listening

Featured Lead Change post at “SmartBrief for Leadership” Blog

October 4, 2011
Thumbnail image for Featured Lead Change post at “SmartBrief for Leadership” Blog

I’m honored to be representing the Lead Change Group at the SmartBrief for Leadership blog today.  There, you can see my updated post, “Why True leadership involves less talking and more listening.”
Image credit: ia_64 via iStockPhoto.com
 

Read the full article →

Managers: Get Your Employees to Answer Their Own Questions

August 16, 2011
Thumbnail image for Managers: Get Your Employees to Answer Their Own Questions

Do you ever have people come to you at work, and want to work through a decision they already made?  Just to be clear, it’s a done deal.  They already acted on it.  But they want your take.
For one thing, it puts you between a rock and a hard place.  What if you see lots [...]

Read the full article →

At Work: Do You Hear What I Hear?

June 21, 2011
Thumbnail image for At Work: Do You Hear What I Hear?

Yesterday I brought some office supplies to a group I work with.
About 10 minutes later, I was about 10 feet away when Sloane said to Bethany, “Mary brought us some tape.”
Bethany asked, “Mary brought us some cake?”
I heard, “Mary looks likes she’s lost weight!”
Bethany and I were both sorely disappointed when we found out we [...]

Read the full article →

Let’s Take a Moment to Reflect

April 6, 2011
Thumbnail image for Let’s Take a Moment to Reflect

Yesterday I was involved in a minor traffic accident. No one was hurt.  Though I’ve been warned I’ll be sore tomorrow.

In any case, I can’t get over how shaken up I am, still, hours [...]

Read the full article →

Want Employees to Listen? Stop Talking.

March 29, 2011
Thumbnail image for Want Employees to Listen? Stop Talking.

You’ve heard of the book, the One-Minute Manager?
Well, one time I came across a guy I call the “18-minute manager” or “Jake” for our purposes. He called me to sit in on a discussion between him and one of his direct reports, Sophie, about her behavior and performance.  “Mary, I’ve talked to her twice in [...]

Read the full article →

Managers: How to Ask Better Questions of Your Employees

October 29, 2010
Thumbnail image for Managers: How to Ask Better Questions of Your Employees

Had a long talk with a manager client today about asking good questions.  He sincerely wanted to have helpful one-on-one discussions with his employees, but he said, “I ask too many ‘yes/no’ questions. When they give me one-word answers, I get stuck.”  His excellent question was, “How do I transform my questions to get more [...]

Read the full article →

Another Trap to Being a Good Manager: You Asking “What Feedback Do You Have for Me?”

October 27, 2010
Thumbnail image for Another Trap to Being a Good Manager: You Asking “What Feedback Do You Have for Me?”

I find that I keep coming back to how “good intentions” can go bad.  And how to prevent that.
I had a long talk with a manager client this week about asking for feedback from employees. Not in a survey format.  Not in a way that protects anonymity.  Directly.  Face to face.
Now, there’s a way to [...]

Read the full article →

Are You Willing to Become an “Anti-Manager?

October 8, 2010
Thumbnail image for Are You Willing to Become an “Anti-Manager?

Be willing to have a conversation when you don’t know where it’s going, particularly with your employees.
This is sort of an “anti-management” perspective.  As manager, you think you are expected to have all the answers.  What if you didn’t think that way?  And that it was okay to not have all the answers?
Don’t we often [...]

Read the full article →

Managers to Employees: What Do I Talk to Them About?

October 1, 2010
Thumbnail image for Managers to Employees: What Do I Talk to Them About?

How to Learn Your Employees Motivations, Values and Skills & Begin Building a Relationship at the Same Time
I talk to a lot of managers.  As we talk about them being the leader they want to be, eventually they say they would like to get to know their employees better, and for all the right reasons.
They [...]

Read the full article →

Managers: What Do You Know Now That You Wish You Knew Then?

March 15, 2010
Thumbnail image for Managers: What Do You Know Now That You Wish You Knew Then?

“As a manager/leader of people, what do know now, that you wish you knew when you started?”
I recently posted this question in a number of groups on LinkedIn to get a discussion going on management development.  I’m getting lots of great answers, like this one from Steve Ibanez of NY (used with his [...]

Read the full article →

What if They Ain’t Buyin’ What I’m Sellin’?

September 15, 2009
Thumbnail image for What if They Ain’t Buyin’ What I’m Sellin’?

Here we are again, Joe Gerstandt and I, exchanging questions and answers.
Joe: We both focus largely on the intangible assets in an organization or community…the things that cannot be easily counted or weighed…things like difference, trust, relationships, culture, etc.  What can we do so that more business leaders come to value these incredibly powerful (but [...]

Read the full article →