Get More Done – Interrupt Your Interruptions
Constant interruptions reduce focus and effectiveness. Learn how the human brain handles interruptions (poorly) and how to work more effectively by stemming their flow.
Holly Green
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Image source Hey pals! Let’s have a conversation about how our classrooms are getting super smart with DEEPBRAIN AI avatars. These avatars are like super-smart computer buddies who are making our learning time way better! DEEP BRAIN AI avatars are like magical friends in our class. They help our teachers teach in a super cool…
Effective leadership is the cornerstone of any thriving business. A leader’s role is multifaceted, requiring a diverse set of skills to navigate the challenges of today’s dynamic business environment. This article delves into five critical competencies that are indispensable for any business leader, shedding light on their importance and offering insights into how they can…
The battlefield for top-tier talent is no place for the faint-hearted. It demands enticing perks and brand prestige and a deep, demonstrable commitment to employee rights. Companies at the forefront know this secret: the brightest candidates seek a workplace where rights aren’t merely respected—they are celebrated. This realisation isn’t a light bulb moment; it’s a strategy…
Launching and scaling a small business comes with no shortage of questions and uncertainties. Here we tackle some of the most frequent queries entrepreneurs have relating to legalities, marketing, technology, hiring, accounting and more. How Do I Choose The Right Business Structure? Factors like tax treatment, liability, investment needs and record-keeping determine ideal structures. Most…
image source Expanding your business’s product offering is more than adding items to your inventory. It’s a strategic move that requires careful planning, market understanding, and customer-centricity. This comprehensive guide will explore the top tips for successfully expanding your business’s product offering. Whether you’re a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting, these insights will pave the…
Image Source Imagine walking into your office first thing in the morning, the sight of stacked papers, overflowing waste bins, and coffee stains on your desk meets your eyes. For most of us, this visual clutter creates an unconscious distraction that sets a negative tone for the day. In contrast, entering an organised, clean workspace…
What’s Your Conventional Wisdom (and how is it keeping you from winning)?
It’s hard to beat experience, strength and knowledge, right? Try telling that to the Los Angeles Lakers. Conventional wisdom said the Lakers were primed to win their third consecutive NBA title this year. They had a tall, dominating front line with Gasol, Bynum and Odom. Their coach had won more championships than any other NBA…
Job Hunting in a Social Media World: Are You Keeping Up?
A colleague sent me an interesting report the other day – 125 Linked-In Job Search Tips. It’s a great read that got me thinking about how much things have changed in the employment landscape since I started my career. It also reminded me of how critical it is to keep up to date on changing…
Re-Recruiting: Your Best Defense Against Restless Feet
Suppose one-third of your employees suddenly walked off the job. Think it might impact your ability to serve your customers and achieve your strategic goals? Granted, the odds of every third employee taking a hike all at once are slim. But according to a recent survey conducted by MetLife, 36 percent of employees hope to…
Expose Yourself! Get Better Results by Making Your Thinking Visible
Expose yourself? No, I’m not talking about trench coats or the number two activity on the web (porn is BEHIND social media these days!). I’m referring to common communication challenges that can be easily overcome by pausing to bring others along in your thinking process. When we present ideas to other people, especially new ideas,…
Measuring What Matters: How to Stop Wasting Time, Talent, and Resources on Projects that Don’t Go Anywhere
Remember the old adage, “what gets measured, gets done?” Well, what does not get measured may still be getting done in your organization as well. Unfortunately, it may not be what you want done or what gets you to your destination. In today’s volatile markets, goals set in January can easily become out of date…
Too Busy to Keep Up? Develop Resilience.
Resilient (riˆzilyÉnt): able to recoil or spring back into shape after bending, stretching, or being compressed; able to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions. Wow. Talk about the perfect description for leading an organization in the current business environment! Today’s business leaders need an increasingly diverse and sophisticated array of skills, traits, and aptitudes….
How to Build Trust Through Better Listening
I ran across a quote the other day that resonated with me: The organization of today will require leadership that can operate on the edge of chaos by relinquishing command and control and creating an environment of mutual trust and respect. Two things struck me about this quote. One, just how much today’s leadership model…
Have You Done Your 1st Quarter Checkup?
Spring has sprung (according to the calendar, anyway) and April is upon us. For those who operate according to the calendar year, that means its time for an end-of-quarter checkup in regards to the strategic plan. More specifically, it means we should begin asking questions like: Are we making progress towards the goal? Is it…
Tear Down These Walls!
In 1987, president Ronald Reagan gave his famous speech in which he implored Soviet Prime Minister Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall!” I’m going to paraphrase his history-altering quote and urge today’s business leaders to tear down these walls! Which walls? The ones that get in the way of cross-communication within organizations and prevent…
Who’s In Charge Here Anyway?
How many times has this happened in your organization? A sudden change in your market (or as often happens these days, a sudden change in the world outside your industry) dictates a major mid-course correction to the strategic plan. So you gather the management team, strategize the issue, and end the meeting with several decisions…
Are You Engaging? Funny, smart, and easy to dance with is not enough these days
You may be funny, smart, and easy to dance with, but if you are not engaging employees on an ongoing basis, all of your work in developing a strategic plan will be for naught. In my last two blogs, we talked about informing and inspiring employees during implementation of the strategic plan. The last piece…
How to Avoid “Hitting the Wall” in Your Strategic Plan
I focus a lot of my time and energy on helping clients remember the importance of ongoing communications as their strategic plan unfolds. Keeping employees informed on a regular basis helps to keep the finish line in sight and ensures that everyone runs the same race. But getting from where you are now to where…
Is Everyone In Your Organization Running the Same Race?
Picture the following scenario. A thousand people stand bunched up at the starting line, poised to run a marathon. The runners nervously jog in place and stretch their limbs to stay loose. You can feel the excitement and anticipation in the air as the race is about to start. Slowly the starter raises his pistol,…
Five Steps to Breaking the Multitasking Cycle
Is constant multitasking wearing you down and eroding your effectiveness as a business leader? Here are five steps for recapturing your time, attention and productivity: 1. Focus. Focus starts with having a very clear definition of what winning looks like for your organization. Be as specific as possible. What will it look like at the…
Multitasking: Hit or Myth?
Have you ever watched someone attempting to do several things at once in the workplace? Their energy level is high, they’re constantly in motion, and they look like the kind of worker every organization wants to have. But if you look closer you can see they’re not accomplishing much. Or else they’re getting it done…
Are We Short-Changing our Middle Managers?
Every once in a while you run across a statistic or bit of information that really makes you sit up and take notice. Here’s the latest one for me. According to the ASTD (American Society for Training & Development), the ranks of middle managers have significantly declined over the past two years while their responsibilities…
Time to Test Your Strategy?
If you have an interest in strategy, I highly recommend subscribing to the “McKinsey Quarterly” e-newsletter. It doesn’t cost anything to sign up, and the well-researched articles keep you up to date on the latest in strategic planning trends and thought leadership. The research tends to be conducted with, and geared toward, larger company CEOs…
Mark Your Calendars for Wear Red Day February 4th
In the time it takes you to read halfway through this blog, someone’s mother, daughter, sister, aunt or grandmother will die from heart disease. Not quite two years ago, I nearly became one of those victims, suffering a major heart attack while on a business trip. Fortunately, I survived with no significant scar tissue and…
