What Are You Good At and With What Do You Need Help? Tom Rath and Barry Conchie, authors of “Strengths-Based Leadership: Great Leaders, Teams, and Why People Follow,” argue that the most successful teams possess a wide range of strengths, and allow employees to use what they excel at, rather than dictate how they contribute. Where […]
Read More →Managing People Doesn’t Always Come Naturally It’s not uncommon for someone who is very successful in one job to be promoted to a leadership position in which they struggle, even fail. Success in one role does not guarantee success in another. Admittedly, some may succeed no matter where they’re placed. But, for many, failure can […]
Read More →What Does This Mean For You In The Age of Social Media? As the saying goes, “you only have one chance to make a first impression.” Researchers at Cornell University have discovered that even if the first impression is a photo, the initial judgment can stick up to a month, even after a face-to-face meeting. To […]
Read More →Innovate By Creating Constraints At the heart of innovation lies the necessity for fresh insight and new ideas. Imposing artificial constraints on your business model is one unusual way to spark creativity. McKinsey & Company suggests injecting stark-necessity into idea generation sessions. Start by asking participants to imagine a world where they must function with severe […]
Read More →How to Lead When You’re Not The Boss (Part 1) Even though you’re not the boss, you might be asked to lead a team of your peers on a project. Forbes contributor Lisa Rabasca Roepe offers tips on taking charge without alienating your co-workers. Start by getting everyone on the same page. Don’t assume that […]
Read More →It’s no secret that a good night’s sleep is important for a good day’s work. But falling asleep and staying asleep can be difficult. Here are three quick tips that might help. After lying down, do a body scan to identify tension in your muscles. Are your hands clinched? Is your brow furrowed? Are you […]
Read More →A recent study conducted by researchers in Tel Aviv and the Netherlands confirmed that nice women earn less than their assertive female counterparts. They interviewed a random group of 375 men and women at a Dutch electronics company and concluded that women who clearly express expectations and do not retreat from their demands are compensated […]
Read More →Stretch goals – goals that seem impossible given current reality – have advantages. They encourage creative thinking and exploratory learning, according to Mindtools.com. And, they can have a downside, too. If the goal is truly impossible, it can demotivate and overwhelm team members. Increase stress levels and absenteeism. Result excessive risk-taking, causing mistakes that take […]
Read More →How to Stay Grounded Under Stress In her Harvard Business Review article, “A Simple Way to Stay Grounded in Stressful Moments,” Leah Weiss explains that Mindfulness is less about the mind and more about body awareness. Weiss, a researcher at Stanford Graduate School of Business, offers easy ways to bring attention back to our bodies […]
Read More →What The Truly Confident Do – Part 1 Dr. Travis Bradberry, co-author of “Emotional Intelligence 2.0,” says genuinely confident people earn more and are promoted more quickly. Part of their success is their ability to inspire themselves, as well as others. Bradberry says the truly confident get their happiness from within, summoning pleasure and satisfaction […]
Read More →Study Shows That Buying Experiences Is Better Than Buying Things Gift-giving this Holiday season? Consider some new research from Cornell University’s Thomas Gilovich, professor of psychology, who says you’ll be more grateful if you buy an experience than if you buy a thing. While people say positive things about items purchased, they used phrases like “I […]
Read More →Map Out Your Resolution Plan Keeping New Year’s resolutions can be difficult. One reasons is that we view our goals as one big task. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with an ambitious target like losing 30 pounds, or finding a new job. Frustration from not seeing progress quickly enough can derail our best intentions. So, […]
Read More →Get Ready for 2017 By Celebrating 2016 Accomplishments As 2016 winds down and before you start making resolutions, take the opportunity to remember the things you accomplished this year. Start by rifling through your old to-do lists and noticing the boxes you checked off or the tasks you crossed off your list. Revisit your calendar. Find […]
Read More →Trust Your Aha Moments A team of international researchers, including Drexel’s Dr. John Kounios, have discovered that “Aha moments” often yield the right answers. They suggest that analytical thinking may be best when there are known strategies for arriving at solutions – like in arithmetic. But when there is no set path to a solution, […]
Read More →The Importance of Feeling Heard Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs teaches us that a sense of belonging is central. Given that basic human need, it’s not surprising that those who feel threatened by social and economic changes, like an outsider, no longer central, spoke out in this year’s Presidential election. In every aspect of our lives, […]
Read More →How To Boost Your Own Morale Are you in a rut; having trouble getting excited about your projects, or the job itself? No longer feeling challenged? Are opportunities to move up limited or non-existent? If so, here are a few Mindtools.com tips. Get to the root of the problem. Some times journaling about […]
Read More →What Today’s Hiring Managers Are Looking For Philadelphia Business Journal contributor Gina Hall writes that today’s hiring managers are less interested in years of experience and hard work, than they are in natural talent. She cited a study where 60 percent of the participants chose the naturally talented person over the “striver” – even though […]
Read More →Social Relationships At Work Affect Health Would it surprise you to learn that social relationships at work can affect your health? After an international team of researchers analyzed 58 studies from 15 countries, they concluded that positive workplace relationships are associated with better health and lower burnout. The report in the journal, “Personality and […]
Read More →A Mistake Repeated Is A Decision Brazilian Novelist Paulo Coelho once said, “A mistake repeated more than once is a decision.” I was struck by this simple, yet profound, statement. It says a lot about our power to consciously choose our destiny. We’re supposed to learn from our mistakes. But, if we knowingly repeat an […]
Read More →Mastering The Humble Brag Sometimes working hard isn’t enough to get noticed by higher-ups. For many – particularly women– “bragging” about accomplishments is difficult. Some even view it as negative. But, Leadership Consultant Grace Killelea points out in a recent WorkingMother.com interview, that it’s important to be your own advocate. Among the tips she […]
Read More →
