nothing works quite well enough.  That’s why there are so many leadership books. Let’s try to simplify this whole leadership thing and figure out what creates amazing leaders.  I’m going to let you in on this coveted secret, it’s… Be a Good Person P .....

Many leaders crave the limelight but don’t know what to do once it’s on them.  It’s like going to see a singer who doesn’t quite hit all the notes and the audience fidgets uncomfortably or giggles uncontrollably.  Here are ten easy ways to help you become a fantastic leader and enjoy your time on stage. 1.  Learn about yourself.  Figure out your strengths and, more importantly, the areas you need to improve and take action to constantly improve. 2.  Be a healthy person.  Work out your own stuff befor .....

Most leaders will tell you that communication is vital to a well-functioning workplace.  Then they start screaming, ignoring, dominating, misunderstanding or annoying their employees.  There is a huge gap between what leaders say they know about effective communication and what they actually practice.  Here are five of the biggest workplace communication mistakes. 1.  Not listening.  How can you gather the information you need or figure out what is going on in your workplace if you don’t listen?  You can’t.  Listening i .....

Workplace diversity is as positive or negative an issue as any leader or organization makes it.  Diversity can be a powerful tool to bring people together and use the talents and knowledge of your employees or it can generate fear and mistrust. I tend to focus on workplace behaviors that produce positive results and create productive work environments.  Let’s look at what might happen in a workplace if diversity is a negative. Employees view each other as different. People don’t trust each other. .....

I work with a varied group of talented leaders and organizations to help them design team building, communication, leadership and diversity training programs.   Most leaders and employees are highly motivated and caring professionals who really want training to succeed and help them achieve some important goal.  Over the years I’ve noticed a misconception, especially about soft-skills training , that it can transform an entire workplace in a single day. I’ve had leaders ask me to change how their employees communicate, build teams and reso .....

A dynamic I’ve seen repeatedly over the years in many workplaces is when something goes wrong or a difficult situation comes up and people stop communicating.  This can take the form of not talking to someone because a problem has arisen or ignoring people when things get difficult.  The results of this type of behavior are less than stellar when dealing with co-workers or clients. When you decide not to communicate it leads to making the situation worse because you don’t deal with the issue at hand and both sides are left to make assumptions a .....

Many leaders have discovered that emotional intelligence isn’t about being weak or indecisive.  It’s a valuable tool that helps them connect with their employees and create happier workplaces.  The trap we tend to fall in is thinking that only certain emotions are acceptable in the workplace and others are inappropriate.  Emotions are a valuable tool to understand how our employees are doing and what may need some additional attention.  Here are three key ways that leaders can use emotional intelligence to improve the functioning of their workplac .....

I was reading a discussion on a business site about team building recently.  Two vocal contributors talked about how team building was only a fluffy, superfluous activity that could only lead to coddled, lazy employees.  What was needed, they contended, was discipline and a strict adherence to rules and directives.  They added that employees were there only to carry out the leader’s vision and not to have a good time. I said to myself, “Where do I sign up?  Sounds like a great place to work.” Many leaders still func .....