Holly's Blogs

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.

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Smart Classrooms, Smarter Students: AI Avatars Changing Education Dynamics

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…

Key Competencies That Any Business Leader Should Know Inside And Out

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 Competitive Edge: Employee Rights and Talent Attraction

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…

Most Asked Questions By Small Business Owners

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…

Top Tips For Successfully Expanding Your Business’s Product Offering

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…

How Does A Clean Office Affect Employee Productivity

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…

Ask Yourself: What are the Most Important Questions I Should Answer to Drive Success?

2009 is underway. It promises to be an exciting ride likely filled with more uncertainty and higher expectations than ever before. And despite the doom and gloom consuming a lot of the space around us, you can focus and succeed even in the toughest of times. After all, a lot of people and companies have…

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Celebrating the End & Preparing for the New Year

This week, sending sincere wishes for joyful holidays and hoping you find some time to wrap up the year and rejuvenate. It’s a great time to refocus your energies and determine what is truly important to you in 2009. What are you most proud of for 2008? When did you have the most energy? What…

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Celebrating the End & Preparing for the New Year

This week, sending sincere wishes for joyful holidays and hoping you find some time to wrap up the year and rejuvenate. It’s a great time to refocus your energies and determine what is truly important to you in 2009. What are you most proud of for 2008? When did you have the most energy? What…

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Keeping Employees Engaged

During tough times, it becomes increasingly difficult to keep yourself and others focused. Our brain’s reaction to fear kicks in and we pursue a variety of options just in case.  As noted in most of my blogs during the previous few months, “tough times are not the time to diffuse your energies.”  Focus, focus, focus!…

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Managing and Leading in 2009

In a previous blog, (The Times, They Keep Changing), I outlined the vast changes impacting our world of work today. Today’s blog entry focuses on what is critical to be a great manager and leader in today’s changing world. Managers and leaders need to have a more complete set of competencies, skills and traits. Both…

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Keeping Balance and Perspective During the Holidays

Family life today is much different than it was 25 years ago. Back in the “good old days,” families often lived within walking distance of each other, and it never occurred to them to leave their home town. People remained in the same jobs their entire career, most women did not work outside the home,…

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Keeping Balance & Perspective during the Holidays

Family life today is much different than it was 25 years ago. Back in the ‘good old days’, families often lived within walking distance of each other, and it never occurred to them to leave their home town. People remained in the same jobs their entire career, most women did not work outside the home,…

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Thanksgiving & Thriving

What a great time to pause, breathe deeply and reflect on all there is to be grateful for! Without using too many cliches or tired phrases, this is the time of year when we most think about the many things to appreciate in our lives:family, friends, clients, our health, abilities, opportunities, maybe even great leaders…

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Thanksgiving & Thriving

What a great time to pause, breathe deeply and reflect on all there is to be grateful for! Without using too many cliches or tired phrases, this is the time of year when we most think about the many things to appreciate in our lives:family, friends, clients, our health, abilities, opportunities, maybe even great leaders…

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Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

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Keeping the Right Things Right in Front of Your Eyes

Sometimes the answers are right in front of our eyes and we still miss them! How can that be? Perhaps we’ve over looked, under appreciated or incorrectly assessed the situation. Whatever the case, we must remember that we are in control. One of my favorite quotations comes from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, “Things which matter…

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Surviving & Thriving in Tough Times

Over the past six weeks, I have written several blogs and appeared on quite a few radio programs to discuss effective ways of doing business, managing, and leading with excellence during these tough economic times. I also recently participated in a panel sponsored by California State University and the Chairmen’s Roundtable. Since this topic is…

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Surviving & Thriving in Tough Times

Over the past six weeks, I have written several blogs and appeared on quite a few radio programs to discuss effective ways of doing business, managing, and leading with excellence during these tough economic times. I also recently participated in a panel sponsored by California State University and the Chairmen’s Roundtable. Since this topic is…

Read More ›

The Times: They Keep on Changing

Over 25 years ago, The One Minute Manager revolutionized the way leaders approached the art of managing. These days there is certainly no shortage of management books out there and many have asked me the motivation behind my own book, More Than A Minute. While consulting leaders across the globe, one thing became clear to…

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Career Tips for Business Women

Since 1928 Business and Professional Women/USA has sponsored National Business Women’s Week®. Each year during the third week of October, BPW/USA’s members across the country take the opportunity to celebrate and acknowledge the accomplishments of working women everywhere. (And there are certainly a lot of us to honor and even more accomplishments to consider!) The…

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National Boss’ Day October 16th: How Does Your Boss Stack Up?

For those of you who don’t know, National Boss’ Day is tomorrow, October 16th.As an employee, I always thought boss’ day was every day and then I became one! Quickly I realized that the dream of propping your feet up and telling people what to do was exactly that – a dream! Being a boss…

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National Boss’ Day October 16th: How Does Your Boss Stack Up?

For those of you who don’t know, National Boss’ Day is tomorrow, October 16th.As an employee, I always thought boss’ day was every day and then I became one! Quickly I realized that the dream of propping your feet up and telling people what to do was exactly that – a dream! Being a boss…

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Turbulent Times Offer Hidden Opportunities for Leaders to Thrive

This past weekend we held the official More Than a Minute book launch party. It was extremely exciting for me to have such an incredible group of people there, demonstrating their support not only for the book but also for the actions I outline in it for leaders and managers today. As you can imagine,…

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