Spouses often complain that their partner brings the office home with them. Good managers know that the reverse is also true. This short but insightful article from HBR may help you understand the source of unexpected behavior when your co-workers behave unpredictably…… and why that behavior often has nothing to do with the workplace.
Death of a Sales Man(ager)
September 18, 2018 by ·
Many CEOs have taken a great salesperson and turned them into a mediocre (or worse) sales manager. The folly of this is almost a proverb, yet many leaders keep hoping their superstar in the field will be able to share his or her “secret sauce” with their entire sales force. Taking a lesson from another arena,… [Continue Reading]
Good help is hard to find….and keep
September 12, 2018 by ·
Everyone knows there’s a war for talent, but there are some aspects of it that may surprise you. For example, despite the hot economy, many workers are finding their wages not keeping pace….unless they quit. A recent Associated Press article indicates that workers who leave their jobs are enjoying raises that are significantly higher than those give… [Continue Reading]
Leader, Scale Thyself
September 10, 2018 by ·
The most important person you ever manage is yourself. Every person’s time talent and energy is finite, so your career advancement involves making choices about your behavior that provide the choices you want. To wit: Facebook COO Cheryl Sandberg offers some advice in a very short article about whether you are choosing to be a “player”… [Continue Reading]
The Silver Tsunami
September 7, 2018 by ·
Peter Drucker once remarked that “Demographics is the history that has already happened.” This is obviously true for society at large, but there are particular implications for the aging Baby Boomers who own businesses and are starting to look for the exits. Factor in a smaller cohort of Millennials coming of age and growing income inequality and… [Continue Reading]
It’s the Transition, not the Task
September 5, 2018 by ·
The most successful among us, in our midst, seems to be universally good at managing themselves. Perhaps the thing they do the best is managing their relationship with their actions; especially starting and staying the course. This short HBR posting suggests that our greatest struggle “isn’t actually doing the thing, it’s getting started on doing the… [Continue Reading]
Not So Rich, Not So Famous
September 3, 2018 by ·
Gold Rushes occur throughout history. In 1849, thousands made a mad dash to California when gold was found at Sutter’s Mill. Most returned home even poorer than they arrived. In the mid-1800s, the railroad boom made a few rich but destroyed many more. Remember the late 1990’s and the Internet bubble? Today, the bubble seems to… [Continue Reading]
Models Matter
August 28, 2018 by ·
“Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way” wrote the Russian novelist Tolstoy. The same seems to be true for “happy” (successful) businesses. Regardless of the nature of the product or service offered, the most successful companies today can be considered “software” companies in that software is an integral part… [Continue Reading]
“A Trillion Here, A Trillion There”
August 27, 2018 by ·
The late Illinois Senator Everett Dirksen is reputed to have characterized the “Great Society” fiscal policy of the 1960s with the wry observation that “ A billion here, a billion there….and after a while it adds up to real money.” Fifty years later we add a few zeros and we’re talking trillions. Were it just the Federal… [Continue Reading]
The Passion Trap
August 19, 2018 by ·
“Follow your passion” may be in the top ten entries for career advice. It may also be the most dangerous. This short article from Forbes, “Why Following Your Passion is Dead”, takes this advice to task as nearly certain to ruin or at least damage lives and careers. The author’s challenge to Steve Jobs’ widely viewed… [Continue Reading]
