Who Holds the Leader? Why Authentic Leadership Needs Trusted Challenge
Publication: Authentic Leadership | decision making | leadership | leadership isolation | mentoring
Recently, several senior leaders have asked me for advice as they navigated genuinely difficult situations. There were complex relationships, competing expectations and decisions with no obvious or risk-free answer. I asked questions and challenged assumptions, offered analysis and different perspectives, and we worked through options. Yet when they later reflected on what had helped the […]
The Negotiation Trap That Starts Before The Conversation Begins
Publication: BATNA | decision making | influence | leadership | negotiation
Early in my career, I was involved in a high-stakes negotiation that required far more preparation than I had expected. Before we entered the room, we went through intensive negotiation training. We prepared the issues, mapped the stakeholders, tested our assumptions and rehearsed how the conversation might unfold. At that time, I thought that succeeding […]
The Blind Spot That Power Creates at the Negotiating Table
Publication: decision making | leadership | negotiation | Perspective-taking | power
In 2006, researchers from Northwestern University, New York University and Stanford ran a deceptively simple experiment. They handed participants a marker and asked them to draw the capital letter E on their own forehead. There are two ways to do it. You can orient the E so you can read it yourself, which produces a […]
When Doing Nothing is the Ultimate Productivity Hack
Publication: decision making | Doing Nothing | Productivity Multiplier
You don’t have to look too far to see conversations about productivity. From the recent Federal Government’s Productivity Summit (which ironically didn’t appear to be all that productive), to newspaper reports of slowing output. Productivity dominates today’s economic and political discourse. The assumption driving some of the debate is that more hours worked should translate […]
Are You Ready to be the Leader of Your Career?
Publication: Career leader | Career leader tips | Career readiness | decision making
Earlier this year, Roger Federer spoke at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire (USA). He asked the audience a question. “In the 1,526 singles matches I played in my career, I won almost 80 per cent of those matches…What percentage of the points do you think I won in those matches?” The answer was 54 per cent. “In […]
Do You Want to Have Greater Impact? If So, Get Curious
Publication: Curiosity Core Practices | decision making | Elevating Awareness | Great Impact
Curiosity – it’s a simple concept. Yet, as we advance in our careers we can find it harder to pursue. We stop questioning. We stop seeing exploring as a good use of time. Curiosity is abandoned for the comfort of ‘knowing’ and the desire to reach an answer as quickly and painlessly as possible. We base […]
Why You Need to Consciously Select Your Timing
Publication: decision making | Elevating Trust | Emotional intelligence | Foster connection
In life, timing is often crucial. Things can happen spontaneously or be planned, so if something goes well for you, is it just luck or something else? I’ve often found in life that the more I plan and the more effort I put into something, the more things are likely to work out. So it […]
Why You Need to Add Consensus Decision Making to Your Approach
Publication: Connection and Process | Consensus approach | decision making | Reflective Decisions
What comes to mind when you hear the phrase ‘consensus decision making’? Do you groan and think this will take too long and never get anywhere? Consensus decision making evokes images of long debates that never get anywhere or agreements that have been so watered down that they’re virtually meaningless. There’s also the argument that […]
Fast Company: A 7-point Strategy for Leaders to Approach Any Ethical Challenges
Publication: decision making | ethics | leadership
Taking the right approach to ethical challenges benefits your leadership, drives innovation, and creates a more sustainable platform for your organization to grow. Thanks to Fast Company, Michelle shares her 7-point strategy for leaders. Ethical challenges will arise in any business as leaders confront uncertainty, complexity, and new decisions as technology, particularly generative AI, changes […]
Chief of Staff: How to Get Better at Saying No at Work, and Why It Matters
Publication: decision making | performance | workplace
In this article for Chief of Staff, Michelle suggests, “When it comes to the ingredients for career success, people are often encouraged to think that they should say: “Yes!” to everything that comes their way. This may make those around you happy – but it’s unlikely to meet your needs.” As an in-demand EA, it is […]