Bad vs. Good: Why Does the Bad Seem to Outweigh the Good?
“When it comes to Bad vs. Good, why do bad things get all the attention?” There’s a struggle between good and bad and it’s happening on our teams. The bad news? The “bad” is far more powerful than the “good.” The good news? As leaders, we can use the power of bad for good. Here’s […]
What’s the Difference Between Manager and Leader, and Why Does It Matter?
Why should we care about the difference between manager and leader? I was having coffee with a new friend last week. He had been recently promoted to his first supervisory position. As we talked about the challenges he would face, we found ourselves discussing the differences between a manager and leader. When first given a […]
Seeking Discomfort: 7 Ways to Embrace Uncomfortable Feedback
No one likes to hear that they are not doing well, have weaknesses, or are not measuring up in some way. As leaders it often falls to us to give this kind of feedback to others, and those can be difficult, uncomfortable conversations. But what about receiving critical feedback? Most people aren’t actively seeking discomfort. […]
The Power of Asking Questions: 7 Ways Questions are More Powerful Than Answers
How can asking questions be more powerful than answering them? In the effort to demonstrate our worthiness to lead, often we find ourselves in a hurry to provide answers. People want guidance, direction, and need to understand priorities. But if we’re playing the Shell Answer Man all day, we miss the opportunity to do something […]
Getting Them to Listen: How to Get People to Hear What You are Saying
Why should anyone listen to you? If you’re trying to lead people, one of the first challenges you face might be just getting them to listen. This can be doubly challenging if you happen to be newer to the team or younger than the others. When it comes to getting people’s attention, there’s one thing […]
Refining the Plan: Hamburgers on the Tennis Court?
How do you know if your plan will work? Having a solid plan is one thing; knowing that it will work is something entirely different. In the transition from idea on paper to success in the real world, refining the plan though testing is probably one of the smartest things we can do. And as […]
14 Ways to Make People Feel Important
She started her own business late in life and turned it into a multi-million dollar enterprise. She donated millions to worthy causes. She was once named the most outstanding business woman of the 20th century. Much of her success was the direct result of good old fashioned hard work and determination. But another key to […]
Leading When Things Go Wrong: Playing Soccer on the Ice
What do you do when things go wrong? Leading can seem fun and easy when things are going our way, but it’s when things go wrong that true leaders emerge. In this example from an Antarctic expedition gone disastrously wrong, one leader achieved great feats of endurance and survival to bring his men safely home. […]
The Leader’s Triple-A Club: How to Navigate the Hazardous Highways of Leadership
Not long ago, my son called me from Oregon. He was driving some friends to the airport when his car suddenly quit and wouldn’t restart. Beyond attempting to diagnose the problem over the phone, there was little I could do to help from where I was in Minnesota. The good news was that we were […]
15 Pretty Good Virtual Team Building Ideas
What kind of virtual team building can I do with my distributed team? We all know that teamwork is critical to getting things done through people. Building cohesive teams is already a challenge when everybody is face to face. But developing trust, communicating well, collaborating readily, and problem-solving effectively become all the more difficult when […]
The Leader Apprentice: 5 Ways to Master the Learning Mindset
Kennedy said that “leadership and learning are indispensable to each other,” so how do we make sure we keep learning? It’s easy to get caught up in the daily business of getting things done. But if we’re not careful, though we may accomplish much, we don’t become better in the process. To improve, we have […]
The Ransberger Pivot: How to Win an Argument By Not Arguing
“Do you ever really ‘win’ an argument?” When someone says something that we don’t agree with, our first impulse is often to contradict or correct them. They are wrong. We are right. Then they argue back. The debate becomes heated, personal, and ultimately counterproductive. No minds are changed. If anything, both sides are more deeply […]