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Recommended Reading
Thought Leadership
The Power of Trust and Openness in High-Performing Teams
When I ask people to tell me about a time they’ve been on a winning team, roughly 9 out of 10 tell me a story from high school—sports, band, or clubs. Why is that? After 35 years of teaching team building, I've often wondered: Why don't we have more examples from our...
Embrace the Season of Change and Opportunity
Happy Fall Y’all! I couldn’t resist adding a touch of LA slang – that’s Lower Alabama, as we say in my hometown of Mobile. Fall is nature’s season for transformation – it's all about change, preparation, and setting the stage for growth, making this newsletter...
Elevating our Teams: The Power of Psychological Safety
Have I mentioned lately how much I love what I do? The ability to help companies reach their strategic goals and develop leaders is truly my passion. Building organizations by building leaders includes three key elements: assessing who is hired into a leadership...
The Growth Mindset & Investing in your Teams
Happy February! In the month set aside for love, let’s talk about why we love developing leaders so they can coach others to create dynamic strategic plans. We want people to love their work, their teams, and the process of leadership. Leadership is not just a role;...
Self Awareness: the greatest gift you can give yourself
There's something completely thrilling about the start of a year. For me, it starts with diving into a fresh planner—yes, call me old-fashioned, but I adore the tactile joy of turning pages. And this year, I went all out and snagged these massive monthly wall...
Understand Team Behaviors to optimize your Strategic Plan
Over the years, I continue to see how behavioral assessments improve the Strategic Planning process. These assessments are like a “playbook” for how teams operate as they run strategic plays in their organization. If we only have a strategy, without an understanding...
Do your Core Values Stand the Test of Time?
Core Values guide every action and behavior of your organization. They are your cultural cornerstones! Your moral compass! When you Google “Core Values,” here’s a great definition: Core values are an individual or organization's fundamental beliefs and highest...
Change Management: Tools for Success
The Greek philosopher Heraclitus said, "Change is the only constant in life." We’ve seen enough lately to know this is certainly the case in business. Who thought that, in today’s day and age, a Silicon Valley bank could go bust? There’s a reason we study and train on...
Debunking DEI Myths
By Special Guest Author: William Jackson I don’t know about you, but I miss the good old days. I remember a time where you could take a family member to the airport and walk them all the way to their departure gate, watch them get on the plane, and wait until the...
Purpose is Power
Have you ever had a day, a week, or even a month when you felt a bit rudderless? You find yourself going through the motions of life and distractedly thinking “Am I on the right path?” Getting clear on your purpose. Darcy and I help companies strategically define...
The Birkman Method
The Birkman Method Behavioral assessment on steroids I was teaching a class at Stober Manufacturing last week, and during our Birkman training a group leader shouted “Dang! This is like Culture Index on steroids!” Brilliant! And one of many reasons we love the...
The Great Re-Engagement
I can’t find anyone in the workplace right now who can argue this: employee engagement has made a critical shift. Employees have voted with their feet and sent a clear message. They won't work in jobs that don’t offer flexibility, great pay, empathetic, inspiring...
A New Year For Dreaming
For those of you who have followed my perspective on New Year’s Resolutions (NYR), welcome to my annual rant! This year however, there’s a new twist: the Epistemophillic Instinct. Coined by psychoanalytic theorist Melanie Klein, the Epistemophillic Instinct...
The Next Level Leader
We’ve all heard bad boss stories, but this one will tug at your heartstrings. My friend’s father worked in a job he loved as a civil engineer in North Carolina. Years after retirement he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. During his decline he kept re-living a short...
The Next-Level Leader
We've all heard bad boss stories, but this one will tug at your heartstrings. My friend's father worked in a job he loved as a civil engineer in North Carolina. Years after retirement he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. During his decline he kept re-living a short...
Managing Four Generations in One Office
Snowflakes OK Boomer OK Zoomer Labeling generations is nothing new. A portion of Baby Boomers were called out for being “hippies.” Gen Y (Millennials) were singled out for being “snowflakes” by the older generations. And, the newest slam comes from Gen Z, calling out...
Big Ideas for Recruiting and Retaining Employees
“I can’t find anyone to hire!” “We lost someone to $20k more than we could pay.” "People want same day OnDemand Pay.” “Where is my bench strength?” “Half of the interviewees we scheduled ‘ghosted’ us. The number one topic my business partner, Darcy, and I are asked...
Big Ideas for Recruiting & Retaining Employees
“I can’t find anyone to hire!” “We lost someone to $20k more than we could pay.” “People want same day OnDemand Pay.” “Where is my bench strength?” “Half of the interviewees we scheduled ‘ghosted’ us. The number one topic my business partner, Darcy, and I are asked...
Team Performance Sets the Pace for One-to-Ones
Team performance is setting the pace for a fresh look at the One-to-One (OtO). The time is finally here to see a major shift in the power of the OtO. Team members are pushing for powerful check-ins and feedback with their Coach/Leader. We continue to see a transition...
Team Performance Sets the Pace for One-to-Ones
Team performance is setting the pace for a fresh look at the One-to-One (OtO). The time is finally here to see a major shift in the power of the OtO. Team members are pushing for powerful check-ins and feedback with their Coach/Leader. We continue to see a transition...
New Year, New Opportunities & the Power of a Team
The new year always makes me reflective for what has been and anticipatory of what can be. It is a beautiful rite of passage to have a 365-day blank slate we can ritualistically mark with self-improvement goals. I love the opportunity to put myself in what I call my...
Thankfulness
Cyndi Wineinger My birthday rolled around again this year. Shocking how that happens – they seem to be coming faster these days. This year felt different. This year, I was truly caught off guard with the sincerity, kindness, and thoughtfulness of the gifts and letters...
What is resiliency?
Dr. Edith Eva Eger was only 16 years old when she was thrown into an Auschwitz concentration camp. Her Mother was instantly separated from her and sent to her death. Dr. Eger quotes her Mother when discussing how she survived the hell she suffered. “No one can take...
What is Resiliency?
Dr. Edith Eva Eger was only 16 years old when she was thrown into an Auschwitz concentration camp. Her Mother was instantly separated from her and sent to her death. Dr. Eger quotes her Mother when discussing how she survived the hell she suffered. “No one can take...
Are you keeping strategy alive & relevant?
People Strategy: What difference has 2020 made on how we work and lead? No one has a crystal ball to know what the impact of Covid will have on how we work. Some questions I keep getting: Are we really in a new day of work from home (WFH)? Are companies going to...
People Strategy: What difference has 2020 made on how we work and lead
No one has a crystal ball to know what the impact of Covid will have on how we work. Short term, we all hope to have some predictable level of new normal in mid-2020. Long term, I think we have learned a number of things to begin adjusting our leadership methods and...
What truly is the working definition of great feedback?
Feedback Is Feedback really a gift? Is Feedback really our Friend? What truly is the working definition of great feedback? Let’s start with this: Psychological Safety is the cornerstone of Feedback. All feedback is only as good as your ability to filter it, then grow...
What We Need Now
There has been so much going on in the world this year I actually forgot it was 2020. 2020, the year that we all planned for in 2000 and 2010. Vision 2020!! How many of us had aspirational goals for 2020? The world was going to be all robotic. Our businesses were...
Stretch Strategic Leaders: If I had a Nickel
If I had a nickel… For every time I am asked about impacting culture, I would certainly still be doing what I do because I find so much joy and purpose in this work. But I would also have a beach house right up next to the ocean so I could hear the waves crash every...
Stretch Strategic Leaders: An Introductory Story
Darcy and I met almost two years ago, after having shared multiple clients but never meeting in person. We quickly discovered a common love for helping mid-range businesses develop empowering strategies to grow. As we talked, we became passionate about our stories of...