Success should create leverage. A growing company has more talented people, deeper expertise, better systems, stronger relationships, and considerably more ability to create scale than it did when the founder was answering emails at midnight and serving as the unofficial head of sales, operations, recruiting and customer service. So, it can be genuinely frustrating when…
Growth is one of the clearest signs that a company’s leadership has been effective. A company gains traction because its leaders see an opportunity, make sound decisions with incomplete information, maintain high standards, respond quickly to problems, and keep people moving toward a future that is not yet fully visible. In the earliest stages, leadership…
Last week, a client described leaving a meeting embarrassed by their own sharp responses to colleagues. They described how much less patience they felt when others were speaking, “I couldn’t seem to hold back, I just kept interjecting where I normally would be listening. And forget asking questions, I don’t think I asked one.” A…
Leadership conversations today are filled with anxiety and uncertainty. Clients I partner with report higher levels of stress, worry and planning related to AI, interest rates, social changes and shifting global alliances. If you’re feeling off-kilter, you’re not alone. But understanding why our stress builds, what it does to our brain’s decision-making circuits and how…
Right now, bring your team to mind. Would someone’s resignation elicit a quiet sigh of relief? If someone immediately comes to mind, they may be draining your team’s energy – and your leadership attention. They might be creating frustrating cognitive friction and a continuous time drain on your team’s results. Conscientiousness is the personality pattern…
If you’re someone who performs at a high level, working at the edge of capacity while trying to keep burnout at bay, you’re in the right place. Maybe you’re an executive, a researcher, or an expert in your field aiming for leadership. Either way, you’ve set ambitious goals and achieved them. But maybe you’ve also…