I’m a bit paranoid about work. My internal and external customers have short memories, changing demands and long expectations. That’s why our senior leadership team’s unpublished philosophy is: “We are always six months away from mediocrity.” I’m not trying to be a sky-is-falling pessimist, but if you think that “what got you here will get
I’m a control freak. See, I have this picture in my mind about my business, my kids, my wife, my health and my comfort. You want to see me anxious or angry? Mess with those pictures. Here’s an example. Last week my wife and I were up late creating a game plan to address some
This week, I wasn’t feeling particularly creative as I wrote this post. My instinct was to just fall back on the routine, to fill in the tried-and-true template. It’s efficient. It’s productive. The box is checked. When you have trouble pushing the boundaries, it’s easy to succumb to the pull of efficiency. Just look at
I caught myself telling a lie this week. Not only that, I realized something: I lie constantly. Oh, not to other people. With them, I usually tell the truth. But in my head, to myself, I’m often a liar. And I’ll bet you are, too. Here are some lies I was telling myself this week:
You have someone on your team who is checked out. He might be smiling, putting in his required hours and keeping busy, but his heart isn’t into it. He’s going through the motions. When this happens, studies show it’s likely due to one or more fundamental issues: The person has lost pride in the organization,
As the elevator opened to the fourth floor of the Graves 601 Hotel, my mind spun a web of excitement, nostalgia and anxiety. Earlier that day, my wife had asked me if I was nervous about attending my 20 year high school reunion. I had told her of course not. After all, I’m comfortable with
Last week, I introduced a four-step process for growth that I’ve seen work effectively in a variety of situations. But I realize taking the steps is often easier said than done, particularly when big obstacles stand in your way. That was the situation Beau Garrett faced four years ago. He’d just taken on the role
Life is about growth, whether you’re running a company, yourself or your family. If you’re not growing you’re either stagnating or falling behind. While it’s possible for growth to happen organically, it’s not something you can or should depend on. Positive growth—growth that leads to value—takes conscious effort. So how do you do it? To
Knowledge is power, so the saying goes. So when Matt DeKam, Senior Commodity Manager at Ingersoll Rand, told me that transparency has been one of the keys to his most successful supplier relationships, I was intrigued. After all, suppliers want to maximize profit, and buyers want to minimize cost. Can they really both meet their
We talk a lot about employee engagement and its connection to organizational results. And substantial research shows that employees are more engaged when they feel valued by their supervisor, senior leaders and company culture. But does it matter if our vendors are engaged? Will it affect their productivity and commitment if they feel valued? Peder
Matt Norman is president of Norman & Associates, which offers Dale Carnegie Training in the North Central US. Dale Carnegie Training is a global organization ...READ MORE