Early in my career, I worked in the plastics industry as a process and product development engineer. At the time, I had a degree in chemical engineering, and I had just completed service as a nuclear engineering officer in the U.S. Navy. I had a pretty good technical background, and I knew almost nothing about polymers. This lack of knowledge created a bit of a problem for … Continue Reading
Recent Posts
Emotions are the Greatest Barrier to Change
I often say that facts dictate the need for change and emotions create the barrier to it. The issue of understanding and addressing the emotional factors that slow change efforts – both organizational and personal – appears in many ways across the landscape of change management and behavior change literature. Changing from one way of doing things (behavior) to a different … Continue Reading
DISC Model
Use the Right Style at the Right Time
Every stage of team development has different characteristics. These different characteristics mean that every stage calls for leaders to behave in different ways to support team growth. In From Bud to Boss, … Continue Reading
Using the DISC Model: Four Steps to Success with Others
The video pretty much says it all for this post. It quickly gives you four steps for applying the DISC model for success with others. In a nutshell, the four steps are... Understand the DISC … Continue Reading
Communication Skills
Three Ways to Deal with an Angry Person
How do you like dealing with an angry person? If you're like most of the people I know, you hate it. And, you occasionally have to do it. While some people seem to have a knack for helping others "back … Continue Reading
Three Communication Strategies Guaranteed to Irritate Others
In workshops and coaching conversations, I receive many questions about the right way to communicate an idea. Sadly, I cannot define the absolutely, most correct, “right” way to communicate an idea – … Continue Reading
Leadership Skills
You Have to Have a Goal to Achieve a Goal
One January day about thirteen years ago, I stepped on the scales in my bathroom, and I did not like the feedback I received. I was at the highest weight I had ever been in my life. My clothes were starting to … Continue Reading
The Leadership Secret to Getting More Done
One of the things I notice as I work with new leaders is a tendency to accept work practices and processes as fixed entities. In some cases, company procedures, processes and work practices are mandated from a … Continue Reading
Conflict Resolution
What a Diverted United Airlines Flight Can Teach You about Conflict Resolution
Shock and dismay are the best words I can use to describe my initial response to the news that a United Airlines flight from Newark to Denver had been diverted to Chicago due to a dispute between passengers over leg … Continue Reading
A Collection of Conflict Resolution Quotes
I love quotes. They often capture big concepts in only a few words. They give me "thought anchors" to help me collect and focus my thoughts. This is a quick video I put together to capture some great conflict … Continue Reading
